Activist seeks decades of passport records for accountability

Activist Wendell Eversley is pursuing government records spanning over 40 years to scrutinize the administration of diplomatic and official passports. Through his attorney, Renuka Sagramsingh-Sooklal, Eversley has formally requested access to policies, legal opinions, Cabinet documents, and statistical records governing these passports under the Freedom of Information Act.

The request comes amid public scrutiny of how diplomatic passports are handled and whether decisions concerning former public officials have been applied uniformly. Sagramsingh-Sooklal emphasized that Eversley's objective is not partisan but rather to ensure transparency and accountability in the exercise of executive power.

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My client neither approaches this matter from a partisan perspective nor seeks to advance any political narrative.

Diplomatic passports are described as more than mere travel documents; they are instruments through which the state extends sovereign privileges. There is significant public interest, according to the attorney, in understanding the criteria for eligibility, the process for retaining passports after leaving office, and the legal basis for their cancellation or revocation.

The Freedom of Information request specifically seeks documents from January 1, 1981, to the present, covering policies, eligibility criteria, responsible authorities, legal opinions, and statistics on passport issuance and circulation. Eversley also seeks information on whether spouses, children, or dependants of office-holders qualify for these passports.

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Rather, he seeks to ascertain whether the powers entrusted to the Executive have been exercised consistently, lawfully, rationally and in accordance with established legal principles over successive administrations.