PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, Jun 21 – Embattled Chairman of the Integrity Commission, Ken Gordon, Friday refused to step down despite calls for him to do so following his decision to meet with Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley as the controversy over the “emailgate” scandal continues here unabated.
In a lengthy statement, Gordon said “the inflammatory and highly irresponsible statements which have been made coupled with the distortions of fact are to be deeply regretted” and that the “meeting was held in full accordance with the Integrity in Public Life Act, one of the Laws of Trinidad and Tobago”.
Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar met with President Anthony Carmona on Thursday but would not divulge the nature of the hour-long meeting.
She told reporters that she was “not at liberty to discuss the details of the meeting.
“I have no further statement on this matter, I raised my concerns with His Excellency and I am not at liberty to disclose the details of our discussion”,
But earlier in the week, as she addressed a meeting of her ruling United National Congress (UNC) – the biggest partner in the three-party coalition government –Persad Bissessar said that Rowley’s “secret” meeting with Gordon, ahead of his disclosure of the emails in Parliament last month “strikes at the very heart of our system of governance and the independence of our institutions in this country”. (CMC)
