The Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago’s decision to revisit the High Court order is an attempt to project itself as a good corporate citizen but it is not convincing, chairman of Transparency International Victor Hart said yesterday.

’UDeCOTT, having spent millions of dollars of taxpayers money to fight a taxpayers’-funded commission of enquiry set up by Cabinet in response to citizens’ concerns, is now offering citizens a palliative by promising to find ways and means of softening the effects of the order it succeeded in getting last Friday. Instead of a suspension of all aspects of the enquiry until February 2010, UDeCOTT will seek to have the order amended to better secure ’the public’s right to information’.’

Citizens are expected to say, ’Thank you, UDeCOTT, for giving us what we are already entitled to under the country’s constitution and laws’. Instead, citizens should say to UDeCOTT, ’Your offer is too little too late-thanks but no thanks.’’

Hart said civil society should demand nothing less than prompt action by the corporation sole, in the person of the minister of finance, to replace the UDeCOTT board of directors by one that will withdraw all legal challenges against the enquiry.

Meanwhile, Chaguanas West MP Jack Warner said yesterday there must be no horse-trading or compromise in the pursuit of truth, transparency, accountability, justice and the protection of the public’s interest.

Warner was commenting on reports that the UDeCOTT board will consider seeking a variation of the court’s interim order to remove the stay, but the order would have a requirement that it be given 28 days notice if the Uff Commission of Enquiry intends to hold another sitting, receive evidence or to submit a report of its findings.

’If this condition is granted, the work of the commission will still remain obstructed since the tenure of the commission has less than 28 days left, so unless there is an extension of the commission’s tenure, the commission will not be able to receive critical evidence that remains outstanding,’ Warner said.