Commissioner Louie Laveist did not appear on the Sunday morning’s talk programme "People’s Voice," on the advice of his lawyer.
Laveist said he maintained his innocence and would like to speak with the public and inform them about all that was going on. He said appropriate opportunities to do so would present themselves in time, but for now he would honour the recommendations of his legal counsel and advisors and not speak on the matter.
"When I decided to expose the entire situation and circumstances concerning how I got to where I am, it was because I wanted to explain everything to the people, because no one has a clue as to what is really going on. I have been condemned by a small group of people and so I decided to go and expose everything. However, according to my lawyer, this is not the right time to do so and I took his advice," Laveist said.
Laveist said that when he had been approached by "People’s Voice" host Lloyd Richardson to make an appearance on the show, he had wanted to conduct a series of interviews with various media outlets to set the record straight. According to Laveist, he had not been able to proceed with his plans because he had been off the island for most of the week.
"When I took the decision to go on the show, it was my intention to go on every single talk show on the island, because the truth is I have nothing to hide. I made that decision on Tuesday and indicated to Lloyd that I would make a public announcement about my appearance on his show, because I wanted people to listen in and be informed.
"Unfortunately, I had to leave the island on unavoidable, urgent, personal matters and because of that I was unable to attend any meetings and was inaccessible to anyone. When I got back on Saturday, I got in contact with my advisors and legal counsel and they advised me not to make any appearances, because such was not needed at this time," Laveist said.
He said he had made attempts to reach Richardson on Saturday evening, but had not been successful. He said he had been able to meet with Richardson on Sunday morning and had explained the position taken by his team.
"I felt it was only right to inform him of my decision to postpone – postpone, mind you, not cancel – the appearance. I explained that I was not backing out, because I am not. I am only pushing up the interview until the appropriate time arrives and then I will certainly welcome the opportunity to have the interview and to speak with the people of St. Maarten," he said.