By JANELLE DE SOUZA Wednesday, March 13 2013

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Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, right, greets Pte Kadajah Spencer as the PM toured the Inter-Agency Task Force Headquarters in El Socorro yeste...

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar yesterday took a firm position on several issues in the public domain.

Persad-Bissessar said if National Security Minister Jack Warner was wrong about Congress of the People (COP) member Vernon De Lima, then Warner would retract the statement. Secondly, she stated Ag Commissioner of Police (CoP) Stephen Williams was the best person to investigate the Flying Squad allegations, and thirdly, that she had no knowledge of the sons of any of her ministers being embroiled with the law in the United States.

Responding to questions by the media after touring the Inter-Agency Task Force Headquarters in El Socorro, as well as a few construction sites of new police stations, Warner reiterated that he would only apologise for accusing De Lima of attending a meeting with members of the People’s National Movement (PNM) with the aim of destabilising the country, if there were two attorneys by the name of De Lima, and he had indicated the wrong attorney.

However, as Warner continued to defend himself, Persad-Bissessar interjected, “Mr Warner has spoken on it. My respectful view is, should it be that this information is not correct, then the proper thing to do is for Mr Warner to withdraw the statement,” she said.

On the issue of the New Flying Squad Investigations Unit, Persad-Bissessar said Williams was best poised to investigate the allegations as he had all the resources to conduct an investigation into the matter.

In addition, she believed the CoP was the best office to conduct any investigation where there was alleged criminal activity or fraud committed.

Speaking to the media earlier in the day, Williams refused to comment on the matter. He told the media they should refer any questions to former Flying Squad member Mervyn Cordner, who claimed that a new unit had been running since July 2012, as Cordner kept changing his story. Williams reiterated that he never had any meetings with Cordner, in a corridor or otherwise.

Persad-Bissessar also stated she had “no information, advise or knowledge of any minister’s son in any circumstances abroad.”