The mother of all laws
Published: Sunday March 8, 2009
Lambert Brown, Contributor
Abe Dabdoub must be commended for bringing to the nation's attention the issue that some of our lawmakers possibly are themselves lawbreakers. The constitution of any country is the highest law of the land. The authority for all other laws springs directly from the constitution.
Read the whole article here.
Snippet(s):
"Parliament cannot legally pass any law which conflicts with the Constitution. That is why the Privy Council overruled the Parliament over laws passed by the Caribbean Court of Justice under the previous government."
"Allegations that almost 10 per cent of the members of our House of Representatives are sitting there contrary to the Constitution is frightening. Our leaders have let us down by allowing people not qualified to be members of Parliament to be making laws to bind the rest of the society. These 'strangers' have influenced laws relating to life and death, such as the recent resolution on the death penalty. Can we, as a nation that believes in the rule of law, allow this to continue? A resounding no should be our response. The condoning of this most egregious breach of the Constitution by inaction and obfuscation must be brought to an end with dispatch.
I refuse to believe that our leaders were unaware of requirements of Section 40 of our Constitution."
"One potential benefit of Dabdoub's exposure of the constitutional breach is to make us all more knowledgeable about our Constitution. If, through this, we enjoy growth in nationalism, gain greater respect for our laws, institutions and our citizenship, then our country would indeed owe Dabdoub an even greater debt of gratitude. How we overcome the ignorance is a big challenge which we must face head on as a nation."
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"The average US congressman or senator is busy drafting and passing laws or participating in hearings with a view to improving governance. It is their knowledge and the full exploitation of their constitution that makes the American congressmen so powerful. It is the absence of such knowledge that makes our parliamentarians appear so infantile and impotent. "
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Lambert Brown is president of the University and Allied Workers' Union, and can be contacted at labpoyh@yahoo.com. Feedback may also be sent to columns@gleanerjm.com.
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