CHARLESTOWN, Nevis, June 4. 2018 – DESPITE assurances from Premier, Mark Brantley that the Integrity in Public Life legislation will be implemented long before the planned June timeline, it is expected that it will not come to fruition by that period.
Brantley, during his April press conference, had emphasized to the media that the legislation will come well in advance of the June six month period that was promised during elections by his Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM).
“We would operationalize this legislation long before June,” he told reporters in April.
But at a press conference on Tuesday (May 28), when asked by reporters about the legislation, Brantley confirmed that it will not be implemented this month.
“We have had a bit of a hold up to activate the legislation. We need a three-member commission. We need a Chair, who is appointed by the Deputy Governor General in her own deliberate judgment – that has to be a retired judge or lawyer with at least 15 years experience at the Bar. And then there is a member appointed by the advice of the Premier and a member on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition.
However, currently, there is no Leader of the Opposition, but according to Brantley, he has been in conversation with the Leader of the Nevis Reformation Party, Joseph Parry and he has given his recommendation.”
But the holdup, as was disclosed by the Premier, is in the nomination of the Chair of that committee and Mr. Parry requesting time to return with his decision.
“I have long nominated for appointment our nominee, and the Chair is where I think we have hit a bit of a snag because there was a Chair whom I think was approached by the Deputy Governor General and had agreed. I had hoped that since the last time you were here that I would have announced the formation of the commission and the members…but we have had to go back to the drawing board to get that done.”
The government, Brantley noted, can only push so far under the legislation but there are others who have to do their work. Against that backdrop, he said the Deputy Governor General is now going through the process of seeking to select a Chair.
“My hope is that long before we have another press conference we will be able to announce the commission,” he disclosed.
The Integrity in Public Life legislation is a critical component of the Brantley-led CCM party’s victory at the December local elections.
Though they are seeking to implement the legislation on the island, the federal government is seeking to take a similar position on St. Kitts.
The Commission will be tasked with the responsibility of seeking to review similar pieces of legislation with the aim of returning with the best fit for the island.
