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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=1 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD><SPAN class=TopStory>Censure motion, Trafigura...and what a day it was in the House!</SPAN>
<SPAN class=Subheadline>Parliament</SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>
Sunday, October 08, 2006
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<P class=StoryText align=justify>Journalists were scampering all over Gordon House on Tuesday to keep up with the news, as the two political parties in Parliament - the ruling People's National Party (PNP) and the opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) - gave clear indications as to what can be expected as the general election approaches.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Unfortunately, the lobby was out of bounds to the media again, as the police insisted on its new policy that only MPs are allowed into the lobby, although it could be observed at the end of the sitting that one area of the lobby was loaded with government supporters.
As the time approached for the 2:00 pm start to the sitting, it became obvious that something special was in the offing. A large crowd of PNP supporters assembled at the corner of Beeston and Duke streets. A smaller, but very colourful crowd of JLP supporters took over the Charles/Beeston streets end.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The public gallery was full, which was very unusual, except for special occasions, and the noisy atmosphere was very ominous.
Donald Buchanan (South West St Elizabeth), who brought the censure motion against veteran opposition MP, Karl Samuda (North Central St. Andrew) for claiming that public administrator, Noel Hylton had submitted a report on the controversial Sandals Whitehouse hotel project, opened the debate.<P class=StoryText align=justify>He noted that Hylton had stated that he had never submitted a report on Sandals Whitehouse to former Prime Minister P J Patterson, and reinforced it with similar public statements, and that both men's integrity was sufficient to support those statements.
Buchanan rated Hylton as one of the finest public servants ever to serve the country, and Patterson as, "a man internationally acclaimed, recognised and acknowledged".
Buchanan suggested that Samuda had a pattern of attack without evidence to support it.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"I must conclude, Mr Speaker, that the Member from North Central St Andrew has run amok and consistently sought to bring the integrity of the House into disrepute by presenting misleading information to the House. I am seeking this afternoon an appropriate punishment from this House be meted out to this member, that he will understand that it is a breach, in fact, pretty close to being a crime, against this House to have sought to mislead this House so consistently over so many different presentations in Parliament. And, I call upon this House to mete out the appropriate punishment to the member," he said.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The Leader of the Opposition, Bruce Golding, then arose and warned the House that the (so-called Hylton) report would be presented to the House, "today", because it formed a substantial part of an amendment to the resolution that he had brought.
"This is not a concocted document. This is a very, very significant document," Golding said, quoting from the document.<P class=StoryText align=justify>He said that Hylton had stated that he was not recruited as an arbitrator but, "was requested to ascertain certain limited facts and report the results of my findings and of any agreement that I achieve between the parties".<P class=StoryText align=justify>He said that this was significant because the explanation that Hylton offered, that because he could not get the parties to agree he didn't bother to submit the report, was not faithful to the terms of reference.
He said that Hylton said that he did not think that it was necessary to submit a report and accordingly did not submit one.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"Nowhere: not in this letter (to the Urban Development Corporation), nor in any statement that h
<SPAN class=Subheadline>Parliament</SPAN></TD></TR><TR><TD>
Sunday, October 08, 2006
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<P class=StoryText align=justify>Journalists were scampering all over Gordon House on Tuesday to keep up with the news, as the two political parties in Parliament - the ruling People's National Party (PNP) and the opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) - gave clear indications as to what can be expected as the general election approaches.<P class=StoryText align=justify>Unfortunately, the lobby was out of bounds to the media again, as the police insisted on its new policy that only MPs are allowed into the lobby, although it could be observed at the end of the sitting that one area of the lobby was loaded with government supporters.
As the time approached for the 2:00 pm start to the sitting, it became obvious that something special was in the offing. A large crowd of PNP supporters assembled at the corner of Beeston and Duke streets. A smaller, but very colourful crowd of JLP supporters took over the Charles/Beeston streets end.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The public gallery was full, which was very unusual, except for special occasions, and the noisy atmosphere was very ominous.
Donald Buchanan (South West St Elizabeth), who brought the censure motion against veteran opposition MP, Karl Samuda (North Central St. Andrew) for claiming that public administrator, Noel Hylton had submitted a report on the controversial Sandals Whitehouse hotel project, opened the debate.<P class=StoryText align=justify>He noted that Hylton had stated that he had never submitted a report on Sandals Whitehouse to former Prime Minister P J Patterson, and reinforced it with similar public statements, and that both men's integrity was sufficient to support those statements.
Buchanan rated Hylton as one of the finest public servants ever to serve the country, and Patterson as, "a man internationally acclaimed, recognised and acknowledged".
Buchanan suggested that Samuda had a pattern of attack without evidence to support it.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"I must conclude, Mr Speaker, that the Member from North Central St Andrew has run amok and consistently sought to bring the integrity of the House into disrepute by presenting misleading information to the House. I am seeking this afternoon an appropriate punishment from this House be meted out to this member, that he will understand that it is a breach, in fact, pretty close to being a crime, against this House to have sought to mislead this House so consistently over so many different presentations in Parliament. And, I call upon this House to mete out the appropriate punishment to the member," he said.<P class=StoryText align=justify>The Leader of the Opposition, Bruce Golding, then arose and warned the House that the (so-called Hylton) report would be presented to the House, "today", because it formed a substantial part of an amendment to the resolution that he had brought.
"This is not a concocted document. This is a very, very significant document," Golding said, quoting from the document.<P class=StoryText align=justify>He said that Hylton had stated that he was not recruited as an arbitrator but, "was requested to ascertain certain limited facts and report the results of my findings and of any agreement that I achieve between the parties".<P class=StoryText align=justify>He said that this was significant because the explanation that Hylton offered, that because he could not get the parties to agree he didn't bother to submit the report, was not faithful to the terms of reference.
He said that Hylton said that he did not think that it was necessary to submit a report and accordingly did not submit one.<P class=StoryText align=justify>"Nowhere: not in this letter (to the Urban Development Corporation), nor in any statement that h
KD Knight's input was really comical. I had to laugh to rahtid! "I wanted to see the white of his eyes as I speak," Knight added.
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