Here we go again: By-election looms as Shahine Robinson booted
Published:Wednesday | June 2, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter
The North East St Ann constituency is now without a member of parliament (MP).
The seat won by Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) candidate Shahine Robinson in the September 3, 2007 general election has been declared vacant by the Supreme Court. A by-election is expected to be held soon.
Robinson's seat was declared vacant because she failed to file relevant documents within a specified time, arising from the election petition filed against her, alleging dual citizenship.
Robinson is the fourth JLP MP to lose a seat over dual citizen-ship since the last general election.
The other three who had been ousted were victorious in by-elections.
An elector, Manley Bowen, had alleged that Robinson had American citizenship when she was nominated to run in the general election and was not entitled under the Constitution of Jamaica to be elected to the House of Representatives.
Trying to freeze judgment
Robinson is seeking to have the ruling by Supreme Court judge Roy Jones stayed until she has filed an appeal. Attorney-at-law Nesta Clare Smith went to the Supreme Court yesterday to apply for a stay of the judge's ruling, which was handed down on Monday. Justice Jones is to hear the application tomorrow.
Attorney-at-law Abe Dabdoub, who represented Bowen, had applied for the seat to be declared vacant because Robinson did not file a proper defence, make disclosures or submit statements as she was directed to do on April 14. The documents should have been filed in court by May 17.
Robinson and her lawyers were not present at the pretrial review on Monday and the judge, after hearing the application, ruled that Robinson was not qualified to be elected as a member of the House of Representatives. The judge ruled that the election of September 3, 2007 for the constituency of St Ann North East "is null and void and the seat is declared vacant".