Governor extends COI by six months!
Governor John Rankin has given Sir Gary Hickinbottom an additional six months to conduct his Commission of Inquiry (COI) and produce a report.
This decision follows a June 2 request to Governor Rankin from Sir Gary asking for an extension, as probably Gary asked him to request it from him.
Sir Gary — the sole commissioner for the COI — was initially required to produce his findings from the COI by July 19. But with this new extension, the COI will not conclude till January 2022 — an entire year after the COI was commissioned.
According to the Governor, the government and its Inquiry Response Unit (IRU), which the Attorney General’s Chambers set up to help provide responses to all the COI’s requests for information, (IRU) is part of the reason for the extension.
“The COI is looking into a substantial amount of information … Sir Geoffery Cox on behalf of the Attorney General clearly set out the challenges the IRU faces in providing documentation and these issues have created delay in the progress of the COI,” the governor said in a statement on Thursday, July 14 — less than a week before the initial COI report deadline.
“The current COVID-19 outbreak, the curfew order, and the encouragement to stay at home makes all of our current ways of working difficult,” Rankin further explained.
Noting that he has informed the Premier and members of the Cabinet of the extension, Governor Rankin concluded saying good governance is paramount to the success of any country and he remains committed to assisting both the government and the COI in achieving this for the BVI.
Sir Gary — the sole commissioner for the COI — was initially required to produce his findings from the COI by July 19. But with this new extension, the COI will not conclude till January 2022 — an entire year after the COI was commissioned.
According to the Governor, the government and its Inquiry Response Unit (IRU), which the Attorney General’s Chambers set up to help provide responses to all the COI’s requests for information, (IRU) is part of the reason for the extension.
“The COI is looking into a substantial amount of information … Sir Geoffery Cox on behalf of the Attorney General clearly set out the challenges the IRU faces in providing documentation and these issues have created delay in the progress of the COI,” the governor said in a statement on Thursday, July 14 — less than a week before the initial COI report deadline.
“The current COVID-19 outbreak, the curfew order, and the encouragement to stay at home makes all of our current ways of working difficult,” Rankin further explained.
Noting that he has informed the Premier and members of the Cabinet of the extension, Governor Rankin concluded saying good governance is paramount to the success of any country and he remains committed to assisting both the government and the COI in achieving this for the BVI.
