Montano’s tantrum

WE HAVE had occasions in the past to be critical of both the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate for their failure to restrain obstreperous members and maintain proper order in their respective houses. We have made the point repeatedly that while we do not expect debates in Parliament to have the composure of tea parties we certainly do not expect them to be disrupted by uncontrollable fits of temper and outrageous behaviour that set the worst possible example of indiscipline for the rest of the society. UNC Senator Robin Montano has been guilty of this kind of conduct in the past, but last Tuesday he outdid himself in an ugly, unwarranted and persistent display of vexation which should have provoked stern action from Deputy President Rawle Titus, even to the extent of ordering his immediate withdrawal from the Chamber. It is unfortunate, in our view, that the UNC Senator was permitted to escape unscathed from his ferocious tantrum.

Instead of dealing decisively wih Montano’s emotional and defiant outburst, which brought loud protests from other members of the Senate, the Deputy President resorted to a tame appeal for the fulminating Senator to “temper down and let us get on with the business of the people.”  But the Deputy President might as well have been speaking to the bust of the late Capt A.A. Cipriani at the side of the Chamber, since he was totally ignored by Montano who continued his angry tirade, slamming down papers on his desk and repeatedly shouting “this can’t be right”. It was then that the senator’s brother, Danny Montano, Minister of Legal Affairs, arose to restore order to the proceedings, calling on Titus to invoke Standing Order 43.3 which empowers the President to eject members from the sitting for grossly disorderly conduct. But the Deputy President again declined to fulfill his responsibility; instead of enforcing this order he opted this time to urge all members to be of good behaviour and to “temper down” so they could get on with the people’s business.

Robin Montano’s absurd conduct in the nation’s parliament sets a most unfortunate example for our already indisciplined society, but the timid delinquency of the Deputy President in handling this chaotic episode is equally disappointing. Indeed, Senator Dana Seetahal’s mild rebuke was quite in order, as she pointed out to Titus that it wasn’t right for him to warn all senators about their behaviour and that his action should be directed at the specific person misbehaving. But what did the Education Minister Manning say in her reply to his question that provoked Montano into such a fit of anger? She was simply pointing out that credit cards promised to parents and guardians in lieu of checks for purchasing school books did not apply to primary school children as he had stated in his question. It was an initiative taken in the secondary schools.

In reply to Montano’s question, the Minister was not making a speech. She was not straying beyond the requirements of the query. She was, in fact, doing what was necessary, correcting an error in the question. But Montano, not waiting on the Minister to finish, would have none of it, and exploded into furious objection. The Senator asks a misinformed question and when he is being corrected he becomes ballistic. It seems fortunate for Mrs Manning that there is sufficient space separating the benches between the Government and the Opposition. Another sorry episode in the nation’s parliamentary life.