(Trinidad Express) Activist and businessman Inshan Ishmael has been granted permission from the High Court to file judicial review proceedings against the Office of the Commissioner of Police.
The legal action is in relation to the commissioner’s failure or refusal to provide information to him regarding how much money the TTPS paid to private garages to have its vehicles repaired.
Ishmael, whose business also provided such services to the TTPS, requested the information, last July, under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) but, to date, the information has not been forthcoming.
The businessman is seeking to obtain a breakdown of payments to all private service and repair garages from January 2019 to July 2022; a complete list of garages the police used for that period; when contracts began; and the cost of outfitting a new vehicle with decals, sirens, lights, cameras and communication equipment.
After making the request and receiving no response, Ishmael, through his attorney Richard Jaggasar, issued a follow-up letter to the commissioner’s office warning that if the information was not provided, action would be filed at the High Court.
In a subsequent res-ponse, the TTPS informed Jaggasar that it did not have sight of the initial request and asked for additional time to make a decision on whether or not the information could be disclosed.
Other requests for extensions of time were also made.
In his application for leave, Ishmael said he was seeking several orders and declarations from the court including that the continued failure to make a decision on the request was unlawful and in breach of the law, as well as an order for him to be provided with the documents.
On Thursday, the matter came up for hearing before Justice Carol Gobin who indicated that she had granted leave to Ishmael since January to file his judicial review claim.
However, the judge said an administrative error at the court resulted in Jaggasar and his client not being made aware of this.
Based on the circumstances, Justice Gobin extended the time for Jaggasar to have the claim filed and served on the office of the police commissioner.
The judge also encouraged attorneys for both sides to engage in discussions in an attempt to arrive at an agreement. The matter will next be called on March 20.
