(Trinidad Guardian) Police Commissioner Dwayne Gibbs has retained the services of attorney Dana Seetahal, SC, as questions have surfaced about the fairness of the methods and criteria the Police Service Commission (PSC) used to appraise his performance. This latest development has come on the heels of a letter written by Deputy Police Commissioner in charge of Operations, Jack Ewatski, who refused to sign his performance appraisal, branding it “seriously flawed.” Ewatski’s concerns were reflected in a six-page letter, dated February 29, 2012, and addressed to the commission’s chairman, Professor Ramesh Deosaran.
It was copied to National Security Minister John Sandy, director of Personnel Administration, Gloria Edwards-Joseph, and commission members Martin George, Jacqueline Cheesman, Kenneth Parker and Addison Khan. Ewatski said yesterday he was yet to receive a response from either Deosaran or any of the others to whom the letter was sent.
A source close to Gibbs yesterday revealed that the top cop, through Seetahal, also wrote the commission a letter.
Addressed to Deosaran, the letter requested a copy of Gibbs’ performance appraisal and details of the measurements have arisen as to the fairness of the process the commission used to choose junior officers whose views were sought for a survey on Gibbs’s management and human-resource skills. Ewatski also has written to the commission requesting a copy of his performance appraisal but has not received any reply. When contacted, Seetahal said she could not comment as it would amount to a breach of client/attorney confidentiality.
A source close to the commission also has expressed concerns about the methods used in carrying out the appraisals. “What I expressed didn’t matter because the majority had the say,” the source added. Gibbs, the source said, had been putting up a brave front, especially after Deosaran repeatedly accused him of being “disrespectful” when Deosaran appeared at a parliamentary Joint Select Committee sitting three weeks ago. Sources close to him said they believed Gibbs also was being unfairly criticised when Deosaran branded his leadership style and management of the Police Service as “unsatisfactory.” “He (Gibbs) has not taken these accusations very well but he is performing the best that he could given the circumstances,” the source added.
