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Union President Not Impressed With GOB Version of Senate Inquiry
posted (September 15, 2016)
We also asked the president about the Government backpedalling on the issue of allowing a Senate Probe to look into the Auditor General's reports on corrupt immigration practices.

He told us that he is not impressed because the composition should resemble what it was during the SSB and DFC inquiries of 2005. Here's how he explained why:

Luke Palacio, National President, B.N.T.U.
"It is common knowledge that whenever something of this magnitude happens in this country, the Prime Minister will make every effort to try and see how he can quell it but to his benefit. The constitution is clear. There should be a senate select committee to investigate those matters. Cabinet has decided that okay we go with the senate select committee. The constitution did not say that the cabinet is to decide if the senate select committee should be or not be. The constitution dictates that and now you note this morning for instance the Minister of Police was saying on another media house that they have to use the constitution in conjunction section 69 or 61 whatever it was in conjunction with some section 70 which says because of the composition of the senate that the government must have the majority on the senate select committee. And what they've done, they've said okay we are not saying that the government will end up with the majority you know, but they are saying that the government must have two government senators and the opposition has 1 senator along with the 3 social partners. So that the government is still outnumbered. That is not what happened in 2005 when they did the Social Security and the DFC senate inquiry. So why must it be different now? And that is the question and that again for the persons out there they may believe yea its true, that is the simple math. But why was it good back then and now it must be different when you are dealing with the same senate select committee to decide and investigate an impropriety that has been allege to happen?"

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