Nanda Gopaul, Emily Dodson among proposed members of procurement commission

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament is proposing the following five persons to compose the long-awaited Public Procurement Commission (PPC): Emily Dodson, Carol Corbin, Sukrishnalall Pasha, Ivor B. English and Dr. Nanda K. Gopaul.

Eliminated from the shortlist of 12 were former auditor general Anand Goolsarran and chartered accountant and attorney Christopher Ram. Goolsarran and Ram have been longstanding public commentators on governance issues and were both seen to have the requisite credentials to be on the commission.

The five names would have been settled as a result of hard bargaining between APNU+AFC and the PPP/C in the PAC. There has to be complete agreement on the names as the quintet require two-thirds support of the National Assembly. The report is to be considered at Thursday’s sitting of the National Assembly, according to the Order Paper.

Dodson is an experienced attorney at law. Corbin had worked for some time with the Privatisation Unit. Pasha has served as the Chairman of the Small Business Council. Gopaul, a longstanding trade unionist served in the former PPP/C government as a Minister of Labour. English is a former General Manager of the Transport and Harbours Department.

The others who were on the shortlist of 12 were Balwant Persaud, Devan Khemraj, Robeson Benn, Cecil Jacques and E Lance Carberry.