Omar Anderson, Gleaner Writer
NELSON
THE JAMAICA Labour Party (JLP), has said that it is dissatisfied with the revised Code of Political Conduct that seeks to give the Political Ombudsman sweeping powers to arbitrarily intervene in the internal disputes of a political party.
Additionally, it said it is still uncomfortable with the language in the document that implies that politicians do fraternise with criminals.
Chief JLP spokesman Dwight Nelson, told The Gleaner yesterday that the party discussed the revised document Monday night at its weekly Standing Committee meeting.
"We still have reservations with a number of clauses in the document," Mr. Nelson insisted. "One of the clauses seems to give the Ombudsman explicit authority to intervene in internal party disputes."
Mr. Nelson said that the JLP believes there should be "an expressed invitation from a particular party", if there is a need for the Political Ombudsman to intervene in internal disputes.
"If the Political Ombudsman is given explicit intervention, that intervention may be premature," the JLP spokesman stated.
On May 25 this year, the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) unveiled its Emancipation Park Declaration which, among other things, called on politicians to dissociate themselves from criminal elements.
The declaration, which was made following a flare-up of criminal activity, gave politicians a June 15, 2005 ultimatum to sign the declaration. That deadline was not met.
Politicians, including those from the JLP, said they would not sign the document in its original form as it implied they were in collusion with criminals. Others insisted that more interest groups could in the future call on them to sign as well.
It was then agreed that the 2002 Code of Political Conduct, signed between the Opposition JLP and the governing People's National Party (PNP) would be amended, to reflect aspects of the Emancipation Park Declaration. Both political parties noted that clauses in the declaration were similar to those in the code.
According to Mr. Nelson, the revised Code of Political conduct now requires the leaders of both political parties to sign instead of individual politicians.
"This will commit all functionaries of either party to the prescription," he said.
Contacted yesterday, Information Minister Burchell Whiteman told The Gleaner he was not aware of the PNP discussing the document.
"I don't know what the final revision is saying," he said.
