BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – AFTER the Basseterre High Court of Justice ruled that Attorney General Dr. the Hon. Dennis Merchant was found in contempt of court, Leader of the Opposition Benches in the National Assembly, the Hon. Mark Brantley, has called for his resignation.
Earlier today (Aug. 7), Justice Her Ladyship Rita Joseph-Olivetti’s judgment in the case of contempt of court brought against Dr. Merchant by member on the Opposition Benches and Deputy Leader of the People’s Action Movement (PAM), the Hon. Shawn K. Richards, was read in chambers, convicting Merchant of disobeying the court’s orders.
An injunction filed by Richards was granted by the court prohibiting use of the Electoral Boundaries Commission Report. That injunction was challenged and upheld by the court, and the decision was appealed but the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal ruled that it is to be upheld.
In a posting made on the popular internet medium, SKNList, Brantley expressed his disappointment with the chain of events and described the court’s ruling as “a devastating indictment of the Prime Minister and his actions” and “a stinging indictment of the Attorney General”.
Brantley, on July 8, 2009, at an emergency sitting of the National Assembly during which the Electoral Boundaries Commission Report was tabled, warned of formidable repercussions should expediency be substituted for correctness.
In reiteration of these sentiments, he expressed: “This is a truly sad development for our young nation. But this is what happens when we insist on doing what is expedient rather than what is right. The courts are making a clear statement about the impropriety of the Prime Minister's decision to proceed with boundary changes and the debate thereon in Parliament despite the existence of a Court Order and despite the fact that the government itself had moved the court to vacate the Order.
“The Concerned Citizens Movement in Parliament stood up for the rule of law and respect for the courts. As a result, none of us are in the dock today. As a nation and as a people, we must always seek to do what is right no matter how difficult and no matter the cost. Only so can we truly take St. Kitts and Nevis to the type of society firmly rooted in the rule of law that we all desire.”
Brantley called for the immediate resignation of the Dr. Merchant as the Federation seeks to disentangle itself from the legal and ethical quandary in which Prime Minister, Dr. the Hon. Denzil L. Douglas has placed the nation.
“I have seen the AG of Grenada recently forced to resign over using his official stationery to write a personal letter seeking clemency for his stepson in the United States. I believe that the Hon. Dr. Dennis Merchant should not hesitate but should resign forthwith. To cite a sitting Attorney General, the State's top legal official, for contempt is an extremely serious matter and Dr. Merchant should tender his resignation forthwith as St. Kitts-Nevis seeks to extricate itself from this legal and moral quagmire into which Prime Minister Douglas has plunged us.”
SKNVibes made attempts to contact Dr. Merchant for a comment, but there was no answer from his cellular telephone and personnel in his office indicated that he was not in.
