The Special Select Committee comprises the four independent Senators: Janelle Chanona, Kevin Herrera, Moses Benguche and Elena Smith along with two PUP Senators, Isabel Bennett and Bevington Cal, and one UDP Senator, Beverly Williams.
We note that unlike the last Senate Probe - the one into immigration irregularities - which had two attorneys on it: Eamon Courtenay and Aldo Salazaar - this one has none.
It is chaired by first term Senator Janelle - and her colleague Michael Peyrefitte today endorsed her leadership and, of course, the investigation - distancing himself from the Prime Minister's remarks on Monday when he said the committee would end up "looking foolish" if they investigated his government for having any part in the agreement.
Not surprisingly, Peyrefitte sees it very differently:
Michael Peyrefitte, UDP Senator
"There's no issue with that, she's a colleague, and you will have four of them, you will have two from government, and one from the opposition so let's hope it gets underway really fast and let's just hope that the people who they want to call respect the committee enough to attend when they're called, even if they believe that they are above the law and don't need to be called."
Courtney Menzies:
"Along that same line do you feel that the prime minister is sort of undermining the process by saying it's foolish to investigate the government?"
Michael Peyrefitte, UDP Senator
"Absolutely, and foolish seems to be a word that they use regularly these days. To anyone who has the temerity to challenge them or to even question them, I mean this government behaves as if though you have no right to ask them anything, question them, criticize them in any way, they're so thin skin and insecure, that any question put to them, any tough times they may meet, they don't know how to handle it and to say that you don't think that you should be called is the height of arrogance, because the committee can call anybody, any minister, anybody they want to call and if you're called to testify before the committee, you need to attend and answer the questions."
