Retired Assistant Police Commissioner and Chairman of the Police Service Commission Paul Slowe on Monday broke his silence on the ongoing issue relating to the fraud charges against him.

During a press conference with his Attorney, Selwyn Pieters, Slowe detailed the events which he said led to the allegations and subsequent charge against him. He believes the charges against him are politically motivated and related to his refusal to have the President influence promotions in the Guyana Police Force through the Police Service Commission.

Meeting with the President.

Mr. Slowe said in September last year he met with President Ali. At that meeting, Slowe said, the President tried to persuade him that some members of the force- specifically Senior Superintendents Calvin Brutus and Fazil Karimbaksh be promoted to Assistant Commissioners.

Slowe said he informed the President that there is a process which must be followed before persons are promoted.

“It was clear at that meeting that the President wanted me to use my influence at the Commission to have those persons promoted. I advised the President… that the commission has certain rules, one of those rules is that if a person has a pending disciplinary matter the person is not eligible for promotion,” Slowe said he told the President. 

Both Brutus and Karimbaksh had pending disciplinary matters before the Commission.

Mr. Slowe detailed how, he was contacted by someone he knows and was told that the Attorney General wants to meet with him but was afraid to reach out to him directly.

He said he informed the person that he is prepared to reach with the AG but made it clear that he will not be taking or carrying out any illegal orders.

Slowe said in December last year the Police Service Commission met to consider promotions for officers after receiving recommendations from the Guyana Police Force.

He said several ranks were recommended for promotions and in compiling the shortlist, the PSC took into consideration that both Brutus and Karimbaksh had outstanding disciplinary matters and therefore they were not given the green light for promotions.

He said after the President became aware that the two Senior Superindendants names were not on the list, the President called him directly inquiring why “his people” were not on the promotion list.

He said the President was irate in the conversation.

“He wanted to know why his people, Brutus and Karimbaksh were not on the shortlist, I went through the same thing about the disciplinary process, and he was very very upset, he said people have these matters pending how long would they be pending,” Slowe recalled.

Given all that has taken place, Mr. Slowe said he has no doubt that the charges and allegation against him and the Commissioners are to remove them from the Commission and to replace it with a Commission favorable to the Government.

“The charge and the allegation are a diabolical plan by politicians and some dishonest, vindictive and corrupt senior police officers to remove me and Mr. Conway from the Police Service Commission,” Slowe said.

Attorney Selwyn Pieters who is representing Mr. Slowe said the President’s intervention is unprecedented and amounts to illegality.

“ This case will be quite an interesting case in terms of constitutional and public law because I don’t think we have had evidence of a President so involved in a constitutional service commission and this President has with Mr. Slowe’s matter,” Slowe said.

In response to the Prime Minister’s request for Slowe and Conway to show reason why he (the Prime Minister) should not recommend their removal from the Police Service Commission, Slowe and Conway through their Attorney have dispatched a more than 500-page document to the Prime Minister.

The Attorney said even if the Government decides to go ahead and begin a process to remove the two members of the Police Service Commission, it is a long process that could take months.

The life of the current Police Service Commission expires in August.

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