Bye-bye Manatt - Golding

PRIME MINISTER Bruce Golding has urged supporters of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) to put the issue of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips behind them.

Golding, addressing a West Portland constituency conference last night, said the Emil George-chaired commission of enquiry has delivered its report vindicating him and members of his administration, and it is time to move on.

"Now that the commissioners have reported, let's get back to work. Let us leave the distractions to the distracters," the JLP leader said.

He told Labourites that his government would not allow the opposition People's National Party (PNP) to prevent it from focusing on the task they were elected to do in 2007.

No misconduct

The George-led commission found that there was no misconduct in the Government's handling of the extradition request for Christopher 'Dudus' Coke and the subsequent hiring of US law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips.

Golding also pointed to the findings of the commissioners, which stated that the involvement of the JLP was inappropriate. He reminded Labourites that he admitted to that last year May and had apologised for it.

The JLP leader also took the former national security minister and PNP powerhouse Dr Peter Phillips to task for the signing of two memoranda of understanding which allowed for the sharing of wire-tapped information with the United States and Britain. He said those people attempting to come to the defence of Phillips for his actions, which the commissioners said were unconstitutional, are "intelligent enough to know better".