News
Jada Loutoo
ATTORNEYS for businessman Danny Guerra have demanded that the state of emergency (SoE) review tribunal deliver a ruling on his preventive detention by 4 pm on January 2, warning that its members should resign if they fail to do so. Attorneys said they will seek emergency relief from the High Court if no decision is issued.
In a sharply worded letter dated January 1 and copied to the chief justice, attorney Nerisa Bala accused the tribunal of failing to discharge its constitutional mandate to safeguard the right to liberty during a public emergency and of presiding over delays she said amounted to arbitrary detention.
“The framers of the Constitution were wise enough to understand that the risk to the liberty of the subject in times of emergency was so real that express provisions were made” for an “independent and impartial tribunal” to review detentions, Bala wrote. She added that the tribunal “has failed in the discharge of its constitutional mandate with respect to the review of my client Danny Guerra.”
Guerra was detained on November 20, 2025, under emergency powers. He invoked Regulation 5 of the Schedule to the Emergency Powers Regulations 2025 on November 27, seeking a review of his detention, according to the letter.
Bala argued the review process has been plagued by delay and procedural failures. She said the hearing was set for December 18 – about three weeks after the review was filed – which she contended fell short of constitutional “due process.” A request to move the hearing because the detainee’s then-counsel was unavailable was denied without reasons, forcing Guerra to retain new counsel on short notice, the letter said.
The attorney also criticised the minister’s failure to meet a mandatory seven-day deadline under Regulation 6 to provide the grounds for detention, saying the tribunal did not act on its own initiative to enforce compliance or impose sanctions. She said submissions filed by the defence were not provided to the tribunal’s chairman ahead of the hearing, requiring the matter to be stood down, and that the minister’s counsel was later granted additional time – six days – to respond in writing despite earlier non-compliance, while Guerra remained detained.
As of January 1, Bala said nine days had passed since the final submissions were filed without a determination. “The length of time that has been allowed to elapse since the completion of the hearing of the review is entirely unsatisfactory,” she said, adding that the continued detention “at their pleasure” undermines public confidence in the administration of justice during a state of emergency.
The letter warned that if no decision is delivered by 4 pm on January 2, Guerra will seek emergency relief from the High Court “to compel the proper discharge” of the tribunal’s function. Bala also called on each tribunal member to resign if the deadline is missed.
“This tribunal was to be the guardian of the right to liberty in times of emergency. It was vested with the express power to protect individuals from the arbitrary exercise of coercive powers by the Executive in times of emergency. The powers that this tribunal was meant to exercise cannot be overstated.”
Bala added, “To effectively discharge its constitutional mandate the tribunal must act speedily. Any delay by the tribunal in the discharge of its functions will undermine the right to liberty and risk arbitrary detention.
“Having regard to the purpose of the tribunal and the risk to arbitrary detention the provisions of the regulations governing the exercise of the right to review must be strictly enforced.
“Any review of detention under the regulations by the tribunal must be conducted as an application for habeas corpus to the High Court. The manner in which the tribunal has exercised its powers in relation to the review of the detention of Mr Danny Guerra and the exercise of the powers conferred by the regulations has evidenced a systemic failure on the part of the tribunal to discharge its constitutional mandate.
“If this represents the manner in which this tribunal exercises its powers to review of the detention of persons who are subject to preventive detention orders at the discretion of the Executive, there is much to be said as to whether this tribunal understands is remit constitutional responsibility.
“The tribunal is conferred with the label of being independent and impartial but the exercise of its powers does not evidence compliance with this constitutional mandate.
“It is unfortunate that such an important body set up under the provisions of the Constitution has chosen to discharge its powers in a manner that not protects the right to liberty but empties that right of any content.
“What the framers of the Constitution sought to protect, this tribunal has destroyed.”
Guerra is being detained under allegations that he leads an organised crime group involved in arms trafficking, money laundering, and illegal quarrying.
A detention order signed by Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander also cited a purported plot to assassinate a government minister.
The SoE declared on July 18, ends later in January after two extensions.