On Thursday 22 October 2026, Her Excellency Christine Carla Kangaloo O.R.T.T., President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago presented Instruments of Appointment to Ms Denise Duncan as a Commissioner and Vice Chairman of the Equal Opportunity Commission, Dr. Albert Persaud as a Member of the Judicial and Legal Service Commission and Ms Prabhawatie Maraj as a Member of the Statutory Authorities’ Appeal Board.
Ms Denise Duncan had a distinguished career in the Public Service, culminating in her appointment as Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Public Administration and Communications. She previously held similar positions in the Ministries of Legal Affairs and Housing and Urban Development.
A graduate of Middlesex University Business School in Human Resource Management, Ms Duncan also served as Senior Human Resource Manager in the Office of the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs from 2001 to 2005 and later as Director of Human Resources at the Ministry of Tourism until 2013. Throughout her career, Ms Duncan specialized in staff management and operations planning, with emphasis on recruitment, the resolution of issues for both monthly and daily paid workers and contract management.
Dr. Albert Persaud is a specialist physician and respirologist with an exemplary career in medicine. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, a Member of the Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom and Chairman of the Steering Committee for the establishment of the Caribbean Allergy and Respiratory Association (CARA). He completed a Fellowship in Respiratory Diseases and Tuberculosis at McMaster University in Canada and is an Honorary Member of both the General Practitioners Association of Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean College of Family Physicians.
Dr Persaud also holds a Bachelor of Laws from the University of London and a Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School. He was admitted to practise as an Attorney-at-Law in Trinidad and Tobago in 1999, although he does not maintain an active legal practice.
Ms Prabhawatie Maraj is the retired Director of Personnel Administration in the Service Commissions Department, following a distinguished career in the Public Service spanning more than four decades.
Since joining the Public Service in 1978, she has served in several ministries and senior administrative positions including Executive Officer at the Statutory Authorities’ Service Commission from 2008 to 2011 and Acting Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Public Administration from 2011 to 2015. In 2015, she became Deputy Director of Personnel Administration and Director in 2017, serving until her retirement.
Ms Maraj holds a Bachelor of Arts degree, a Diploma in Public Administration, an Associate Degree in Computer Science and an International Master of Business Administration. She has also presented papers at conferences and workshops on performance management, contract labour and human resource management.
