Local News

Senator suggests motion of censure

St. George’s, May 3, 2010 (GIS) – Members of the Senate are exasperated over what they consider to be the inordinate amount of time that senior public officers take in providing answers to questions sent to them by the country’s parliamentarians.

Senators, at a recent sitting of the Upper House of Parliament, agreed that something ought to be done to expedite requested responses from public servants.

“I wish to suggest is that we move to the stage of censure,’’ said Hon. Chester Humphrey, the labour representative in the Senate.

He made the suggestion after months of failure on the part of Sen. Keith Clouden to receive answers to a three-part question relating to government-owned estates.

Mr. Clouden represents the agricultural sector in the Senate. He posed the questions last October to Sen. George Prime, who has tried receiving the answers from the senior public servants who manage government ministries.

“All the applications have been made to the relevant permanent secretaries for the responses and we’ve received none as I speak at this moment,’’ Sen. Prime told his colleagues in the Upper House. “I can only endeavour – as I have been doing with some limited success – in ensuring that these answers are forthcoming.’’

Mr. Prime, Leader of Government Business in the Senate, said he was unable to understand “the difficulty that is associated with these basic simple questions that we cannot have the answers for.’’

Sen. Humphrey claimed that “parliament is really just being ignored’’ by the government-employed public officers.

“A minister with whom a question lies,’’ he said, “ought to report to whom he sent the question. If after a reasonable time there is no response, I wish to suggest that we introduce a motion of censure of that public officer; a motion to censure that public officer, which is then remitted to the Public Service Commission.’’

Opposition Senator, lawyer Dwight Horsford, said there is existing legislation that gives parliament “the ability to get results in respects of these answers and questions’’ to senior public workers.

“The Immunities and Privileges Act can be examined to determine the way forward,’’ he said. “I think it will be useful if a few of us can sit and look at it.’’

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