Tweet
Jamaica's Golding open to 'unity government'
-Juhel Browne
Sunday, September 16th 2007
Jamaica's newly-appointed Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, said yesterday he is convinced his ruling party alone cannot effectively govern the country without the help of the Opposition People's National Party (PNP).
As such, Golding has expressed his desire to have what could be described as a unity government, as his Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) won Jamaica's general election on September 3 by a slim six-seat majority out of the 60 seats in the parliament.
Golding told reporters at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Port of Spain yesterday that this unified approach to governance in Jamaica was part of the JLP's manifesto long before last month's election.
"Now I'm awaiting the formal appointment of a Leader of the Opposition -which hadn't been done, certainly not up to when I left home this morning-and once that is done I am going to engage in that sort of conversation," Golding said.
Golding made the comments during a break at the Caricom regional summit on chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Port of Spain.
The JLP won 33 of the 60 seats in Jamaica's House of Representatives while the PNP, which had been in government for the last 18 years, won 27.
The PNP is led by Portia Simpson-Miller who, until September 3, had been Jamaica's first female Prime Minister.
She had been appointed to the post 18 months ago after Jamaica's then Prime Minister PJ Patterson left the job.
Golding said he wants to see an end to the kind of division that has long dominated Jamaica's politics and his government plans a reform of the nation's parliamentary system to allow for a greater participation by Opposition members.
"It's an approach of engagement (with) us saying: now, look the future of this country now rests in two pairs of hands, yours and mine; now these hands can either engage in hand-to-hand combat or we can join those hands together to build this country," Golding said.
He said it is in this context that the JLP's proposals to reform the operations of Jamaica's Parliament are significant.
"We are going to ensure that all the standing committees of Parliament are chaired by an Opposition member, as has been the tradition with the Public Accounts Committee," he said.
Golding also added: "The appointment of critical posts such as the Chief Justice, the Director of Public Prosecutions, the appointment of those persons will require approval by a two thirds majority in each House."
-Juhel Browne
Sunday, September 16th 2007
Jamaica's newly-appointed Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, said yesterday he is convinced his ruling party alone cannot effectively govern the country without the help of the Opposition People's National Party (PNP).
As such, Golding has expressed his desire to have what could be described as a unity government, as his Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) won Jamaica's general election on September 3 by a slim six-seat majority out of the 60 seats in the parliament.
Golding told reporters at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Port of Spain yesterday that this unified approach to governance in Jamaica was part of the JLP's manifesto long before last month's election.
"Now I'm awaiting the formal appointment of a Leader of the Opposition -which hadn't been done, certainly not up to when I left home this morning-and once that is done I am going to engage in that sort of conversation," Golding said.
Golding made the comments during a break at the Caricom regional summit on chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Port of Spain.
The JLP won 33 of the 60 seats in Jamaica's House of Representatives while the PNP, which had been in government for the last 18 years, won 27.
The PNP is led by Portia Simpson-Miller who, until September 3, had been Jamaica's first female Prime Minister.
She had been appointed to the post 18 months ago after Jamaica's then Prime Minister PJ Patterson left the job.
Golding said he wants to see an end to the kind of division that has long dominated Jamaica's politics and his government plans a reform of the nation's parliamentary system to allow for a greater participation by Opposition members.
"It's an approach of engagement (with) us saying: now, look the future of this country now rests in two pairs of hands, yours and mine; now these hands can either engage in hand-to-hand combat or we can join those hands together to build this country," Golding said.
He said it is in this context that the JLP's proposals to reform the operations of Jamaica's Parliament are significant.
"We are going to ensure that all the standing committees of Parliament are chaired by an Opposition member, as has been the tradition with the Public Accounts Committee," he said.
Golding also added: "The appointment of critical posts such as the Chief Justice, the Director of Public Prosecutions, the appointment of those persons will require approval by a two thirds majority in each House."
Comment