KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC- The main opposition People’s National Party (PNP) has come out to support calls for the reinstatement of a Political Ombudsman.
According to party chairperson Dr. Angela Brown Burke, there is a need for a judge to hold political representatives accountable.
“We do need an office holder of that kind. I believe that it is also going to be extremely important that the individual can function independently without coming under duress as the last ombudsman did from a parliamentarian when they did not like the ruling or the call from her at the time,” said Brown Burke.
Groups, including Jamaicans for Justice and the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica, have called for the reinstatement of a Political Ombudsman to act as a judge as the political cut and thrust intensifies.
Earlier this week, PSOJ president Metry Seaga expressed concern about the increasingly divisive rhetoric on the political campaign trail.
According to Seaga, with the absence of a Political Ombudsman, people feel they are now empowered to say or do anything on the campaign platform, irrespective of the truth or the harm that will be inflicted on others or society.
Last November, Justice Minister Delroy Chuck said that a new Political Ombudsman would not be appointed, and Cabinet was considering a merger of that office with the Electoral Commission of Jamaica (ECJ).
In a recent update, Chuck said the proposal to transfer the role of the Political Ombudsman to a six-member committee in the ECJ is still going through the stages for approval.
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