(Trinidad Express) Minister of National Security, Brigadier John Sandy on Thursday night became the second Government Minister to apologise for telling the Parliament and the country that former Strategic Services Agency (SSA) director Reshmi Ramnarine was a graduate of the University of the West Indies, when she was not. In a short statement, Sandy said he never intended to mislead the Parliament or the public. His apology comes hours before yesterday’s sitting of Parliament at which Sandy was expected to apologise again.
Prior to Thursday’s apology, Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley had signalled his intention to raise the issue by asking the House Speaker to send Sandy to the Privileges Committee for misleading the Parliament.
On Tuesday, Legal Affairs Minister Prakash Ramadhar apologised for saying that Ramnarine had a degree in Information Technology and was pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in psychology, neither of which was true.
“I want to apologise to the nation if in any way I would have said anything that led anyone to believe that which I honestly held based on the information I was given”.
In Parliament last week Foreign Affairs Minister Surujrattan Rambachan who also very vehement in his insistence of Ramnarine’s university qualifications and suitability for the job, has also stated that he would be willing to apologise and to do so in Parliament at today’s sitting.
“If something has to be corrected, on Friday I will correct it,” Rambachan stated on Wednesday.
This leaves Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who is also chairman of the National Security Council and the Cabinet, as the only one who is refusing to apologise for the Ramnarine blunder.
On Wednesday Persad-Bissessar said she had no intention of making Rowley “happy” by giving an apology on the matter.
“She (Ramnarine) has now resigned, now let us move forward,” she said on Tuesday.
Even the President’s Office has admitted that it made an error on this issue.
In a statement on Wednesday it stated that it had made an error when it released information that instruments of appointment were given for the head of the Security Intelligence Agency to Ramnarine and later corrected the position as that of Director of the Strategic Services Agency.
Over the past few months, there have been apologies from Justice Minister Herbert Volney for statements made about Chief Justice Ivor Justice.
Dr Gopeesingh has apologised for statements made about Rowley being a defendant in a matter.
And Sport Minister Anil Roberts has given a qualified apology for statements relating to the concert of Trinidad born rap artiste Nicki Minaj.