Mrs. Justice Marjorie Cole-Smith inspecting a police guard of honour in front of the Supreme Court building, downtown Kingston on April 14, 2004, at the official opening of the Easter session of the Home Circuit Court. - JUNIOR DOWIE/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
WE TRIED to get answers to our questions, this time by way of interviews at the Ministry of Justice. The minister, we were told this week, was either not in or in meetings. A pleasant voice in his office said, "Have you tried the permanent secretary?" In the permanent secretary's department, another pleasant voice: "Oh, she is on a call now." So we decided to hold. "She is still on that call, you know. Are you still going to hold or can I have your number to call you back?" We will hold. This one is not getting away. The voice came back. We gave the number. No return call. We called back. Another voice. "She (the permanent secretary) is not in office."
TRANSFERS START
And so started the transfers. To the office of the Principal Financial Director. To a Marcia Beverley. To a nameless number. To this one. To that one. Back to the permanent secretary's office. To Michael Cohen's office.
Dizzy yet?
Michael Cohen is the senior public relations officer there. In his office, a woman asked what it was that we wanted to talk to him about. We told her, "About the judges' salaries." She went away and returned. "He said he is not in a position to answer the question; he will have to look it up."
What question? We hadn't asked him a question yet!
The long and the short of it is that a snappy Mr. Cohen, a little under two days later, sent a faxed response to The Gleaner: "The 2003 report done by the committee, which included Mr. Bill Clarke, was submitted for comments to form part of a Cabinet Submission, and so is not for public access. There was no recommendation for a review of judges' salaries at the Commission meeting.
