‘It was the Al Rawi show’

Mark Adams was addressing a press conference at the chambers of attorney for the United National Congress (UNC) Wayne Sturge, Richmond Street, Port-of-Spain, which was carried live on State-owned media company, CNMG before it was abruptly cut off on-air without explanation. Adams said he tried to serve Al-Rawi at his office, on St Vincent Street, Port-of-Spain however, he was denied access. Adams said he tried contacting Al Rawi on the phone but was unsuccessful.

Given the short time frame, Adams said he took the “initiative” and reluctantly went to the funeral.

Adams said he waited until the funeral was finished before approaching the Attorney General. “While the Attorney General was walking walking down the aisle, I was behind him walking out and I touched him. I said, ‘Attorney General hello, I have some documents for you, I am waiting outside’ and he went off on me,” Adams said.

He claimed Al-Rawi publicly ridiculed him, while he, (Adams) stood there without saying a word. Contrary to reports that he threw the documents at Al-Rawi’s feet, Adams said he bowed and respectfully laid it at his feet. “It was like the Al Rawi show!” Adams who has been a process server for the six years, said that at no time was he ever directed by any member of the UNC or any member of the legal team to serve the documents at the funeral.

Adams also served MPs for Toco/Sangre Grande Glenda Jennings- Smith, Morgua/ Tableland, Dr Lovell Francis, St Joseph, Terrence Deyalsing, La Horquetta/Talparo, Maxi Cuffie and Tunapuna, Esmund Forde with the election petition.

He said, he served, Jennings-Smith, Cuffie and Francis at the national day of prayer event on Thursday last at the Queen’s Park Savannah. He claimed after serving Jennings-Smith, she tried to return the documents through an usher. “The usher saw me and said that Jennings- Smith sent back the document and I said to her cannot receive it, it is a legal document, it is part of a process, so she says to me, what do I do with it, I say return it to her,” he said.

He said when he approached Cuffie and Francis, they looked at him with scorn.

“It was almost as if nobody wanted to receive the document,” Adams said.

He claimed when he served Forde, he was “very evasive” while Deylasingh was “very abusive” towards him.

Sturge who also addressed the press conference said two letters were written by another member of the legal team, Gerald Ramdeen to PNM attorney- at-law Michael Quamina and PNM General Secretary Ashton Forde requesting that an arrangement me made for the six MPs to be present at a place and time convenient to them in order to serve the petition in a “dignified and diplomatic manner.” In response, Quamina indicated that his instructions were that service should be effected personally and he did not receive any authorisation or instructions to accept service on behalf of the MPs. In response, Al-Rawi, in an interview with CNC3 news, said it was “most unfortunate that the UNC has taken to having a public display of something which is entirely untrue.

“My own confirmation is that none of these events are true.

There is an old saying that me think thou dost protest too much, I think TT is well capable of discerning fats from fiction, the fact is that the process server did engage in service in the middle of a funeral service and that is entirely inappropriate.

I don’ t think anyone in Trinidad can possible believe that I would berate a human being in a manner that this gentleman suggest that I did. It is an extension of a desperate attempt by the UNC to make some sense of their political venture of this election petition is destined to be a sincere failure on the part of those who seek to prosecute it. It is unfortunate that is has gotten to this point,” he said.