Mahipaul to appear before PSC’s disciplinary tribunal to answer four charges; rejects composition of tribunal

Mahipaul to appear before PSC’s disciplinary tribunal to answer four charges; rejects composition of tribunal
Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Ganesh Mahipaul will today appear before a disciplinary tribunal to answer to four charges, which allege that in his capacity as a Community Development Officer, under the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, he violated his oath of office and leaked state secrets, among other things.
Mahipaul is scheduled to appear before the three-member tribunal at 13:30hrs at Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development Extension Office, located on Camp Street. The tribunal, which was established by the Public Service Commission (PSC), is being headed by Naeem Khan, Coordinator of Engineering Services at the Ministry of Local Government.

When contacted by Village Voice News on Monday, Mahipaul, who has been in the employ of the Ministry of Local Government for close to six years, confirmed that he will be appearing before the disciplinary tribunal.
In a letter dated November 3, 2020, the Local Government Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Prema Ramanah Roopnarine laid the four charges – violation of an oath or affirmation of office, two counts of absent from duty without leave or adequate excuse, and divulging official information of a secret or confidential nature where the duties do not require a public servant to do so – before Mahipaul.
However, while maintaining that he has not breached the rules and regulations of the public service, Mahipaul, from the onset, expressed no confidence in the tribunal.

“I have no confidence in the tribunal because the members of the tribunal are members of the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, and it is the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development who is accusing me of wrong doing, and these very staff members who are a part of the tribunal are also staff members under her watch,” Mahipaul explained.
Mahipaul, who represents A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) in the National Assembly, is convinced that the charges are politically motivated and are baseless and without merit.
“I believe all of this is [Minister Nigel] Dharamlall’s dealing and it is the revenge he is seeking because I released information pertaining to his son getting contracts from the ministry on his (Dharamlall) instruction,” Mahipaul told Village Voice News.

In laying the first charge, the Permanent Secretary told Mahipaul that he allowed himself to be named as a candidate on the APNU+AFC List of Candidates for the 2020 General Elections, when such constitutes a breach and violation of his oath of office to be impartial.

But the Community Development Officer, while denying all four charges, said he took no such oath. “First of all, I [have] never signed an oath of office; I was never presented with such,” he had said in an earlier interview.
But that aside, Mahipaul said the charge amounts to a breach of his constitutional right as a citizen of Guyana, as he referenced to Article 147 (1) of the Constitution of Guyana.
Article 147 (1), in part, states that except with his or her own consent, no person shall be hindered from forming part of political parties, trade unions or other associations for the protection of his or her interests.
“So clearly the constitution gives me that right to be affiliated with a political party, and to claim that I put my name on a List of Candidates in violation of some oath of office, which I have never seen, I think is out of order, and it violates my constitutional right as a Guyanese to associate with a political party,” Mahipaul contended.
He accused the Ministry and the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government of engaging in a cherry-picking exercise that seeks to marginalize and victimize professional men and women aligned to the main opposition party – the APNU+AFC.

He also rejected the second and third charges, which allege that he was absent from duty without leave or adequate excuse. Additionally, the Local Government Ministry accused Mahipaul of being absent from duty without the requisite approval between the period August 3-14, 2020 but the Development Officer said this is far from the truth. According to him, during that period, he had reported for duty at the Region Three Regional Democratic Council (RDC) Office, where he had been assigned since 2017. He said the then REO and DREO could attest to this, but they have since been fired.

The fourth and final charge dealt with the “leaking” of state secrets. It is alleged that on August 10, 2020, Mahipaul published confidential information of the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development on his Facebook page.

“The information being services provided by Design Unlimited for the production of business cards, compliment slips and design and installation of a sign board for the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development,” the Permanent Secretary explained, while claiming that Mahipaul breached the Public Service Rules.
But Mahipaul, in arguing that there is no breach, described the charge as “frivolous.”

“This charge is frivolous. Frivolous because the Procurement Act of 2003, specifies under Section 10 that all contracts awarded must be publicly done, the information must be made public as to who are the contractors, the address and the particulars of the contract,” Mahipaul submitted.