The Tribune

By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Marvin Dames has dismissed claims that the Minnis administration is ordering the Royal Bahamas Police Force’s Anti-Corruption Unit to solely target members of the former Christie administration, as he insisted: “We’re not investigating, the police are.”

Mr Dames, in an interview with The Tribune, said there is “no need to be concerned” over potential bias in the RBPF’s Anti-Corruption Unit, as he said the police “are free to investigate whatever they want to investigate,” and the “framework” exists for police to investigate any matters of alleged impropriety against any public official.

Mr Dames also dismissed suggestions that the RBPF’s new unit only investigates matters that occurred within the five years under the former PLP government.

To that end, Mr Dames cautioned members of the public not to be pulled into a “political tug-of-war” on the issue.

Mr Dames’ statements come amidst concerns in some circles, most notably those associated with the PLP, that the RBPF’s Anti-Corruption Unit is merely a tool that the Minnis administration is using to conduct a “witch hunt” for members of the former Perry Christie-led government.

When questioned by The Tribune on the Anti-Corruption Unit’s scope of operations, and whether it extends beyond investigating former government officials, Mr Dames responded by saying: “Any matters that come before it, it will investigate it.”

“There’s no need to be concerned whether there is a level of bias,” he continued. “We’re not investigating, the police (are). Ours is that we (the FNM) said that a part of our platform will be that we will tackle corruption in all sectors. That’s what we said. Our expectation now, is that we expect the police to follow our policies. And so they’ll have to do whatever they need to.

“We talked about introducing anti-corruption legislation, that will come very shortly. And so while we await that there is a framework for the police to investigate.

“I don’t know why one would think now it’s tainted with bias. Police are free to investigate whatever they want to investigate. One of the things that we have to be careful of in this country is we have to be careful not to allow ourselves to be pulled into a political tug-of-war. That because the opposition says ‘oh, it’s politically driven’, and then everyone says ‘oh, maybe it’s politically driven’. Where is the evidence?”

When pressed by The Tribune on whether the Anti-Corruption Unit is restricted to investigating alleged instances of impropriety that occurred during the Christie administration’s most recent stint in office, Mr Dames said: “They don’t have a cutoff period. The police have a mandate and theirs is clear, it’s articulated in law, and their responsibility is to follow that mandate. There is no cutoff period for anything. They investigate, determine whether evidence exists, and where it exists then they take the necessary course (of action).”

For several months before the May 10 general election, stamping out acts of corruption was a common theme upon which now Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis capitalised.

Since the FNM took office, claims of wrongdoing allegedly committed under the former Christie administration have continued to surface. Last month, the RBPF’s Anti-Corruption Unit was said to be investigating 11 files from various government departments and public corporations.

When questioned by a reporter for an update on the investigations, Mr Dames said: “That’s entirely up to the (RBPF) to bring you up to date on.

“I know they have quite a bit of matters before them that would have been reported and matters that would have come to their attention,” he added. “The commissioner had indicated some time ago that they continue to investigate, and you know the job of law enforcement is to investigate.

“At the end of the day there may be some matters where they see that there is not sufficient evidence to proceed, and then there are other matters where they will decide that it is necessary to put before the courts, (where) there is sufficient evidence.

“This is nothing new and the police force continues to work with the office of the attorney general on these matters. And so we’ll all sit and wait and see what the determination would be in relation to all of these matters that are before them.”