MV Barima tragedy: Pres Ali urges diligent, fair & independent investigation as 5-member CoI sworn in

What this source establishes

Chief Magistrate Judy Latchman administered the oath at State House on Thursday, with four commissioners present in person and Chairman Justice Godfrey Phillip Smith of Belize sworn in virtually. Commissioners named: Captain Hamada Fouda (Maritime Authority of Jamaica); Nyree Dawn Alfonso (maritime attorney, Trinidad and Tobago); Dr Andrzej Jasionowski (naval architect and marine engineer, Poland); Rear Admiral (Ret'd) Hayden Pritchard (Trinidad and Tobago).

Key claims

• Chief Magistrate Judy Latchman administered the oath at State House on Thursday, with four commissioners present in person and Chairman Justice Godfrey Phillip Smith of Belize sworn in virtually.
• Commissioners named: Captain Hamada Fouda (Maritime Authority of Jamaica); Nyree Dawn Alfonso (maritime attorney, Trinidad and Tobago); Dr Andrzej Jasionowski (naval architect and marine engineer, Poland); Rear Admiral (Ret'd) Hayden Pritchard (Trinidad and Tobago).
• Ali is quoted: "Our nation deserves a full, fair, and impartial account of what occurred, why it occurred, and what must be done to ensure that such a tragedy is never repeated."
• Mandate stated as: determining facts, examining causes and contributing factors, evaluating compliance with applicable laws and standards, assessing search and rescue operations, identifying failures, and recommending maritime safety reforms.
• Toll: 179 aboard; at least 76 survived, 73 confirmed dead, 30 remain missing. This is the 73 figure, from an outlet generally aligned with the administration — notable given DPI's own 30 July release used 72.
• The captain, another crew member and a T&HD staff member "have been charged in connection with the deaths".

This page is a research summary prepared for comment and review. It is not the article. Copyright in the original remains with Guyana Times; the full text is held only in the private research corpus from which this archive was compiled. Follow the link above to read it at the source.