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Currupt use of power
Article Published: Sunday, May 16th, 2010
Prime Minister Bruce Golding has now confirmed what Karl Samuda admitted, and what we concluded in a recent editorial, which is that “the whole saga involving Manatt Phelps & Phillips began with the (JLP’s) move to establish itself as an intermediary between the US and Jamaican governments” in the Coke extradition dispute.
It has become clearer with every statement from the Government, that having sanctioned the engagement of the law firm to further the cause of the JLP strongman, and having been caught red-handed, Mr. Golding has sought to weave a web of lies and half-truths to Parliament and the people of Jamaica. He even went as far as instructing his party secretary to carry out a mock investigation, knowing full well what scheme he had contrived.
Sadly, the Manatt issue has exposed in full glare the crisis of governance that afflicts Jamaica and that has caused grave damage to our country’s international reputation. It is characterised by deception at several levels starting with the Prime Minister of Jamaica when he authorised the move to secure the services of the firm to do the JLP’s bidding. He did this although he must have been aware that the firm could only act in an extradition matter if it were representing the Jamaican Government.
By the method of Manatt’s engagement, the firm obviously accepted in good faith the assignment on behalf of the Jamaican Government, and acted accordingly. This is demonstrated in the fact that it complied with the reporting requirements under US law through several filings with its Justice Department, because Manatt would have known that it could not act for the JLP, a political party, in a matter concerning a treaty between the two countries. In short, the law firm was deceived with the full knowledge and sanction of Mr. Golding.
In Parliament on March 16, the deception was taken to another level when Mr. Golding vehemently denied Manatt’s engagement on the extradition issue. By then, he had already hatched a plot to insert the firm in the dispute between the governments, nefariously on the Jamaican Government’s side, but in reality to protect the interest of his Tivoli Gardens don.
Without provocation and at one stroke, he insulted the US Government, the Jamaican people, and Opposition MP Dr. Peter Phillips in a display of arrogance unmatched in Jamaica’s recent political history. And all because Dr. Phillips had quite properly raised the issue of Manatt’s engagement and whether or not it was related to the extradition dispute.
It is well acknowledged by the police that gang warfare is the driving force behind crime in Jamaica. To be deceptively seeking to frustrate the process of bringing an alleged gang leader before the courts to face charges for drug and gunrunning is despicable. Not only is it a corrupt use of power, but also it has undermined the legitimacy of the Golding administration and by extension the state’s ability to enforce law and order.
Except for the views appearing above, articles in this newspaper do not necessarily represent the opinion of the newspaper.
Article Published: Sunday, May 16th, 2010
Prime Minister Bruce Golding has now confirmed what Karl Samuda admitted, and what we concluded in a recent editorial, which is that “the whole saga involving Manatt Phelps & Phillips began with the (JLP’s) move to establish itself as an intermediary between the US and Jamaican governments” in the Coke extradition dispute.
It has become clearer with every statement from the Government, that having sanctioned the engagement of the law firm to further the cause of the JLP strongman, and having been caught red-handed, Mr. Golding has sought to weave a web of lies and half-truths to Parliament and the people of Jamaica. He even went as far as instructing his party secretary to carry out a mock investigation, knowing full well what scheme he had contrived.
Sadly, the Manatt issue has exposed in full glare the crisis of governance that afflicts Jamaica and that has caused grave damage to our country’s international reputation. It is characterised by deception at several levels starting with the Prime Minister of Jamaica when he authorised the move to secure the services of the firm to do the JLP’s bidding. He did this although he must have been aware that the firm could only act in an extradition matter if it were representing the Jamaican Government.
By the method of Manatt’s engagement, the firm obviously accepted in good faith the assignment on behalf of the Jamaican Government, and acted accordingly. This is demonstrated in the fact that it complied with the reporting requirements under US law through several filings with its Justice Department, because Manatt would have known that it could not act for the JLP, a political party, in a matter concerning a treaty between the two countries. In short, the law firm was deceived with the full knowledge and sanction of Mr. Golding.
In Parliament on March 16, the deception was taken to another level when Mr. Golding vehemently denied Manatt’s engagement on the extradition issue. By then, he had already hatched a plot to insert the firm in the dispute between the governments, nefariously on the Jamaican Government’s side, but in reality to protect the interest of his Tivoli Gardens don.
Without provocation and at one stroke, he insulted the US Government, the Jamaican people, and Opposition MP Dr. Peter Phillips in a display of arrogance unmatched in Jamaica’s recent political history. And all because Dr. Phillips had quite properly raised the issue of Manatt’s engagement and whether or not it was related to the extradition dispute.
It is well acknowledged by the police that gang warfare is the driving force behind crime in Jamaica. To be deceptively seeking to frustrate the process of bringing an alleged gang leader before the courts to face charges for drug and gunrunning is despicable. Not only is it a corrupt use of power, but also it has undermined the legitimacy of the Golding administration and by extension the state’s ability to enforce law and order.
Except for the views appearing above, articles in this newspaper do not necessarily represent the opinion of the newspaper.
