Gérard Sanspeur to be interrogated in two weeks

Gérard Sanspeur, Special Advisor to the Finance Minister Pravind Jugnauth, will have a few weeks respite. The latter will not be summoned by the CCID for another two to three weeks.

Early morning on Wednesday 14 September, Superintendent of Police (SP) Mannaram, accompanied by two officers of the Central Criminal Investigation Department (CCID), landed at the house of Gérard Sanspeur in Quatre Bornes. They informed the Advisor that he would have to appear at the police headquarters during the day as part of an investigation following a complaint filed by the Minister of Good Governance Roshi Bhadain on 18 August. 

In his statement to the police, Roshi Bhadain accused Gérard Sanspeur of having prepared non official papers and having leaked information to the press in order to stop the Heritage City project. This pet-project of Mr Bhadain, which would have cost around Rs 28.8 billion to implement, was discontinued by the Cabinet a few weeks ago. During a press conference he held on the day of the announcement, the Minister of Good Governance blamed Mr Sanspeur as being the main orchestrator of the shutting down of the project which would have seen the construction of a new administrative city, along with housing units in the central part of the island.

Raouf Gulbul, one of the lawyers of Gérard Sanspeur, criticised the way in which police raided the house of his client. He had a meeting with officers of the CCID on Wednesday. “This is a very serious matter. And this is the reason why we called for a meeting with the head of the head of CCID, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Devanand Reekoye,” he stated. The lawyer added: “We denounce the fact that police officers landed in such a manner at the residence of a free person.”

Following his meeting with the head of the CCID, barrister Raouf Gulbul told the press at around 14:00 hr that his client had not been arrested. The ACP confirmed this fact. Mr Sanspeur did not present himself at the CCID and was rather unscathed in the quiet of his office during the hurly-burly.  

The main question remains as to why did police officers called at the Special Advisor’s residence early morning while the Finance Minister, Pravind Jugnauth, was on an official mission abroad. Raouf Gulbul said the CCID will have to find the answer to that question.