McFarlane resigns from Integrity Commission

Jeffrey McFarlane is no longer a member of the Integrity Commission of Trinidad & Tobago.

The chief executive of the National Insurance Board ended the controversy over his appointment as Deputy Chairman of the commission Wednesday by returning his warrant of appointment to the president.

A brief release the government information service said, "The Office of the President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago acknowledges receipt from Mr. Jeffrey McFarlane of his return of the warrant of appointment in respect of the Integrity Commission.

"The Office of the President advises the public that that office, in respect of which Mr. McFarlane returned his warrant, is vacant."

The new Integrity commission has been in the midst of a controversy from the moment it was sworn in last Friday, primarily over the role of McFarlane.

He himself admitted that he didn't even know that he was to be Deputy Chairman until he was handed the document to take the oath of office. That post was supposed to go to another member, retired appeal court justice Zainool Hosein, who quit shortly after being formally appointed saying the president reneged on his offer to appoint him as Deputy Chairman.

Then the commission decided to meet without its fifth member. But on Monday when the commissioners met McFarlane advised that he would not take part in the meeting and asked the chairman, Fr. Henry Charles, to seek legal advice on the matter.

The problem was that under the provisions of the Integrity in Public Life Act McFarlane was not qualified to be a member of the commission by virtue of his involvement in multiple statutory boards. That issue was first raised by Siparia MP and former Attorney General Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who wrote to the president asking that McFarlane's appointment be rescinded.

Opposition Leader Basdeo Panday has said he would suggest names to fill the two vacant seats in the commission if asked. He was supposed to give his feedback on the original list that included McFarlane. But he said his office misplaced the letter from the president seeking his advice on the matter and he only learned about it after the deadline passed for commenting on the list.

Read the background to the whole story: McFarlane won't sit on Integrity Commission...