Appeal Court grants Bernard hearing - Former permanent secretary’s reassignment challenge to be heard next week
Published:Friday | September 27, 2019 | 12:18 AMErica Virtue/Senior Gleaner Writer
The Court of Appeal yesterday threw out the Government’s attempt to deny former permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education Dean-Roy Bernard a chance at judicial review of his reassignment as director general to the Ministry of Finance and Public Service.
Bernard said yesterday that his case would be heard next Tuesday in the Constitutional Court, following his court action that his reassignment was unconstitutional.
Director general is not a position on the establishment of the finance ministry.
“No, I am not back as permanent secretary, but it is an important step in the process,” Bernard told The Gleaner yesterday. “This paves the way for the hearing to go ahead on October 1, this after the Government filed an appeal to block the hearing in the Supreme Court. The Court of Appeal has ruled against them.”
Bernard sued the Public Service Commission and the attorney general, and on August 9, Justice Almarie Sinclair-Haynes ruled that the Government’s stay of execution was refused.
Yesterday, she ruled that Bernard’s request for a hearing had been granted.
In July, Bernard, who served as permanent secretary in the ministry during the tenure of Ruel Reid, asked the court to block the appointment of Dr Grace McLean to his former post, stating that his reassignment was unconstitutional.
He was transferred from the ministry in February 2019 and, McLean, who was the chief education officer, was promoted to the post. She was later relegated to ‘acting’, following the court action.
Bernard was shipped out of the education ministry roughly a month before Reid was booted from the Cabinet amid a criminal investigation.