Lucky report on Uff probe blames former AG, others

Justice Anthony Lucky has presented his report to Attorney General John Jeremie dealing with the failure of government authorities to gazette the Commission of Enquiry into UDeCOTT and the construction sector.

A report in the Trinidad Express quotes unnamed sources as saying that the Lucky report blames former Attorney General Bridgid Annisette-George and Senior Counsel to the Commission, Seenath Jairam, among a list of people who may have been responsible for the error.

The inquiry was halted after it was revealed that it had no legal standing because it was not gazetted as required by law. Government corrected the problem by passing a validation bill in Parliament to give the inquiry retroactive legality.

The report to Jeremie was delivered as the commission ended its hearings after two days. The commissioners now begin the process of writing their report for the president, which is due not later that February 28 next year.

One of the issues covered in the two final days in the fourth phase of the probe was the alleged missing $10 million from the Cleaver Heights Housing project that Prime Minister Patrick Manning first raised in Parliament last year, suggesting that his former cabinet colleague Dr Keith Rowley should explain what happened to the money.

Manning later raised the sum to $20 million, but the inquiry found no evidence to support the claim and ended with a conclusion that the no money was ever missing.