PSC members promote officers and escape jail

A LAST-MINUTE decision by members of the Public Services Commission (PSC) to promote three prison officers and avoid possible imprisonment for contempt of court, was described by Justice Carlton Best as “a pyrrhic victory.” He said the prison officers’ victory was won at too great a cost to have been worthwhile.

The officers filed contempt of court proceedings against the PSC  two weeks ago for failure to promote them. When the matter came up for hearing yesterday in the San Fernando High Court, an attorney for the PSC, Mitra Bhimsingh, informed Justice Best that immediately after the contempt documents were served on January 16 on each of the five members of the Commission, they held an emergency meeting and approved the promotion of the prison officers.

Last September Justice Mira Dean-Armorer ordered the Commission to promote prison officers Charles Vernon Frederick, Mookish Pulliah, Shamshuddin Mohammed, Adrian Pascal, Wilbert Lovell and Kundan Nancoo. The Commissioner of Prisons had recommended that the officers be promoted, but the PSC failed to do so despite the judge’s ruling. Contempt proceedings, ordering a High Court judge to commit each of the commissioners to prison, were served on Kenneth Lalla, Maurice St John, Sakal Seemungal, Gerard Pemberton and Neil Rolingson.