By Lynford Simpson, Parliamentary Reporter
I'M IN total agreement with Government Senator A.J. Nicholson over his decision to report to the General Legal Council (GLC), Senator Dorothy Lightbourne, his Opposition counterpart, for comments she made in the Senate about Resident Magistrates.
For those unfamiliar with the case, Ms Lightbourne, during a heated debate on the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), three weeks ago, charged that RMs gave rulings in favour of Government so as to improve their chances of being appointed to the Supreme Court.
In that one statement, Ms Lightbourne served to further undermine an already beleaguered judiciary which had taken a battering after noted Resident Magistrate, Norma Von Cork, was sent to prison for 12 months in 2002. This, after she was found guilty, along with four others, of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice. She was the first RM to be found guilty of an offence while sitting on the Bench.
Now, Ms Lightbourne, who ironically is Chairperson of the GLC which, among other things, deals with issues relating to lawyers who have been disbarred from the profession because of dishonest practices, has left us wondering if her statement is true and just what sins our respected RMs and others maybe committing. As the saying goes, Ms Lightbourne must either "put up or shut up." She MUST provide the evidence or make a public apology, preferably from the said Senate floor.
For far too long irresponsible Parliamentarians have abused their privilege of freedom of speech and have, in many instances, just stopped short of slandering people. That cannot be allowed to continue.
Despite the behaviour of such Parliamentarians, however, I'm still in full support of making them exempt from civil or criminal proceedings for anything they say in the confines of the Parliament. While this is already provided for in the Constitution, it does not mean that other entities/organisations, in this case the GLC, cannot conduct their own probe and in fact take disciplinary action. Will the GLC stand up to its Chairper-son on discipline?
SO MUCH HYPOCRISY
There was so much hypocrisy on show when the JLP Senators walked out of the Senate on May 16, while throwing their full support behind Ms Lightbourne. Not one of them was big enough to tell their colleague that she was wrong. Instead, when Senate President Syringa Marshall-Burnett refused to allow a motion brought by Dwight Nelson (JLP) which was clearly based on a false premise, they, as they have often done in both the Senate and House of Representatives, walked away like spoilt children who quit because they were losing the game.
So emotional was Mr. Nelson, he claimed he could resign from the Parliament if the motion was not allowed. It was not and he has not resigned. I did not expect otherwise.
TRYING TO CLARIFY THE MATTER
That day, two press briefings were hastily called as both Government and Opposition Senators sought to clarify the matter. I attended both and at the end, I was more convinced by the arguments put forward by the PNP, moreso Senator Nicholson who is also Attorney-General and Justice Minister.
While I agree with the JLP that Senator Nicholson perhaps should not have made the call for the GLC to investigate Ms Lightbourne over her statements from the Senate floor, he said he did so not in his capacity as Senator but as Head of the Jamaican Bar.
He asked the journalists present whether any of us being a journalist and Senator would not have made a similar call, in this case for the Press Association of Jamaica to investigate, if a fellow Senator had accused all journalists of being corrupt. I must admit I barely kept from shaking my head in the affirmative, remembering just in time that except for the questions I'm permitted to ask at such briefings, I'm really a non-participant observer.
THE UNFORTUNATE STATEMENT
The JLP could have saved themselves the embarrassment if one, they had chided their colleague for her unfortunate statement, and two, if Mr. Nelson had listened to the Senate President with whom he had consulted prior to bringing the motion to the Senate.
Again, I hope the members of the GLC have the backbone to stand up to Ms Lightbourne and tell her that she is wrong. Having done so, then appropriate sanctions should be applied.
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lsimpson@gleanerjm.com
