Eustace to boycott constitutional review process

It was too good to be true, the opposition and the government holding hands on an issue, moving along smoothly; a well oiled machine, but alas, reality!

Last Friday, Opposition leader Arnhim Eustace said that he would boycott the ongoing constitutional review process unless four matters relating to the general elections held in 2005 are addressed.{{more}}

In a letter sent to Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves dated Friday, July 27th, Eustace demanded that he be given the Supervisor of Elections’ report on the 2005 poll, that the Unity Labour Party (ULP) billboards erected during the election campaign be dismantled, that the Supervisor of Elections, Rodney Adams resign, and that a government Senator explain some statements he made concerning his knowledge of the number of votes he got from the Syrian community in the 2005 poll.

“The high handed and contemptuous approach that you and your government have adopted in relation to these issues leaves much to be desired,” Eustace writes in the letter.

In a telephone interview with SEARCHLIGHT last Saturday morning, just before he left for Taiwan, Dr Gonsalves said Eustace was confusing the fundamental issue of constitutional reform with “matters that are not of a substantial nature.”

But Eustace told SEARCHLIGHT last Tuesday that the move was political strategy to get government to address concerns that they have been ignoring.

“We saw it as an opportunity to get them to change those things,” Eustace said.

“We simply continue, we are supposed to meet on August 16th and we will meet, if they don’t turn up, that’s their choice,” said a defiant Dr Gonsalves in response to Eustace.

“I can’t hold up this process, we have a mandate from the people. A resolution was raised in the house, seconded by him, and voted upon unanimously by the whole house,” Dr Gonsalves said.

Eustace said the Prime Minister is free to continue the process without the New Democratic Party (NDP), if he so chooses.

He also dismissed any idea that waiting until the Prime Minister was due to leave the state to send the letter was part of the strategy of his party.

“I don’t pay attention to his (Dr Gonsalves’) travel schedule, if I wait for only when he is here to do what I have to do, nothing will be done,” Eustace told SEARCHLIGHT.

As to the issues in question, Dr Gonsalves said that while the Opposition has made several accusations about the Supervisor of Elections Rodney Adams, they have not been able to substantiate any of their claims.

He said that Adams’s contract ended at the end of June, but he had been asked to stay on a month-to-month basis until a replacement is appointed by October 31st.

Eustace adamantly rejected the month-to-month plan: “There is a number two person who is quite able to run the office until an appointment is made, we don’t trust him (Adams),” he said.

Senator Julian Francis’ statement in parliament has also been dismissed as a non-issue.

“Julian was simply saying in an enthusiastic way that he studied the electorate and didn’t say that he knew for sure how many Syrians voted for him by undermining the electoral process in any way at all,” Dr Gonsalves said, stressing that there was no breach in the electoral code of conduct.

He said both CARICOM and the Organization of American States (OAS) have deemed the last elections as being free and fair.

“Why didn’t they (The Opposition) make any petition, or file a constitutional motion or any formal challenge, if they believed that something was wrong?” he asked.

He also said he understands the 2005 elections report is ready, but there were some typographical errors to be corrected.

With regard to the billboards, the Prime Minister said that he couldn’t believe such threats were being made.

“I can’t believe they are losing sleep over the billboards being up,” he said.

Dr Gonsalves said that he believes that the nation on a whole and particularly the members of the Constitution Review Commission (CRC) would be very disappointed at the New Democratic Party (NDP)’s action.

“I don’t think it would be prudent of me to comment on that issue, it is a political one, I am going to show up to the select committee meeting as planned, unless I am instructed otherwise,” said CRC’s chairman Parnell Campbell, when SEARCHLIGHT contacted him.