BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – PARLIAMENTARIANS from both sides of the aisle consider the appointment of attorney Vincent Byron as the new opposition senator an ideal choice and look forward to his contributions in National Parliament.
Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of Government Business in Parliament Hon. Sam Condor told SKNVibes that the selection of Byron by the opposition People’s Action Movement (PAM) party is an “excellent appointment”.
He said that the PAM attorney comes from a bloodline of public servants and noted his expectations of significant contributions to Parliament.
“I have known him for a very long time and we go way back to the days of football. He comes from a family committed to national development and public life for a long time. His brother Terry [attorney Terrance Byron] served as an ambassador [to the Republics of China and South Korea] and his other brother [Sir Dennis Byron] is Chief Justice [of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court].
“So, it is truly a family of public life,” Condor said. “He comes very prepared; he was a teacher and went into law. I believe his contribution will be significant and I look forward to it in Parliament.”
Leader of the Opposition Hon. Mark Brantley also noted his satisfaction with the appointment.
He said that while he does not know Byron very well, “the little I know of him is that he is competent and intelligent, and I trust that he would bring his knowledge, experience and intellect into Parliament.”
However, not all persons have seen the appointment of Byron as the correct choice for the PAM.
Social commentator Washington Archibald criticized Byron’s appointment as a “mistake”. He argued that the PAM gave up an opportunity to appoint a young person or a female to Parliament, suggesting party Deputy Chair Cyndie Demming and failed candidate in the 2004 Elections Jonelle Rawlins as better choices.
“It is a mistake to appoint Mr. Byron. I do not have anything against him but... he is not going to be more effective as a politician than he was as a lawyer defending the PAM in the High Court,” Archibald stated earlier today (Mar. 3) on his local radio programme ‘Ask Washie’.
PAM Political Leader Lindsay Grant, however, explained that on the party’s short list of “duly qualified” prospects, Byron showed the most appropriate legal training and knowledge of the electoral laws, which are current priorities for the party.
“We also looked at the fact that with such a slim majority, Governments’ legislative agenda may be self serving at best and that debating new and controversial legislation was important. We also considered that we as an opposition may wish for the first time to draft bills and present such in the Assembly,” Grant quoted in a recent release.
Byron became widely known as one of the legal counsel representing PAM in tribunals and high court matters, with a special focus on the nation’s electoral process. He led the cases to remove names of voters who had illegally been registered in Constituency St. Christopher Eight and served his party in constitutional high court cases filed by Grant and Deputy Leader Shawn Richards.
He is also involved in the recently launched election petition, which is seeking to challenge the results of Constituency St. Christopher Four following the January 25, 2010 General Elections.
Byron was admitted to practice in the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court in August of 2007 and comes with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History from the University of the West Indies, a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the New York Institute of Technology, and a Bachelor of Laws Degree from the University of Wolverhampton.
He also worked as a management and financial consultant, and as an instructor of Information Technology.
