Dr. Freddie Evans Has ‘Not Been Terminated’
The letter sent earlier this month to Dr. Evans from the Public Service Commission “contains an administrative error, and as a result Dr. Freddie Evans has not been terminated from the post of Commissioner of Education, nor has he been confirmed in post,” a recent letter from the Public Service Commission said.
Ministry Says Dr Evans Was ‘Relieved Of His Duties As Commissioner’
On October 2nd, the Ministry of Education stated that they “can confirm that Dr. Freddie Evans has been relieved of his duties as Commissioner of Education,” and an email was apparently sent out to educators by the Education Permanent Secretary stating the same.
Dr Evans Obtains Legal Representation
Following the statements from the Ministry and Permanent Secretary, Dr Evans — a veteran educator who was appointed to the post in March 2017 — obtained legal representation, with his lawyer objecting to the statements, saying that his client never received a letter of termination or dismissal.
His lawyer Mark Diel stated that the only person who can terminate Dr Evans’ employment is the Governor, and this can only be done during his period of probation, which expired on 30 September 2017.
Mr Diel noted that his law firm had been “instructed to issue proceedings against the Ministry and the Governor for declarations that our client’s employment has not been terminated in accordance with his contract or at all. “
PSC Says Letter Had “Administrative Error” & Dr Evans “Has Not Been Terminated”
In a letter dated October 5th and addressed to Dr Evans’ lawyer and the Education Permanent Secretary, the Public Service Commission said, “The letter to Dr. Evans dated 2nd October 2017 from the Public Service Commission contains an administrative error, and as a result Dr. Freddie Evans has not been terminated from the post of Commissioner of Education, nor has he been confirmed in post.
“The parties should govern themselves accordingly,” the letter added. ”The Public Service Commission invites the parties to attend its next meeting on Monday, 9th October 2017 at 10:00 a.m. to discuss the recommendation of the Commission under Section 21[6] and [7] of the Public Service Commission Regulations 2001.”
Dr Evans’ Lawyer Calls For Ministry To Issue Retraction
In a follow up letter from Dr Evans’ lawyer, dated today, Mr Diel said, “We write pursuant to a letter received from the PSC, the contents of which raise more questions than answers.
“Fortunately one question that has been answered by the PSC [presumably following consultation or direction from the Governor] is that our client has not been terminated from his post.
“You are also well aware that our client in any event cannot now be terminated from his post as his period of probation expired last Saturday.
“Consequently it should be obvious that the statements as published by the Ministry via the Permanent Secretary to principals, teachers and the media were wrong.”
The lawyer then called on the Ministry to confirm that “it will cause a retraction of its statements made on Monday, 2 October 2017, to be sent to the same individuals that it so rashly contacted earlier this week,” adding that “it cannot now be in issue that your statements were wrong” and the “only issue will be the amount of the damages our client is to recover.”
