PNM hopes for support from Independents

The Opposition PNM is hoping for support in the Senate from the Independent senators for its upcoming motion of censure against Attorney General Anand Ramlogan, says PNM senator Faris Al-Rawi. PNM leader Dr Keith Rowley, at the PNM’s public meeting on Wednesday, said the PNM in the House of Representatives would file the motion against the AG in connection with the Section 34 issue and the matter would be fully aired in debate.  He said a similar motion would be filed by the PNM’s Senate bench.

PNM whip Marlene McDonald said the motion was being filed in Parliament yesterday and would qualify for debate on Private Members’ Day, when Opposition issues were discussed. She said that would be around the end of October. A Parliament spokesman at 1 pm yesterday said nothing had been received up to that point. Rowley had said it would be interesting to see what response the motion received from Independent senators.

In the recent Parliament debate to repeal the controversial section, almost half the Senate bench voted against repeal, saying amendments could be made to the section. They said repeal could cause the parent legislation to be defeated in the courts and would have the opposite effect of what the bill was meant to do. Yesterday, Al-Rawi said he didn’t think the PNM had to do much lobbying of Independent support for the motion.

The Independent bench has nine members, the PNM six and Government 16 in the Senate. Several Independent senators, when contacted, said they preferred to comment when any such debate arose, and not before. The Section 34 issue would be discussed at UWI’s Social and Economic Division next Wednesday by Independent senator Elton Prescott (SC), Al-Rawi, the People’s Partnership’s Roodal Moonilal and analyst Bishnu Ragoonath.