Tweet
All indications are that last week’s declaration by Returning Officer, Hermena Buckner, in the Lucea Resident Magistrate’s Court, that veteran politician and analyst, Dr. D.K. Duncan, was the winner of the Eastern Hanover Parliamentary seat, has added more brick and mortar to the political box of bricks holding the Jamaica Labour Party’s (JLP) governmental fortunes.
The Duncan declaration came after a series of protracted court proceedings from the Resident Magistrate’s Court and back and forth from the Supreme Court to the Court of Appeal.
Duncan’s victory means that the JLP majority in Parliament has been reduced to four and this could be wiped out if candidates alleged to be under an acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state, are disqualified.
Reports indicate that the US government is not unwilling to provide information about parliamentarians who are citizens of that country, if the information is requested by the Jamaican Supreme Court. This could indeed be worrying for Prime Minister Bruce Golding’s administration.
However, sources close to the JLP said that the Prime Minister has an exit plan in which he would request Shahine Robinson, Daryl Vaz and Gregory Mair to resign their seats in order that bye-elections may be held. The plan, it is believed, is not to call the bye-elections together, but to do them individually. However, legal sources said the election was a process and that the electoral process arising out of the last General Elections was not over until the determination of the Election Petitions filed against Robinson, Vaz and Mair, especially when the issue affected whether or not their nominations were illegal and void. They sources, however, said there were legal moves that the legal conquistador, Abe Dabdoub, could take to block Prime Minister Golding’s exit plan.
Legal experts also pointed out that Dabdoub’s attorneys could ask the court for a ruling as to the legality of calling a bye-election in any of the three constituencies in which the election petitions are pending a date of hearing by the court. The Election Petitions Act requires the petitions to be heard within 90 days of being filed. They said there were provisions in the Representation of the People Act and the Election Petitions Act which make it clear that an election petition was part of the election procedure as set out in the Representation of the People Act, and therefore the process was not complete until determination by the Supreme Court of the petition. The rationale, it seemed, was that the Prime Minister cannot and should not call a bye-election when the election result of the last election has still not been finalised. Political analysts said that if Dabdoub pursued this course of action and is successful, then this would add more salt to the JLP’s slim, if not razor-thin, majority in Parliament.
Regarding the allegiance issue, experts said the emphasis would be on whether the candidates were by their own act under any acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state. The swearing of allegiance, the holding of a passport and the making of a declaration were said to be only some of the ways that one may be under an acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state. The provision, they said, sought to ensure that those who pass laws that were binding on the population, owed allegiance to only one state or power, that is, Jamaica.
It is clear that the interpretation of the constitutional provisions will play a very important role in the determination of these cases. The legal experts said that the interpretation of Section 40 (2) (a) will be determined by the courts, which must also look at Section 41 (1) (d), which states that the seat of a member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall become vacant if he “ceases to be a Commonwealth citizen or takes any oath or makes any declaration or acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence, or does, concurs in or adopts any act done with the intention that he shall become a citizen of a foreign power or state.”
Political analysts insisted that if the court rules in favour of any of these matters, the incumbent JLP candidates would be disqualified and the seat more than likely awarded to the People’s National Party (PNP) candidates.
Duncan’s triumph therefore narrows the JLP’s margin of victory and the pending court battles effectively tighten the political noose around the government’s neck.
http://www.sunheraldjamaica.com/news-story1.htm
The Duncan declaration came after a series of protracted court proceedings from the Resident Magistrate’s Court and back and forth from the Supreme Court to the Court of Appeal.
Duncan’s victory means that the JLP majority in Parliament has been reduced to four and this could be wiped out if candidates alleged to be under an acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state, are disqualified.
Reports indicate that the US government is not unwilling to provide information about parliamentarians who are citizens of that country, if the information is requested by the Jamaican Supreme Court. This could indeed be worrying for Prime Minister Bruce Golding’s administration.
However, sources close to the JLP said that the Prime Minister has an exit plan in which he would request Shahine Robinson, Daryl Vaz and Gregory Mair to resign their seats in order that bye-elections may be held. The plan, it is believed, is not to call the bye-elections together, but to do them individually. However, legal sources said the election was a process and that the electoral process arising out of the last General Elections was not over until the determination of the Election Petitions filed against Robinson, Vaz and Mair, especially when the issue affected whether or not their nominations were illegal and void. They sources, however, said there were legal moves that the legal conquistador, Abe Dabdoub, could take to block Prime Minister Golding’s exit plan.
Legal experts also pointed out that Dabdoub’s attorneys could ask the court for a ruling as to the legality of calling a bye-election in any of the three constituencies in which the election petitions are pending a date of hearing by the court. The Election Petitions Act requires the petitions to be heard within 90 days of being filed. They said there were provisions in the Representation of the People Act and the Election Petitions Act which make it clear that an election petition was part of the election procedure as set out in the Representation of the People Act, and therefore the process was not complete until determination by the Supreme Court of the petition. The rationale, it seemed, was that the Prime Minister cannot and should not call a bye-election when the election result of the last election has still not been finalised. Political analysts said that if Dabdoub pursued this course of action and is successful, then this would add more salt to the JLP’s slim, if not razor-thin, majority in Parliament.
Regarding the allegiance issue, experts said the emphasis would be on whether the candidates were by their own act under any acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state. The swearing of allegiance, the holding of a passport and the making of a declaration were said to be only some of the ways that one may be under an acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state. The provision, they said, sought to ensure that those who pass laws that were binding on the population, owed allegiance to only one state or power, that is, Jamaica.
It is clear that the interpretation of the constitutional provisions will play a very important role in the determination of these cases. The legal experts said that the interpretation of Section 40 (2) (a) will be determined by the courts, which must also look at Section 41 (1) (d), which states that the seat of a member of the Senate or of the House of Representatives shall become vacant if he “ceases to be a Commonwealth citizen or takes any oath or makes any declaration or acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence, or does, concurs in or adopts any act done with the intention that he shall become a citizen of a foreign power or state.”
Political analysts insisted that if the court rules in favour of any of these matters, the incumbent JLP candidates would be disqualified and the seat more than likely awarded to the People’s National Party (PNP) candidates.
Duncan’s triumph therefore narrows the JLP’s margin of victory and the pending court battles effectively tighten the political noose around the government’s neck.
http://www.sunheraldjamaica.com/news-story1.htm
Comment