Finale! Manatt-Dudus enquiry climaxes with verbal battles

Gary Spaulding, Senior Gleaner Writer

REASON FLED the Manatt-Dudus commission of enquiry last week as the verbal clashes between Bruce Golding and K.D. Knight brought the curtains down on the gamut of testimonies and took the proceedings to a new low in what Hugh Small characterised as "a hostile environment".

Men, long admired for their linguistic panache and intellectual acumen, threw decorum to the wind in an affair that an observer characterised as "indecent and vulgar".

Another fumed: "This is no longer funny. what passes for wit is downright rude!"

Yet another observer lamented that the two men had transformed the exchanges into an unfortunate 'tracing' match.

Knight made use of the adjectives "deceitful", "corrupt", and "anile" (of, or like a foolish, doddering old woman) in reference to Golding's attorney, Hugh Small, while Golding spat the words "rude", "rubbish", "offensive", and "asinine."

Additionally, accusations and counter-accusations were fired at will.

Golding told Knight that the enquiry was the only forum in which the attorney could be rude to him.

"Enjoy it while it lasts," the prime minister declared as he lifted his glass to Knight before taking a sip of a transparent liquid.

Knight countered: "Are you threatening me?"

The attorney, one of Golding's long-time political rivals, maintained that the prime minister's comments were flavoured with insults.

When Golding described as foolish a question posed by Knight, the attorney responded, "I normally ask my questions at the level of the witness I am dealing with."

The vitriol seemed to have been contagious as supporters took unto themselves locus standi (the right to participate).

They participated in the cacophony with alacrity even as chairman of the commission, Emil George, and the police seemed impotent.

Small suggested that the conduct of the supporters reflected "the unintended consequence of the way we conduct ourselves".

One of the most telling questions to be asked by Knight was whether the entire Manatt controversy could have been averted had Golding fully answered a question posed by Dr Peter Phillips in the House of Representatives on March 16, 2010. The prime minister said he could not say how the future might have been shaped.

Duel of words

Knight: "Prime Minister, you are unable to distinguish between truth and falsehoods."

Golding: "That is more of your rubbish!"

Knight: "As part of your deception, you connived with Mr Brady, the minister of justice, and others unknown in order to prevent the extradition of Dudus."

Golding: "That is not only rubbish, it is asinine!"

As the tussle intensified, George's voice could hardly be heard over the din. "Stop!" he squeaked.

Golding protested that former Prime Minister Michael Manley was not subjected to the "kind of abuse" he was being subjected to when he faced a commission of enquiry in the aftermath of the 1976 state of emergency.

Small, sardonically described by the duo of Knight and Patrick Atkinson as the fourth commissioner, continued to protest that the ugliness was being showcased to the world, precipitating another acerbic bout.

George's weak appeal trickled through the din.

EG: "Calm it, Mr Knight."

KD: "Calm what?"

EG: "Use of abusive comments."

KD: "I am not going to refrain from saying this has been a deception. The prime minister's involvement in the extradition of Coke was corrupt."

Golding dismissed Knight's suggestion that he had defiantly declared that he would put his career on the line for Coke.

"I did not say that I was putting my career on the line for Christopher Coke," argued the prime minister. "I said I would put my career on the line for the constitutional rights that are enshrined in the constitution."

Knight: "Including Christopher Coke?"

Golding: "Every single Jamaican."

Knight: "Including Christopher Coke?"

Golding: "Including Keith Desmond Knight."

Knight: "Including Christopher Dudus Coke?"

Golding: "Every single Jamaican."

Knight: "In the same way you have specified Keith Desmond Knight, you can't say Christopher Coke?"

Golding: "I have said every single Jamaican. I am not going to put up with it (the same question being asked again and again)".

Knight: 'Why are you afraid to call his name?"

Golding: "I am not going to answer the question."

Emil George: "All right. next question, Mr Knight."

Knight (to George): "Don't shout at me!"

Knight: "Chairman, I am not going to proceed. Something has to be done."

And so the battle continued.

gary.spaulding@gleanerjm.com