PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC- An opposition legislator, who allegedly assisted a witness by editing his submission ahead of his appearance before the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC), Friday announced that she had tendered her resignation from the Senate.
Attorney Janelle John-Bates, in offering her resignation, also apologized to the Senate and the public, and her resignation comes even as the main opposition People’s National Movement (PNM) announced it had replaced her on the PAAC.
Media reports said the allegations of improper conduct surfaced after former health minister Deyalsingh inadvertently submitted a Word document with visible “Track Changes” edits and comments.
John-Bates told the Senate that over the past few weeks she has been the subject of much ”public commentary, criticism and speculation arising out of matters connected to my role on the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee”.
She said that from the time she had taken her oath as a legislator, she had sought to “ discharge my duties with integrity, in good faith and in the public interest.
“I recognize that my involvement in this matter has given rise to public concern and has contributed to a level of controversy that risks distracting from the important work of this Honorable Parliament and from the issues affecting the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
“For that, I apologize unequivocally to the citizens of our country and to the members of this Senate. It was not my intention to obstruct or impede the work of the committee or the Parliament, and I deny that I conspired to commit a contempt of Parliament”.
The practicing civil, criminal, and family law attorney said that she remains committed to the principles of integrity, fairness, and respect for the rule of law that have guided “my professional life and I will continue to uphold those values in my service to this country.
“I hereby inform the Senate and the national community that I have offered my resignation to the Honorable Leader of the Opposition,” she said.
The PNM has yet to make a public statement on her resignation.
Earlier this week, the Joint Select Committee on National Security said it had been forced to suspend its sitting after the chairman, Saddam Hosein, said the meeting could not proceed due to an issue involving another committee of the Parliament.
Media reports said the suspension was due to objections to John-Bates’s presence during deliberations on sensitive security matters. The reports said that a member of the committee had questioned her integrity, citing her involvement in a situation on another committee from which she was recently removed by the Opposition Leader, Pennelope Beckles.
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