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Contempt motion succeeds - applause for Maharaj
History was made yesterday - at least in Trinidad or perhaps the democratic world. The Speaker of the House Barendra Sinanan has found a prima facie case to refer the Government of Trinidad & Tobago to the Privileges Committee of Parliamentary Ministers for a determination of contempt of the House. See: Speaker acts against Govt
Sinanan responded to Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj's motion to have the Government dealt with for failing to answer questions posed by the country's Opposition between January and July 2008 - some 100 questions in total we are told. On July 11 the Government could only provide answers to 1 of 25 questions. The Speaker expressed his exasperation at the failure of the Government's Ministers to provide answers.
Maharaj said, "The aforesaid conduct, action and/or inaction of the Government obstructed and impeded the House and Members of the Opposition in the performance and discharge of their duties and functions and threatens to continue to produce that result" and then declared, The Government’s action, by leaving questions unanswered for inordinate periods of time, amounted to and continues to amount to an affront to the House and brought it and continues to bring it into disrepute...I have examined all appropriate authorities including our own Constitution and I am of the view that a prima facie case of contempt has been made out”.
Whether the Privileges Committee finds the government in comtempt is not of its own the core issue for the Nation. That the government has failed to answer questions and behaved in a way, that to the average man is insulting of the foundations of a democracy, is the real issue. Knowing Trickidad as we do, we might probably expect nothing from the Privileges Committee. So, leave that to one side. Forget about them and look only to the conduct of the government. How can this happen in a democracy - or is it a democracy? Many of us at this site have pointed to what is seen as the rise of 'autocracy'.
The government of T&T is likely to remain defiant, whilst displaying a degree of bungling incompetence on the matter. Here we have the Information Minister Neil Parsanlal already spouting rubbish about there being no intent to hide information. Well if this of its own, isn't bungling incompetence, what is?
The poor Minister does not realise that 'intention' or "deliberate attempt" - as he put it - is immaterial. The fact that 100 questions have not been answered is the material issue! It leaves us to wonder - doesn't it - whether Mr Parsanlal would prefer to be excused on say a larger number of questions, or perhaps a smaller number questions over a longer period of time. The point here is that numbers and duration are of lesser importance; pointing only to the degree of the apparent misconduct.
That a government can be charged at all with such misconduct - probably for the first time in the history of the democratic world - is the core issue. Citizens of T&T now if ever you are needed to fiercely protect your rights and to maintain a free and democratic society.
....sadly enough, and despite all this, along with other Government Ministers bluntly refusing to providing answers on the basis of "privacy of individuals" and the "constitutional rights" as was the case with the requests for disclosure of legal fees paid by the Government to private solicitors in the CJ matter and to "scholarships" paid to "ghost individuals" of over $45 million dollars...???
...the same government ministers, including Colm Imbert, with a straight face, (not laughing, not giggling) recently said that the Government is credible...??? ...
...wait and see the next move by Manning or what else he pulls from his back pocket this time...just like the "election dates", the postponement of local elections for another third or fourth time in as many years and the so called "UDECOTT Commission of Enquiry" which sticks like a real thorn in his side right now...!
...don't get fooled over and over again folks ...just waiting for answers...either from Manning or his Ministers...they just don't have them or they just just won't give them...they'll just keep us waiting...till hell freezes over for the Pastor Manning and his useless cohorts...!
...keep your eyes wide open on this one too...keep looking really hard...it may just disappear before your very eyes...just like UDECOTT COE, the Local elections, the "Floating Executive Hotel Rooms", the "Private Executive Jet Plane", and all the monies from the Treasury itself...!which by now is pretty dry as they have moved on to heavy borrowing and loans now...!
...so keep on watching there's more to this than meets the eyes...!
...goodluck Trini.t.o.o
Ah yes. We have Barry Sinanan referring the matter to the Privileges Committee, much akin to pelting a man with a ping-pong (table tennis) ball and expecting to do some damage.
Why? Because the PC is made up of a composition that represents the majority PNM members, and therefore can be manipulated by the government's position on the vote.
A position Barry boy knows full well, and that referring the matter will make it seem as if he is doing something positive, but in the long run will die a natural death (like UDeCOTT etc).
If you don't believe me, watch this space... it will come to pass.
Well, in a sense Sinanan has nothing more than a 'ping pong' ball to pelt. He has no 'teeth' of his own and cannot punish. It simply isn't his gift.
But all this goes back to my previous arguments that you cannot leave the corrupt to police themselves. The PC will come and go. Dare I recall Maha Sabha, Sat Sharma impeachment, McNicolls and the Bar Association, UDECOTT, Private Jet.
Any of these matters got any where? Does anything happen to the corrupt in T&T? Well yes - actually they become more corrupt.
Build dat raft and leave now!!