ONLY REASONABLE DECISION

President of the Senate, Dr Linda Baboolal, merely demonstrated the impartiality expected of her Office when she applied her casting vote on Tuesday to break a 14-14 tie on the issue of whether the Senate should discuss the Caricom (Removal of Restrictions) Bill at the day’s sitting as Government Senators were insisting. In so doing Dr Baboolal acted in the highest traditions of her Office and her vote should not be construed in terms of being either against the Government or siding with the Opposition. In the broadest possible sense the Senate President had done neither, but rather had acted with the impartiality which her Office demanded. Dr Baboolal herself would advise Members of the Upper House that in order to “maintain the high principles of this Senate” it had been her duty to “vote with the noes” which for the record had included the votes of Independent Senators.

Government had acted unreasonably in seeking to have debate on the Bill begin on Tuesday, particularly as it contained several amendments which Opposition and Independent Senators had received only at the start of the sitting. Admittedly, the Bill had been passed unanimously in the Lower House, incidentally on Monday. However, what is crucial here is that the Senate, or Upper House, is not there to act as a “rubber stamp.” Senators, whether Government, Opposition or Independents are expected to bring informed thinking to bear on measures placed before them. Government Senators may be expected, within reason, to support Bills and other measures already approved in the Lower House and sent to the Upper House, but this thinking clearly should not be seen as applying to Opposition and Independents. So that for the Government to have handed the Opposition and Independent Senators several amendments to a 50 plus page Bill at the start of Tuesday’s sitting of the Senate was tactless, indeed almost dismissive, and suggested that it expected them to approve the amendments without due study.

For the record, the Caricom (Removal of Restrictions) Bill had been circulated to Senators more than a week ago along with the Order Paper. Nonetheless, the fact that the Opposition and Independent Senators had earlier access to the original Bill was immaterial. The amendments had to be taken in the context of the whole Bill and studied in relation to the Bill and not as individual items standing by themselves. In addition, all amendments, save for the very simplistic, deserve adequate time for study. Opposition Senator Wade Mark had offered yet another objection at Tuesday’s Senate sitting, this time to the debating of the Bill in combination with the Caricom Single Market and Economy Bill. Senator Mark insisted that the Bills were “too weighty” and that Opposition Senators wanted to follow the pattern set by the House of Representatives in dealing with the Bills separately.

It is difficult to understand why the Government side had not responded positively to the Opposition arguments, nor to the support given to the principle of these arguments as advanced by Leader of the Independent Senators, Senator Eastlyn McKenzie. Government blundered, and clumsily. Senate President Dr Baboolal’s was the only reasonable decision that could have been given under the circumstances, a decision made after she had given the three parties the chance to reach consensus. For this she must be saluted.