Sir Gerald Watt, the Speaker of the House of Assembly in Antigua and Barbuda has rejected the resignation letter of Opposition MP Kelvin “Shugy” Simon.
Simon, who is at the center of a court battle, resigned earlier this week saying that he felt it was the most prudent thing to do.
He said a court should not get to decide for the people who their parliamentary representative should be.
But the Speaker said in a letter to the media yesterday that Simon was still the duly elected member of Parliament for St Mary’s South because he failed to resign properly.
The Speaker said Simon can resubmit his resignation letter which conforms with 41 (1) e of the constitution which includes cutting ties with the United Progressive Party.
“He would have to say that he is resigning and indicate in a manner that I find to be credible. It would have to say that he had severed allegiance to the party that elected him. Because the letter of resignation has not conformed with the constitution, he has not resigned and therefore if he has not resigned, then it is my view that he continues to be a member of St Mary’s South,” Sir Gerald said.
Adding, “But whoever advised him to just resign either did not look at the law or looked at 125 and took a lay person to view that it was sufficient to enable him to do so.”
Simon said he is consulting with his attorneys on the way forward.
Simons’ nomination is being challenged in court as he was reportedly still employed when he was nominated.
The Speaker of parliament, the President/Governor General, the Commissioner of Police, the director of Public Prosecution, the Election Commissioner, all these positions should be filled with apolitical persons who are/were not involved in partisan politics.
How does one expect fair and impartial decisions from a well known and brazen party political operative like the current Speakers in both Antigua and Dominica?
Political controversies and turmoil are the order of the day in all the Caribbean countries. These jurisdictions are becoming ungovernable. Why? Because all these governments appoint political party hacks and supremely ineligible and amateurish personnel in the most critical positions of the civil service.
This Speaker is not au fait with the constitution. He is a political hatchet man for Brown Paper Boy.
This position calls for impartiality. This political thug has placed himself smacked in the middle of this complete!y needless controversy.
No wonder these governments of the OECS are known for diminishing democracy; astronomical indebtedness; ubiquitous poverty; entrenched hyper partisan politics; escalating, uncontrollable crime.
A thick, dark cloud of hopelessness and despair hovers perennially over these once economically viable islands. The political vampires are in control sucking every drop of blood from the hapless indigenous population.