THE GOVERNMENT again blocked an Opposition attempt to table a motion on the controversial Report of the Commission of Enquiry into the Montego Bay Street People issue in the House of Representatives yesterday.
An uproar was triggered when Leader of Opposition Business, Derrick Smith, reminded the House the Opposition had been asked on October 3 to amend the previous motion and they had given a commitment to do so and bring it back to the House yesterday.
But, the Speaker, Violet Neilson, said she was not present at that sitting.
Mr. Smith said he had sent the resolution to the Speaker before 2:00 p.m. yesterday for her approval. He said he saw no reason why a four-paragraph resolution could not have been read by the Speaker between the period he had sent it to her and the start of the sitting at 2:15 p.m.
Mrs. Neilson: "Mr. Smith, I am not going to sit in the chair and read a resolution and sign it because you want me to sign it. No, I am sorry, my ruling is that it cannot come here today."
A noisy debate between Government and Opposition members on the issue ensued during which Mr. Smith was accused of making "unparliamentary" remarks about the Speaker and the Government members. Mrs. Neilson demanded Mr. Smith withdraw the word "gymnastics", which she said he had used unparliamentarily.
Opposition Leader Edward Seaga intervened and suggested the Speaker refer to the verbatim Hansard notes to resolve the matter. When the Speaker eventually received and read the Hansard's notes, she admitted she had misrepresented Mr. Smith's remarks and, therefore, there was no need for him to withdraw it.
The resolution from JLP MP Olivia Grange (Central St. Catherine) asks: "Be It Resolved that the Report of the Commission of Enquiry into the forced removal of homeless persons from Montego Bay on July 15, 1999, be fully debated in this Honourable House."
When she first tabled it on October 3, it was greeted with a similar uproar and ruled out of order by then Acting Speaker, O.T. Williams. He was supported by House Leader, Dr. Peter Phillips, and other Government MPs who objected to the motion on the grounds it imputed motive to the commissioners involved in the inquiry.
Dr. Phillips, told the House then there was no requirement for a debate of the report and the Government had not given any commitment to a debate.
