By NICO SCAVELLA
Tribune Staff Reporter
nscavella@tribunemedia.net
A LEGAL opinion purportedly sought by the Office of the Attorney General dismissing the legality of the Public Accounts Committee’s actions as it investigates Urban Renewal may have interfered with House Speaker Dr Kendal Major’s decision to summon Urban Renewal’s co-chairs to appear before the PAC.
Speaking with The Tribune yesterday, Dr Major confirmed that to date, his office has not issued any instructions for the programme’s co-chairs, Cynthia “Mother” Pratt and Algernon Allen to appear before the PAC.
He suggested that the legal opinion, which was reportedly sought from international and local attorneys, might have delayed him from performing that action.
Dr Major also confirmed that he, after meeting with his parliamentary clerks, has determined “a clear way forward” on the matter. However, he said they were “still taking the matter under advisement”.
“The PAC had invited the co-chairs (to appear for a hearing),” he told The Tribune yesterday. “Obviously you know that they refused. They wrote me a letter complaining that they did their part and the co-chairs refused . . .”
“I then met with the PAC chairman and secretary and it was at that meeting where I had advised that I was not minded to summon them, but because of the extenuating circumstances to accord them another opportunity. It was during that consideration I received this opinion from the attorney general’s office and that kind of took things in another direction. But they (the co-chairs) never received anything directly from me at all.”
Dr Major said he has met with the clerks in the House of Assembly to figure out the next steps.
“That meeting did happen and we came up with an agreement and a clear direction forward. (We are) still taking the matter under advisement so a final decision has not been made as yet. But obviously it is still very fluid and active.”
Last week, Dr Major said that a letter of request would be sent to the co-chairs to appear before the PAC as opposed to serving them with subpoenas. However, at the time Dr Major declined to say any more “because there is another added extenuating circumstance that recently came up that may have legal complications.”
On April 16, Mrs Pratt and Mr Allen refused to appear before a scheduled hearing with the PAC concerning the specifics of a scathing audit that was leaked to the media. They said they could not make that scheduled meeting because of short notice and prior engagements.
In a letter, however, the co-chairs also said that the audit was illegal because it has not gone through proper parliamentary channels and had not been tabled in Parliament. They have also said the audit is incomplete. The co-chairs said they would appear before the PAC at an appropriate date only if the report was removed from the scope of questioning.
Days later the legal opinion was leaked to the press. This left Dr Major “shocked” and “taken aback” by the document, which he called “unprecedented.”
Although asked about the matter, Attorney General Allyson Maynard Gibson has not confirmed if the document originated from her office.
The legal opinion said the PAC’s course of action in summoning Mrs Pratt and Mr Allen was “legally improper.” The document also says the process by which the audit was commissioned “may have undermined the constitutional independence of the auditor general and engaged a violation of the separation of powers doctrine.”
PAC Chairman Hubert Chipman initially said the group asked Auditor General Terrance Bastian to audit Urban Renewal. However, it was found that the auditor general already had Urban Renewal on his agenda.
That audit found a lack of transparency and accountability in the Small Homes Repair Programme and that Urban Renewal had weak internal controls and was open to “abuse.”
Comments
asiseeit 9 years, 4 months ago
They are flaunting their crookedness. It seems that the government and the AG will do anything and everything to protect those that have been not doing their jobs or worse giving the peoples money away to those they feel deserve it. People have been put in positions to MANAGE and PROTECT the peoples money and at best they have not done their jobs that WE pay them to do. Remember this money does not belong to the PLP or Urban, it belongs to the people of the Bahamas. If we have no right to oversight and accountability how about WE say they have no right to impose taxes upon us? The people are the boss and these set are pushing the boss around a bit much these days, maybe WE start to push back and lets see how that works out!
Honestman 9 years, 4 months ago
Bahamas = the Land of the Crooked.
Well_mudda_take_sic 9 years, 4 months ago
WORTH REPEATING: Here we once again see the AG's Office being misused and abused by the AG (Allyson Maynard-Gibson) with the objective of shielding and providing political cover for serious transgressions of incompetent appointees and corrupt supporters of the Christie-led administration. Maynard-Gibson has time and time again acted in a way that should leave her stripped of the protections afforded her Office by our Constitution. She has repeatedly demonstrated her willingness to egregiously abuse the AG's Office to the detriment of the Bahamian people. The Bahamian people should be insisting with a mighty voice that she be held accountable for her many egregious acts as AG, and equally egregious failures to properly act in accordance with the requirements and decorum expected of her Office. When the time is right her many instances of misconduct as AG should be made the subject of a full and proper investigation and hopefully that time is not too far off now.
Well_mudda_take_sic 9 years, 4 months ago
As one prominent lawyer recently put it at a Lyford Cay social function: "Being named a QC means absolutely nothing now that Maynard-Gibson has joined that rank."
duppyVAT 9 years, 4 months ago
BAHA .......MAZING!!!!!!!!!!!! .................... Come on Mr. Speaker, dont let the Nolle AG throw a curve ball and strike you out easy as that .................... you are in charge of the House!!!!!!!!
realfreethinker 9 years, 4 months ago
If the old hag of an AG prevents the speaker from doing his job he should resign aciplend tell perry to kiss his ass.Someone has to stand on principle in this country If those cabinet ministers continue to sit in cabinet with alfred fray,they are just as corrupt,because it's collective responsibility.
Sign in to comment
OpenID