P.U.P. wants ComPol Allen Whylie to criminally investigate Elvin Penner

Dean Barrow

The P.U.P. chose this less travelled route of seeking a writ of Mandamus because the party has maintained that it has exhausted all other options, legal and political. But is there another option? At a press conference last week Prime Minister Dean Barrow scoffed at the P.U.P. plan to seek judicial review, saying their case has absolutely no merit. The P.M. went so far as to call it political showboating, stating that if the Opposition were serious, they would proceed with a private prosecution instead of grandstanding.

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Prime Minister Dean Barrow [File: February 17^th, 2014]

“And I think furthermore proof positive that this is political grandstanding is had when you refer to the fact that the P.U.P., the Opposition, is able to mount a private prosecution. If they feel so strongly that there is evidence to justify a prosecution, lodge a private prosecution. That’s perfectly in order, it’s their entitlement. The D.P.P. could, if that is done, intervene if she thinks that it is without merit, but that is most unlikely given the comments that I hear attributed to the D.P.P. So why don’t they just proceed with a private prosecution.”

Francis Fonseca

Francis Fonseca, P.U.P. Leader

“When you ask me that I am reminded of the Amandala editorial which referred to the Prime Minister as making a public fool of himself, and when he made those comments he was once again making a public fool of himself. It is not for the Opposition to carry out an investigation into Penner. The entire country is demanding that he does his job. He is the Prime Minister of this country. He is charged with the responsibility of upholding the rule of law in this country. It is his responsibility. So for him to suggest that we must carry out some private action is absolute nonsense, and again the question is…why is he refusing to do his job….why is he refusing? Why is he continuing to protect Penner? Why is he continuing to protect other people who are alleged to be involved in this U.D.P. immigration scandal? We have exhausted every option available to us. We have asked the government to carry out the investigation, to carry out a Senate inquiry and investigation and they have refused, they have blocked that. We have called on the Commissioner of Police to carry out an investigation. He has refused to answer. So we are left with no other option but to go to the courts and force them to carry out an investigation into this matter, and that is what this application is all about. We are not in a position to call Mr. Penner and get evidence from Mr. Penner and to summon the Prime Minister and to get evidence from him and to question him and to question Mr. Hulse and all of these other individuals and to question the public officers involved. The Commissioner of Police can do that.”

In the immigration scandal, three public officers have been suspended from work and appear before the Services Commission last week. Their fate will be known at a later date.