ECJ, constitutional issues in limbo

Gary Spaulding, Senior Gleaner Writer

New meaning was accorded to the term 'interim' when the Electoral Advisory Committee (EAC) was established under the Representation of the People (Interim Electoral Reform) Act on September 7, 1979.

The EAC was formally established to thrash out thorny electoral issues emanating out of the troubled period of the 1970s. This interim measure came to an end in 2006, when the EAC gave way to the Electoral Commission of Jamaica (ECJ).

There can be argument that the EAC has performed with professional distinction, under the circumstances, over the next 27 years.

The pre-EAC era was dominated by charges and counter charges of political and electoral misconduct by both the People's National Party (PNP) and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP).

This does not mean that the post EAC period was devoid of glitches and disagreements - far from it. But the professionalism of the members of the committee played a significant role in calming the storm.

Notwithstanding, at different periods in the life of the EAC, the major political parties took strong positions against personnel at the Electoral Office of Jamaica.

Dissatisfaction

There was Edward Seaga's dissatisfaction with former director of elections, Noel Lee, over the conduct of the 1993 general elections, when the JLP that he led was swamped at the polls.

This was followed by the then general secretary of the PNP, Dr Peter Phillips' refusal to countenance the appointment of Major Anthony Robinson to the position of director of elections after Lee quit.

Phillips' referral of the matter to the governor general led to the fast resignation of Peter John Thwaites as chairman of the EAC.

The PNP-initiated dual citizenship row precipitated the departure of another director of elections, Danville Walker, three years ago.

By and large, the deliberations at the level of the EAC were protracted, but the squabbles for which politicians are infamous, were kept at a minimum.

Both nominated (representatives from the political parties) and selected members (appointed by the governor general emerging from consultation with the prime minister and Leader of the Opposition) who worked assiduously to maintain the standard that was associated with the EAC.

The EAC was intended to be an interim mechanism to make way for a permanent structure. Yet, there was no effort by successive administrations to change the status quo for the better part of three decades.

Interim measure

One of the last major acts of the 18 year-old PNP administration was to repeal the Representation of the People (Interim Electoral Reform) Act at a time when the country's electoral worries were greatly reduced.

It was another interim measure that replaced the Representation of the People (Interim Electoral Reform) Act of 1979.

The enactment of the Electoral Commission of Jamaica Interim Act was justifiable at the time, as plans were in place for the newly established ECJ to be entrenched in the Constitution that would demand a longer period.

But four years have passed and nothing has happened.

Chairman of the ECJ, Professor Errol Miller, in the presence of the selected members, responding to queries from the media recently, expressed concern that there was no move to advance the process to finally entrench the ECJ.

Miller referred to documents which were tabled recently in Parliament to substantiate his claim that the hardworking ECJ team was just as concerned about the Government's foot-dragging.

The ECJ team has been proactive and transparent over the past three years.

The members have made tough decisions, some of which have naturally attracted the criticism of members of the public. The ECJ has responded to clamours and calls from the public domain and fleshed out draft legislation in respect of the registration of political parties and party financing.

Among a range of other activities, it has completed its work on reconfiguring constituencies to facilitate the increase from 60 to 63.

The EAC has been timely in carrying out constituency-boundary reviews within the specified period under the law. And significantly, that body has kept the public up to speed on all its activities.

The Government has announced that it plans to deal with issues of constitutional reform that are agreed to by both political parties, but nothing is happening.

The latest bout of protracted consultations got under way in 1992, after Seaga, the then opposition leader, proposed in his 1991 Budget presentation, that a Constituent Assembly with members drawn from the political directorate, non-Governmental organisation, academia and the church be established.

They were mandated to plod through the Constitution to determine the changes that must be wrought to the document.

The Michael Manley administration accepted the proposal but the body was named The Constitutional Commission of Jamaica.

The late Justice James Kerr was appointed chairman, while Seaga and the PNP's David Coore, the only two living members of the team who participated in crafting the post-independent constitution, were members of the Commission.

Seaga was particularly keen on getting a charter of rights provision pushed through to replace chapter three of the Constitution, which deals with fundamental rights and freedoms.

He was sorely displeased with Justice Kerr's decision to keep the proposed Charter of Rights provision out of his report.

Kerr subsequently resigned and he was replaced by attorney-at-law Lloyd Barnett who met with the Commission and prepared a separate report on the proposed Charter.

That was back in 1992, and the proposed Charter is still limping towards reality. The reputation of successive administrations to address constitutional issues is dismal.

The ECJ is in place to ensure that electoral rights of all ordinary Jamaicans are observed, a function of the people's constitutional right. It is high time that the Government stops the foot-dragging on these issues. It doesn't cost a fortune to put these measures in their rightful place, just the political will.

The Jamaican people should not have to wait for 30 years or more to get the ECJ entrenched.

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