Michael Abrahams| Disrespecting our checks and balances

Corruption is endemic in Jamaica. Whenever there is an election, as soon as the dust settles and the smoke clears, it is only a matter of time before a scandal rears its ugly head, and then another and then another. Neither of our two major political parties can claim innocence in this regard, as both boast an impressive list of scandals involving all levels of representation, from councillors to senators, to members of parliament, and even prime ministers.

Nepotism, cronyism, embezzlement, and misappropriation of funds have cost our country billions of dollars, which could have been used to improve the lives of Jamaicans by strengthening our health, education, and other key sectors.

It is therefore imperative that efforts be made to cauterise corruption in our country and hold those culpable to account. What concerns me, however, is my observation that our present government has been tampering with the checks and balances responsible for accountability and transparency, not taking advantage of opportunities to strengthen them and in some instances, ignoring them.

For instance, there is the issue of the absence of impeachment legislation. Impeachment refers to the process of bringing charges against government officials for wrongdoing. One of Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness’ “first 100 days” promises prior to the 2016 election was to re-table an impeachment bill if he were elected. Holness said, “Within the first 100 days of our government, we will start the legislative process to institute impeachment proceedings in Parliament. This will add another layer of protection of the Parliament to ensure that only members of unquestioned integrity sit in the Parliament.”

NOT TABLED

However, after nine years in office, his administration has not tabled the bill, despite the party’s 2020 manifesto stating that it would do so if returned to office. In fact, Opposition Leader Mark Golding tabled an impeachment bill in April 2021, but the Holness administration has not allowed it to go forward. The final nail in the coffin was the Constitutional Reform Committee’s 2024 report, which recommended that we not have an impeachment provision in our Constitution.

The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) recently published a book of its achievements over its two terms in office. It lists one of its accomplishments as: “Set up and funded the Integrity Commission to fight corruption in our country.” Indeed, I recall Dr Holness speaking on a political platform several years ago, stating that entities investigating corruption must be allowed to do their jobs without interference. On paper, the setting up of the Integrity Commission (IC) is a commendable accomplishment. Still, the actions of the Holness administration do not reflect respect for the institution and its rules and values. For example, the IC produced a code of conduct, which speaks to the Seven Principles of Public Life (Nolan Principles): selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty, and leadership. However, the leadership of the governing party refused to sign it.

On the IC’s website, it states that it is an offence to file a statutory declaration late, make a false declaration or fail to provide information that is requested by the entity. In June 2024, Dwayne Vaz, People’s National Party (PNP) caretaker for Central Westmoreland, was fined for failing to submit information, and in October 2024, PNP Manchester North Western member of parliament (MP) Mikael Phillips was fined for submitting documents late. The IC claims that the prime minister had, on several occasions, failed to declare some of his assets and had not provided all the requested information. Now his statutory declarations have remained uncertified for four years, and he is seeking to challenge some of the rules of the very institution his party has taken pride in setting up, like asking the Supreme Court to strike down a law used by the Commission to probe public officials for illicit enrichment, an offence he is being investigated for.

NOT TO DIVULGE

More recently, Justice Minister Delroy Chuck advised members of parliament not to divulge the salaries of their spouses to the Commission, even though under the Integrity Commission Act, all parliamentarians and public officials are required to file statutory declarations, disclosing the income, assets and liabilities of their children and spouses where applicable.

A country’s Constitution acts as a rulebook for governance and should be respected by all. However, that doesn’t seem the case with Holness. In 2013, while serving as the Leader of the Opposition, he issued pre-signed letters of resignation to members of the Senate and subsequently used them to remove two members, Arthur Williams and Christopher Tufton. However, in 2015, the Supreme Court ruled that the act of issuing those letters was unconstitutional. Holness “unreservedly” apologised to the men during a church service after the ruling, but weeks later challenged the verdict at the Court of Appeal and lost. At the time, Delroy Chuck, then opposition MP, said, “The head of a political party against whom the court has twice ruled in a constitutional matter is not fit to be prime minister.”

JLP won the election in 2016, but breaches of the Constitution continued. In April 2019, the Constitutional Court struck down the National Identification and Registration (NIDS) Act, with the chief justice stating that the panel was unanimous in its decision, declaring the NIDS Act unconstitutional and null and void. In September 2020, the Supreme Court ruled that the months-long detention of five men without charge, under the states of emergency (SOEs) instituted by the Government as a crime-fighting tool, was unconstitutional. The court also ruled that the detention orders issued by the minister of national security were unlawful, as some of the men had been held without charge or bail for up to one year.

The refusal to table an impeachment bill, sign a code of conduct, and abide by the rules of an organisation you set up to fight corruption, as well as the repeated breaching of our Constitution, are actions that should arouse concern in any rational Jamaican.

Michael Abrahams is an obstetrician and gynaecologist, social commentator, and human-rights advocate. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and michabe_1999@hotmail.com, or follow him on X , formerly Twitter, @mikeyabrahams