OPPOSITION Senator Wade Mark says the public has been ’severely shortchanged’ due to the lack of human resources provided for the Police Complaints Authority and the non-appointment of a director and deputy director because of a ’gross dereliction of duty’ by the Government.

He was speaking yesterday at a Joint-Select Committee meeting on the Public Complaints Authority at the Red House, Port of Spain.

Authority administrative coordinator Louise Leotaud said the authority had been awaiting the appointment of a director and deputy director since February 2008. The Police Complaints Authority Act was passed in 2007.

Deputy Speaker and JSC chairman Penelope Beckles asked how the organisation was affected by the non-appointment of the director and deputy director. Leotaud said most complaints were forwarded to the commissioner of police (CoP) or the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) as necessary.

Mark pointed out when the act was proclaimed in 2007, there was nothing in the legislation that permitted reports going to the CoP.

’The act does not envisage the commissioner of police or the Police Complaints Division taking any investigation regarding police misconduct and corruption.’

He added that the authority was to conduct these investigations and has the independence to send reports to the DPP. He stressed a director and deputy director needed to be appointed, resources provided and the authority must be able to carry out its functions in an independent manner.

Mark questioned what was delaying the appointments and whether the staff size was consistent with the volume of complaints after Leotaud reported there were ten staff members, including two complaints officers and an investigation officer.

Former authority secretary Sylvia McClean said two former members and the chairman no longer wanted to serve on the board because of problems over compliance with the Integrity Commission regulations for people serving on boards.

Tourism Minister Joseph Ross said it appeared to be difficult to get people to serve on boards and commissions because of that condition, and he ’would not want to think it (the non-appointment) was a dereliction of duty on the Government’s part’. He also questioned the authority’s monitoring of investigations by the Police Complaints Division, noting in the report for the period 1996-2005, 4,225 reports were received from complaints out of 8,685 made.

Legal officer Michelle Ottley-Jones said a committee was set up by the National Security Minister to look at the act and clear up some of the ambiguities. That report was submitted to the minister a year ago and they were awaiting his review.