Former MP says many legislators 'clueless' about issues discussed in parliamentary committees

Many members of parliament (MPs), mainly backbenchers, are "clueless" about the issues discussed by the parliamentary oversight committees on which they serve, a former lawmaker has asserted.

Lloyd B Smith, the former People's National Party (PNP) MP for St James Central, suggested, too, that in many cases reports and other documents distributed to lawmakers during committee meetings go unread.

Two of the main parliamentary committees, the Public Accounts Committee and the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee, provide scrutiny of audit reports and oversight of government spending.

Backbenchers who are not part of the political executive are usually appointed to serve on these committees.

But, according to Smith, many of those MPs have never operated a business “so they don't know when you talking about reconciliation and checks and balances”.

“They don't have a clue,” he said during a media round-table discussion organised by Jamaica Accountability Metre Portal (JAMP) on Wednesday.

“I have sat there in the meetings and see the orderlies go around and put all these reports, tides and tides of report in front of you, and at the end of the session the majority of people don't even remember say dem should take it with them and analyse them. ”

“Dem just lef' dem same place. That is the reality,” Smith said.

Smith suggested that regular “educational sessions” should be provided to MPs to help them understand “the language when we talk about auditing, etc” and to carry out their oversight responsibilities effectively.

“Some people just go to parliament to thump the desk. That's basically it,” said the former lawmaker.

Smith's assertions come a year after MPs saw their salaries increased by 230 per cent over a three-year period starting in 2021, moving from $4.3 million to $14.2 million.

He suggested, too, that Jamaica's on-going constitutional reform process should address the role and function of parliamentarians.

“What are they there for? Just to thump the desk and get a salary? Because that's what most of them do,” Smith said.

- Livern Barrett

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