Independent Senator Michael Annisette was called in by President George Maxwell Richards to a meeting on Tuesday, the Express has learnt.

This meeting arose following Annisette’s recent controversial interventions in the Senate with respect to the Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (UDeCOTT), and the news conference held by directors in which Annisette participated on Monday. It also follows upon a letter by businessman Emile Elias to the President, in which he alleged that Annisette was abusing his position as an independent senator to attack him, and his company, NH International.

It is also understood that concerns were expressed by some of his colleagues on the Independent bench to the President.

Sources said yesterday that the President’s action suggested that he had serious concerns about Annisette’s performance, and that he might have cautioned him about his strident utterances or was reviewing his (Annisette’s) position as an Independent Senator.

Asked yesterday whether he met with the President, Annisette replied: ’Is that a fact? Okay. And what else?’

Asked whether he might be leaving the Senate, Annisette said: ’I am not aware of that ...That has not been communicated to me.’

Asked whether the President expressed concerns about his recent utterances which resulted in a formal letter from Elias to revoke his appointment, Annisette said: ’I cannot answer that. You would have to talk to the President since he received that letter. Okay? I cannot talk for the President, okay.’

Noting he was in the middle of a meeting with National Flour Mills workers, he added, ’Call me back in a while.’

The level of controversy surrounding Annisette is unusual for an independent senator. Typically, Independent Senators do not attract controversy of this nature.

Parliamentary commentators yesterday expressed alarm at the extent to which Annisette had personalised his comments when discussing the UDeCOTT issue.

For the last two debates-the Budget and the Validation and Immunity Bill-Annisette’s contributions reflected more of his role as a UDeCOTT board member rather than that of an independent senator appointed by the President, sources noted.

He consistently chose to identify himself as a board member in both debates.

’We at UDeCOTT have never said that we do not want an enquiry. We subjected ourselves to open examination...We are saying...we are subject to all the rules and regulations ...Do not make the public believe that we are misusing public money. We are following the law. In one breath you are saying that we are a runaway horse, we are not following the law; and when we follow the law, (you are saying) we are misusing public money...As I said, we have no issue with the Bill; all we are simply saying is that the Bill must be done in such a way that it would not expose us to further scrutiny,’ Annisette stated.

Speaking of Annisette’s contribution, a former Independent Senator stated: ’An Independent Senator does not go to the Senate to represent himself and he has been representing himself and that is a disservice to the institution of independent senatorship.’