BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – PRIME MINISTER of the Federation Dr Hon Denzil Douglas will be summonsed to Court today (July 30) to testify in the ongoing Contempt of Court case against the Attorney-General, Dr Hon Dennis Merchant.
Counsel for the People’s Action Movement (PAM) Leslie Haynes QC explained to the Court yesterday (July 29) that Section 53, Subsection 3 of the Constitution provides that the function of Cabinet is to “advise the Governor General, and would be collectively responsible for any advice given to the Prime Minister”.
He stressed that the Attorney-General, being a member of Cabinet, had a duty to advise the Governor General that the Boundaries Commission Report laid before Parliament on July 9 was in conflict with a standing injunction filed by PAM on July 2.
Haynes further outlined the grounds whereby AG Merchant violated the terms of the court order. He argued that Merchant was not entirely truthful when he sought, through the Government’s legal counsel, an adjournment of Court proceedings on July 9 for an emergency Parliamentary sitting. Merchant, according to Haynes, should have informed the National Assembly of the injunction order, even “if his advice was not previously taken”.
The QC sought permission from the Court to support his team’s argument with sworn affidavits filed by Chesley Hamilton, a former candidate for PAM. The affidavits purportedly include statements made by the Prime Minister in the July 9 Parliamentary sitting, his July 10 press conference and a July 26 public meeting in Lodge.
However, the respondents, led in that session by Dr. Henry Browne, tabled objections to using such affidavits. The Court was adjourned and held a three-hour in-chamber meeting to come to a decision on whether or not the affidavits would be admissible as evidence.
Speaking to SKNVibes, PAM counsel Constance Mitchum informed that following the in-chamber meeting, the presiding judge Her Ladyship Justice Rita Joseph-Olivetti decided to allow the affidavits.
“They [the respondents] were saying that the tape was not very clear and we pointed out that the section we referred to is clear, and eventually the affidavits of Chesley Hamilton in relation to statements made by the Prime Minister were admitted,” she said.
Mitchum explained that the Prime Minister was to be served a summons that would require him to attend Court this morning (July 30) at 11:00 a.m. to respond to the statements he allegedly made.
