Clearing the air on Paulwell interview

THE EDITOR, Sir:

I am compelled to respond to a letter titled 'Don't tarnish rookies' published in your paper on Wednesday, January 18, in relation to an interview I conducted with Minister of Science, Technology, Mining and Energy Phillip Paulwell. The interview was conducted on Friday, January 13, on 'Beyond the Headlines' on RJR 94FM.

The letter writer said that I "suggested to Minister Phillip Paulwell several times that he needed to monitor State Minister Julian Robinson very carefully". The writer also said, "While it is essential that we keep politicians accountable, we should be careful not to cast aspersions on those who have just begun their service."

The suggestion that I was casting aspersions on Mr Robinson's integrity is ill-founded and a total misrepresentation of the interview. It betrays a common problem, the inability to separate issues, and deal with systems separately from personalities.

Transcript

However, I believe the best way to respond is to quote from the transcript.

After discussing the role the minister expected to assign to his junior minister, Julian Robinson, I asked:

DJM: ... At the same time, some might say well the delegation last time may not have been done in the most effective manner given the concerns that eventually emerged with the light bulb programme, and Mr Spencer, so how do you prevent ... .

PP: Well, I think I had good models before that, I had former junior ministers in Aloun Assamba, who because she was given meaningful things to do and proved her worth, she was promoted to the Cabinet. Former junior minister Colin Campbell was also promoted to the Cabinet from my ministry, so those are better models than the last one and I'm hoping that we will be able to delineate the responsibilities while I maintain oversight over them.

DJM: So you'll be taking a closer look this time or closer oversight?

PP: I will maintain oversight and not lose sight of some of the critical issues to be ... dealt with.

DJM: Does that mean that's what happened last time?

PP: No, no, no, that's not it. I really believe, though, that when you are assigned, as was intended by the prime minister, when you are assigned junior ministers with specific functions, the intention is really to allow them some autonomy in dealing with the functions. There are certain functions, however, that I think greater oversight will be necessary and I have learnt in that regard."

I am sure it would be plain to the vast majority of people that the questions were about preventing a recurrence of the problems that emerged last time Mr Paulwell ran a ministry, in relation to the Cuban light bulb programme and had nothing to do with Mr Robinson per se.

We need to be able to analyse our past to learn from it. May I point out that Mr Paulwell said he had "learnt in that regard". Would it be asking too much that the rest of us do the same?

DIONNE JACKSON MILLER

Beyond the Headlines

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