Prospective members of the Integrity Commission may not want to serve under the leadership of chairman Ken Gordon, attorney Israel Khan, SC, said yesterday. Khan was commenting on the implications of a meeting between Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley and Gordon, which took place at Gordon’s Glencoe home days before Rowley presented his no-confidence motion in Parliament last month. Khan said: “I am duly informed that two prospective members of the commission have indicated that they do not want to serve under him.”
He described the issue over Gordon’s leadership as the “new dimension in the Emailgate imbroglio.” He did not reveal the names of the prospective members and the source of his information.
The term of the previous commission ended in March, except for Gordon, whose three-year term ends in 2014. Gordon was appointed chairman by then President George Maxwell Richards after his predecessor, Dr Eric St Cyr, controversially resigned in October 2011. The previous members are Gladys Gafoor, Dr Ann-Marie Bissessar, Neil Rolingson and Seunarine Jokhoo. In an interview on June 9, President Anthony Carmona announced that the new members would be named and appointed within two weeks.
Khan said he was almost certain that Gordon would resign because of the controversy over the meeting. “Ken Gordon is a proud but vain man. You can rest assured that he, on his own volition, would tender his resignation as Integrity Commission chairman,” Khan said. “He is well aware that history will not absolve him from the perceived compromise of the independence of the commission...he would want to keep his legacy pristine.” Khan has been retained by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to represent her interests in the police probe into the e-mail fiasco which was revealed by Rowley during his motion. The probe is being led by Deputy Police Commissioner (DCP) Mervyn Richardson. During the debate on May 20, Rowley called for the Integrity Commission to investigate the series of e-mails which allegedly implicate several senior government officials.