Former attorney general Anand Ramlogan must clear the air on whether legal advice he received on motor vehicle taxes in 2012 was related to two controversial Range Rovers he bought for his personal use. The issue was raised by another former attorney general John Jeremie as he called for a police investigation into the payment of legal fees by the Office of the Attorney General during Ramlogan’s tenure.
During a media conference on Monday, Jeremie said the “devil was in the details” and said attention needed to be paid to the payment of legal fees for advice sought on the “exemption from taxes on purchases of motor vehicles.” The invoice date for the advice was noted as September 28, 2012, two days after approval was given for a tax exemption of the Range Rover TDV Vogue. The approval took place on the same day documents were submitted to Customs and Excise for another Range Rover purchased by Ramlogan, the Range Rover Autobiography.
One of the vehicles was sold to businessman Dev Debideen. Debideen’s son, Varun Debideen, also received briefs from the Office of the Attorney General and was named in the Prisongate scandal last year. The legal advice was provided to the Office of the Attorney General by attorney Sir Fenton Ramsahoye, QC, on September 28, 2012. Both vehicles were under heavy public scrutiny after reports were put in the media regarding the approval of tax exemptions two years before the vehicles were imported.
The Office of the Attorney General provided a detailed breakdown of legal fees for the period June 2010 to October 2014. Jeremie and another former attorney general Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj said the document gave a prima facie case for financial impropriety, and gave an example of a pre-action protocol letter costing the exorbitant amount of $408,000. The statement of legal fees shows that the $408,000 figure paid to attorney Gerald Ramdeen for a pre-action protocol letter was in fact paid for three items.
A source close to Ramlogan said the advice sought from Ramsahoye regarding tax exemptions on vehicles had nothing to do with Range Rovers but was related to a matter with the Customs and Excise Division. The source also said a significant amount of the fees quoted in the document could be attributed to audits, work done for the Office of the DPP and outstanding payments for work done under the PNM. When contacted yesterday, Ramlogan said he would contact his lawyers before responding.
Breakdown
Lawyers receiving over $5 million dollars in legal fees between June 2010 and October 2014.
• Avory Sinanan, SC: Received $10,406,925. Represented the State in the matter of Steve Ferguson and Ish Galbaransingh vs the Attorney General.
Also represented the state in former Police Service Commissioner Nizam Mohammed vs the Attorney General and Gladys Gafoor (former deputy chairman of the Integrity Commission) vs the Attorney General.
• Alan Newman, QC: Received $14,474,613.54. Repeal into Section 34 of the Administration of Justice (Indictable Proceedings).
• Charles Russell (British solicitors): Received $63,181,472.71. BAE vs the Government of T&T (Offshore Patrol Vessels). Russell is the state’s standing Privy Council agent.
• Dana Seetahal, SC: Received $9,294,500. Auction of properties Attorney General vs Jamat al Muslimeen. Represented the State in several matters for the DPP.
• Fenton Ramsahoye, QC: $9,969,080. Advice on legislation concerning violent crime in T&T.
• Gerald Ramdeen: Received $15,541,423. Cheryl Miller vs Attorney General. Afra Raymond vs Ministry of Finance. Wayne Kublalsingh and others vs Attorney General.
• Israel Khan, SC: Received $11,660,800. The extradition of Edmund Muntslag. Did work for the DPP on several matters.
• Jagdeo Singh: Received $5,772,166. HCU vs The Attorney General and Sir Anthony Coleman. Bail application of Edmund Muntslag.
• Kelvin Ramkissoon: Received $9,723,399. Wayne Kublalsingh vs Attorney General. United Clico Policyholders lawsuit. Steve Ferguson and Ishwar Galbaransigh vs The Attorney General.
• Larry Lalla: Received $6,974,825. THA vs The Attorney General. Extradition matters.
• Pamela Elder, SC: Received $7, 831,500. Extradition matters. Amernath Jagmohan vs the Commissioner of Prisons and the AG.
• Russell Martineau, SC: Received $8,834,875. Re opinion-ex parte AG-David West; death penalty legislation. The JCC for the construction industry vs the Ministry of Planning and Sustainable Development. Wayne Kublalsingh vs the Attorney General.
• Seenath Jairam, SC: Received $9,850,210. THA vs the Attorney General of T&T. Trade dispute Nos 528-535 of 2012 between OWTU vs CPO and PS in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• Vincent Nelson, QC: Received $20,400,544. Legal and financial investigation into Petrotrin, May 2012 and re: Udecott/ Hart. UTT brief on appeal hearing.