Attorneys cast final stone in Manatt-Dudus enquiry

Livern Barrett, Gleaner Writer

THE LINES were clearly drawn among some of the attorneys at the Manatt-Dudus commission of enquiry yesterday as they made one final attempt to influence the report the commissioners will now have to produce.

While People's National Party (PNP) attorney K.D. Knight exhorted the commissioners to test the veracity of the evidence given by top government officials, Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) attorney Frank Phipps urged them to find that there was no undue delay in signing the extradition request for Christopher Coke.

The commission, chaired by attorney Emil George, heard final submissions from all the attorneys during an all-day sitting at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston. They are expected to submit their report by May 16.

obvious flaws

In his submission, Phipps pointed to what he said were a number of flaws in the way the Coke extradition request was handled.

He said the extradition documents were "almost being distributed almost like confetti".

"Persons who had nothing to do with the request at certain stages were getting it," he said, singling out former National Security Minister Dr Peter Phillips, the United States Embassy in Kingston, the police and the media.

However, referring to Coke as a very powerful person in Prime Minister Bruce Golding's West Kingston constituency, Knight urged the commissioners to look at the evidence in that light and draw the "appropriate" inferences.

"The commission is called on to use their common sense, to use their understanding of the Jamaican society in coming to finding of facts," said Knight.

He repeatedly questioned the accuracy of evidence given by Golding and Justice Minister and Attorney General, Senator Dorothy Lightbourne, but said he hoped Jamaicans will be satisfied with the commission's report.

"We do hope that they will be able to say that they see, in the report, the type of deliberations that they had hoped for and that you have delivered on that," he said.

Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn, who represented her department in the absence of attorney Lord Anthony Gifford, took a slap at Lightbourne, describing portions of her evidence during the enquiry as "unfortunate, hurtful and unjustified".

Lightbourne blamed advice from Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Jeremy Taylor for the deaths of more than 70 persons during the west Kingston incursion last May. Lightbourne said Palmer should have advised that the US petition the extradition of Coke by way of a provisional request instead of the official demand which was made.