PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – The Law Association of Trinidad and Tobago (LATT) Friday said it has taken note of the “serious allegations” made against two independent legislators, suggesting that they sought personal favours to support the government’s Law Reform (Zones of Special Operations) (ZOSO) Bill that was defeated in the Senate earlier this week.
The Kamla Persad-Bissessar government needed a special two-thirds majority to ensure passage of the legislation in the Senate, after it had passed it in the Lower House with an overwhelming majority there.
Eight of the nine independent legislators voted with the opposition against the Bill in the Senate, while one independent senator abstained.
In a social media post hours after the ZOSO legislation was defeated in the Senate, on Tuesday night, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar wrote that “during the debate, two of the President’s Senators approached a senior Government Senator seeking personal favours in exchange for support and for securing the remaining votes needed for passage. Those requests were rejected. From that moment, it was clear the Bill would not pass. They know who they are. They must live with that shame.
“My Government will not buy votes… This is why I warn about the fake ‘eat-a-food’ elite. They do not care about decent, hardworking citizens, only self-interest and privilege,” said Persad-Bissessar, who, before the debate in the Senate, had described the independent legislators as ‘bootlickers and brown-nosers.’
“These shameless presidents’ senators had no courage to contest any election to sit in that Parliament; they are not there because of the will of the people. ” The entire country knows that these people were appointed because they are bootlickers and brown-nosers,” she said, adding that they had been appointed by President Kangaloo, whom she described as a “low-level PNM (opposition People’s National Movement) functionary.”
In a statement, LATT said the allegations have been denied by the independent senators, adding “the making grave accusations against parliamentarians, accusations that would constitute serious misconduct, without providing sufficient particulars to permit identification, investigation, or response, is inimical to the proper functioning of our democratic institutions.
“Such allegations place all nine Independent Senators under a cloud of suspicion while allowing none to clear their name,” the LATT said, adding that “if there is substance to these claims, the appropriate course is to provide the relevant details to the proper authorities so that a fair inquiry may be conducted”.
The LATT warned that if such particulars cannot be provided, “the repetition of unverifiable accusations serves only to undermine public confidence in our Parliament” and must therefore be “publicly withdrawn”.
The LATT said it wanted to remind the country that the presumption of innocence is a cornerstone of the legal system here and that “public condemnation in the absence of proof is inconsistent with the values that ought to guide discourse in a society governed by the rule of law”.
It further expressed concern about the tone of recent commentary directed at constitutional officeholders, including the Office of the President.
“The Independent Senators occupy a unique and vital role in our bicameral Parliament,” the LATT said, warning that attacks on senators for voting according to conscience could undermine the independence required of their office.
“The Association calls upon all participants in public life to refrain from making serious allegations that cannot be substantiated or properly investigated; allow those accused of wrongdoing to know the case against them and to respond; maintain respect for constitutional officeholders and institutions they represent and engage in political debate in a manner consistent with the dignity of Parliament and the expectations of the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago”.
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