By Sue-Ann Wayow
EUGENE TIAH is a respected and experienced individual in the energy sector who possesses the necessary expertise to be part of the five-member independent committee mandated to investigate the death of the four underwater divers.
This is according to Minister of Energy Stuart Young who defended the government’s choice based upon recommendation by the Energy Chamber.
He said Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar is once again showing desperate attempts to distract the government from its job.
The Opposition has been calling for the former Energy Chamber chairman to be removed from the committee mandated to investigate the incident at Paria Fuel Trading’s Pointe-a-Pierre facility on February 25 where the four divers tragically lost their lives.
Young in a statement on Facebook on Sunday wrote, “It is most unfortunate that once again in what has become the expected desperate behaviour of Mrs Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Leader of the Opposition, she has sought to attack an innocent, independent and professional individual, who volunteered to give public service.
“Mrs Persad-Bissessar has led an unwarranted and unjustifiable attack by the opposition on Mr Eugene Tiah, who was nominated by the Energy Chamber of Trinidad and Tobago, to serve on the five-man panel established by the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries, to investigate the circumstances surrounding the tragic death of four divers who were performing works at Paria Fuel Trading Company Limited on February 25, 2022.”
He listed four “indisputable facts” about the selection.
These include:
1) The Energy Chamber was requested to nominate an appropriate individual to serve on the panel of independent investigators;
2) There was no input by me (Young), or the Government, whatsoever, into the Chamber’s choice of nominee;
3) The Chamber nominated Mr Eugene Tiah and this nomination was accepted by the Cabinet; and
4) The Chamber has stood by its choice of Mr Tiah. He is a professional who is well respected in the Energy and Business sector as being someone with experience, expertise and integrity.
Young also said it was ridiculous of Persad-Bissessar to attack him as well as Prime Minister, Dr Keith Rowley, and the Chairman of Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Limited, Michael Quamina who along with Young represented Tiah as attorneys over eight years ago.
Young stated, “It is my sincere hope that people will allow the families, friends and colleagues of the four divers who tragically lost their lives, to grieve in peace and that we would allow the independent investigation to be conducted, and the report submitted, without frivolous attempts to disrupt or distract.”
In a media statement, Persad-Bissessar accused Young of failing to disclose that in 2014 he was the lawyer for Tiah in a matter in the Court of Appeal against Evolving Technologies and Enterprises Development Companies Limited.
She said, “Also representing Mr Tiah alongside Minister Young in that matter was Michael Quamina, who is currently the Chairman of the Board of Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Limited, the parent company to Paria Fuel Trading Company Limited. Michael Quamina is also the personal attorney to Keith Rowley.”
On Saturday, the Energy Chamber issued a release following Persad-Bissessar’s statements stating the Chamber took note of her statements.
The Chamber stated, “The Energy Chamber was asked to nominate a representative to this important Committee by the Government, and we chose Mr Eugene Tiah as the most suitable person. We had absolutely no discussion with the Minister of Energy and Energy Industry on this nomination and simply informed the Minister of our selected representative. The Energy Chamber has full confidence in Mr Eugene Tiah, a past Chairman of the Energy Chamber and a highly respected executive from the energy sector, with a very strong reputation for safety leadership.”
