After the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, and the Chief Justice, the Senate President ranks fourth in the nation's official order of precedence.
It was extraordinarily astonishing therefore that in her exercise to get rid of the Attorney General, the PM thought little of firing Senate President Timothy Hamel-Smith, one of the 16 government�appointed senators, and for no apparent reason other than he was occupying a space.
As presiding officer he was the most senior member of the senate and when elected by the senate members he is expected to relinquish any political party affiliation and to be independent and neutral both in the senate and in any public utterances.
Hamel-Smith was seen by all Trinbagonians to exemplify these requirements–and some even rated him the best performing partnership parliamentarian.
PP supporters point to the dismissals by the PM as her strength in governance, but her dismissals also highlight her poor selection judgment, and/or the paucity of available PP talent.
Persad-Bissessar has signaled that the Senate President enjoys no such independence and can just be removed at a whim!
PS: In my letter "Carmona cannot fire Mr West," I incorrectly referenced two section numbers of the PCA Act, although the substance of my submission is not affected by this error. The correct sections are 6(1) and 12.
Michael J Williams,
Maracas