Prosperity1
03-12-07, - 02:22 PM
12th March
Former PLP Senator Slams Gov’t Over State of Judiciary
By Candia Dames
Former PLP Senator Damian Gomez has slammed the government for failing – in his words – to do enough to effect real improvements to the country’s judicial system.
Mr. Gomez also said the recently released report of the Judicial Review Commission was a slap in the face.
"The paltry increases are in stark contrast to the generous payment which government gives to even the most junior of pilots of Bahamasair and pays to executives in the corporations such as BEC and [BTC]," he said.
While Prime Minister Perry Christie said in the House of Assembly on Wednesday that judges are set to get "significant" raises, Mr. Gomez said what is being offered is insulting.
"It’s very disappointing," he said.
"It throws into question the government’s boast of having the best economic performance in the history of the Bahamas, both in the private sector and in respect of government finance. If the government is truthful, one can only ask the question why it is that it cannot pay economic rates to maintain the competence and integrity of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal."
Mr. Gomez added, "In the Court of Appeal, the government has been unable or unwilling to fill a vacancy and as a result of that several appeals have had to be adjourned. In addition to that, Justice Norris Carroll and Justice Jeanne Thompson are demitting office this month and there are no replacements on the horizon."
The former senator was expected to become a justice of the Supreme Court, but last month, he wrote to Governor General Arthur Hanna indicating that he had a change of heart about accepting a position on the Supreme Court bench.
Bar Association President Wayne Munroe also called the recommendations of the Judicial Review Commission an insult, and last week he suggested that that was the reason Mr. Gomez decided not to become a judge.
However, Mr. Gomez insisted that money was not the reason for his reconsidered decision. He noted that his letter had been written before the report was released and he said he had no knowledge of what was in the report at the time he drafted the letter.
Mr. Gomez said in his letter that the government had broken the law in failing to appoint a Judicial Review Commission in the timeframe stipulated by the Judges Remuneration and Pensions Act, and he sided with Justice John Lyons, who declared last November that this had undermined judicial independence.
"No one who is honest can swear an oath which requires their independence from government in the meaning that is given to that word by the constitution in the present circumstances," he told the Bahama Journal.
The commission, which was headed by retired Justice Joseph Strachan, recommends that the salary of a Supreme Court justice be increased from $78,000 to $91,000 with effect from July 1, 2006 and with effect from July 1, 2008 to $97,000.
A 2005 commission, which was headed by former attorney general Sean McWeeney, recommended a salary increase for a justice to $115,000.
The prime minister announced on Wednesday that the government had accepted all the recommendations of the Strachan Commission regarding salary improvements.
Regarding the increases that judges will be getting in salary, Mr. Gomez said, "It’s a joke; it’s a sick joke. It’s completely mind-boggling.
"Millions and millions of dollars are being given away in concessions to investors and would-be investors in the Bahamas without any considerations to the government’s obligation to provide basic essential services such as courts."
He added, "If the government wishes to pursue a shortsighted economic policy which undercuts its ability to maintain levels of salaries that would ensure that the judiciary is properly maintained then that is the question for an electorate in a general election."
Mr. Gomez said the improvements the government made to the judiciary over the past nearly five years have been merely "window dressing".
Mr. Gomez, who resigned as a senator in September, said he had not made up his mind regarding whether he will support the PLP in the upcoming general election.
"People want to see the system work," he said.
"Even a government minister on the floor of the House [of Assembly] has complained that the government has not performed in relation to a trial regarding his murdered son. Now, if a minister can make that complaint, what about the thousands of people who have been the victims of armed robbery, house breaking, theft, rape? – The list goes on."
The former senator was referring to Minister Leslie Miller who said certain actions of those in high places had led to justice being subverted. Mr. Miller’s son, Mario, was murdered in 2002.
Former PLP Senator Slams Gov’t Over State of Judiciary
By Candia Dames
Former PLP Senator Damian Gomez has slammed the government for failing – in his words – to do enough to effect real improvements to the country’s judicial system.
Mr. Gomez also said the recently released report of the Judicial Review Commission was a slap in the face.
"The paltry increases are in stark contrast to the generous payment which government gives to even the most junior of pilots of Bahamasair and pays to executives in the corporations such as BEC and [BTC]," he said.
While Prime Minister Perry Christie said in the House of Assembly on Wednesday that judges are set to get "significant" raises, Mr. Gomez said what is being offered is insulting.
"It’s very disappointing," he said.
"It throws into question the government’s boast of having the best economic performance in the history of the Bahamas, both in the private sector and in respect of government finance. If the government is truthful, one can only ask the question why it is that it cannot pay economic rates to maintain the competence and integrity of the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal."
Mr. Gomez added, "In the Court of Appeal, the government has been unable or unwilling to fill a vacancy and as a result of that several appeals have had to be adjourned. In addition to that, Justice Norris Carroll and Justice Jeanne Thompson are demitting office this month and there are no replacements on the horizon."
The former senator was expected to become a justice of the Supreme Court, but last month, he wrote to Governor General Arthur Hanna indicating that he had a change of heart about accepting a position on the Supreme Court bench.
Bar Association President Wayne Munroe also called the recommendations of the Judicial Review Commission an insult, and last week he suggested that that was the reason Mr. Gomez decided not to become a judge.
However, Mr. Gomez insisted that money was not the reason for his reconsidered decision. He noted that his letter had been written before the report was released and he said he had no knowledge of what was in the report at the time he drafted the letter.
Mr. Gomez said in his letter that the government had broken the law in failing to appoint a Judicial Review Commission in the timeframe stipulated by the Judges Remuneration and Pensions Act, and he sided with Justice John Lyons, who declared last November that this had undermined judicial independence.
"No one who is honest can swear an oath which requires their independence from government in the meaning that is given to that word by the constitution in the present circumstances," he told the Bahama Journal.
The commission, which was headed by retired Justice Joseph Strachan, recommends that the salary of a Supreme Court justice be increased from $78,000 to $91,000 with effect from July 1, 2006 and with effect from July 1, 2008 to $97,000.
A 2005 commission, which was headed by former attorney general Sean McWeeney, recommended a salary increase for a justice to $115,000.
The prime minister announced on Wednesday that the government had accepted all the recommendations of the Strachan Commission regarding salary improvements.
Regarding the increases that judges will be getting in salary, Mr. Gomez said, "It’s a joke; it’s a sick joke. It’s completely mind-boggling.
"Millions and millions of dollars are being given away in concessions to investors and would-be investors in the Bahamas without any considerations to the government’s obligation to provide basic essential services such as courts."
He added, "If the government wishes to pursue a shortsighted economic policy which undercuts its ability to maintain levels of salaries that would ensure that the judiciary is properly maintained then that is the question for an electorate in a general election."
Mr. Gomez said the improvements the government made to the judiciary over the past nearly five years have been merely "window dressing".
Mr. Gomez, who resigned as a senator in September, said he had not made up his mind regarding whether he will support the PLP in the upcoming general election.
"People want to see the system work," he said.
"Even a government minister on the floor of the House [of Assembly] has complained that the government has not performed in relation to a trial regarding his murdered son. Now, if a minister can make that complaint, what about the thousands of people who have been the victims of armed robbery, house breaking, theft, rape? – The list goes on."
The former senator was referring to Minister Leslie Miller who said certain actions of those in high places had led to justice being subverted. Mr. Miller’s son, Mario, was murdered in 2002.