Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit defended the presence of Special Branch officers near publicly announced meetings, arguing that intelligence gathering is a routine part of national security operations.
Skerrit was responding to allegations that members of his security detail were present at a meeting involving businessman Gregor Nassief at the Fort Young Hotel.
Nassief alleged that at the private civic meeting, held on August 26 at the Fort Young Hotel, two members of the special branch arrived and stayed on the property for more than four hours, which he said could have been intimidating to attendees.
The Prime Minister said during a press conference this week that he was unaware of the officers’ presence until the allegation became public and denied giving instructions for anyone to attend the meeting.
He said Special Branch officers routinely monitor publicly announced gatherings to identify possible national security concerns.
According to Skerrit, the officers were not inside the meeting and did not disrupt the proceedings.
He recalled that Special Branch officers also monitored political meetings he attended before the DLP came to office.
Skerrit dismissed suggestions that the incident was evidence of political oppression and described Dominica as an exceptionally free society where citizens routinely criticise him and the government.
He maintained that the security services must be allowed to collect intelligence and alert the Chief of Police about potential threats.
