REAL NEWS – The United Progressive Party (UPP) is hoping that Speaker of the House Sir Gerald Watt will allow a Motion of No Confidence against him to be placed on the Order Paper at some upcoming meeting of the Lower House.
Weeks ago, Opposition Leader Jamale Pringle, MP for All Saints East and St. Luke, signaled his intention to move the motion because of the Speaker’s recent behaviour.
Sir Gerald is accused of political bias and unfair treatment of Opposition MPs – in particular, Member for St. Peter Asot Michael, who, at the last meeting, was suspended for three consecutive sittings.
Doubt about Watt’s capabilities is also being expressed by Opposition members, following the Speaker’s protracted refusal of the resignation of former MP Kelvin “Shugy ” Simon.
Weeks later, just ahead of a court hearing on a related matter, Sir Gerald admitted that the resignation had been tendered in accordance with the Constitution of Antigua and Barbuda.
Parliament reportedly is set to convene on July 25, according to last week’s Cabinet Notes, and the public was expecting the Motion to be moved at that time.
However, UPP Chairman D.Gisele Isaac says this cannot happen without the Speaker’s prior approval, and the Party can only hope the Motion will be allowed onto the Order Paper.
According to Isaac, Sir Gerald has been showing extreme partisanship in recent times, even appearing on the radio station affiliated with the prime minister to answer those who challenge him.
She says this type of behaviour is unbecoming in anyone who sits in the Speaker’s chair.
Isaac, a former Speaker of the House, herself, under the Baldwin Spencer Administration, Notes that she, too, was criticized when she held the position.
However, in order not to lower the dignity of the Chair, she says, she never responded.
Finally, she says the elitism being displayed by Watt, who publicly has referred to a UPP supporter as a “yard fowl,” is astonishing.
Accordingly, she cannot imagine how anyone on the Opposition benches will get a fair deal in the House under Watt, who controls the Parliament.
For these and other reasons, Isaac agrees that Sir Gerald should be removed from the Chair.
CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP
CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP
CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP
CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP
CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP
CLICK HERE TO JOIN OUR WHATSAPP GROUP
Advertise with the mоѕt vіѕіtеd nеwѕ ѕіtе іn Antigua!
We offer fully customizable and flexible digital marketing packages.
Contact us at [email protected]
Yes! I second that! Watt has lost his parliamentary Compass! In my opinion he no longer sees the speakers chair as mediator of debate and an enforcer procedural matters in parliament being fairly and impartially accorded to! He is one sided! Side man sweeter than “ KIP” man! So dem say.
He has demonstrated that he no longer wishes to follow being and INDEPENDENT ASSOCIATE of the parliament that he was appointed too.
To me, his handling of Mr. Simon’s resignation and his lack of decorum with moving to suspend Mr. Michael has proven that he is acting on behalf of The Antiguan and Barbuda Labor Party!
Calling people “Yard Foul” and his other utterances on RUM SHOP RADIO; of all places. Shows that he has clearly lost his way.
As smart as he claims to be. I would think that he would have asked for some time on the government’s media platform to give his reasoning on Mr. Simon’s resignation and address any other matters that he deemed fit to address the public on. Not on RUM SHOP RADIO.
Watt’s Aristocratic, Elitist attitude has morphed into an elderly man. Who believes in theory that Antiguans don’t read. Well, we do and we can comprehend matters that are legal. Time for you to go home and feed your “YARD HENS.”
The constitution of Antigua and Barbuda states in Section39 (1)(d) is a person certified to be insane or otherwise adjudged to be of unsound mind under any law.
Just review the tapes of his ranting on the various media houses and you will agree that this section applies in full
Way before Jerry Watts got involved in politics I always thought he was an obnoxious person. He gave off a certain air about him.
Historically he made references to the Constitution citing chapter and class number chapter and verse in an authoritative manner.
My gut told me this guy is playing the game that the public will not check and he is getting away with it.
At last he got caught.
Gerald Watt is part of the “secretive” TRIPARTITE that’ll protect the status quo at all costs, and to the detriment of the country as a whole. Sad, but true.
He cannot be removed until Gaston Browne is out of office. Simple really!
The Speaker has been living with a superiority complex his entire existence; and, he lives in a country that reinforces that notion.
It was clearly noted when he made reference to the young Antiguan lawyers inabilities to read and comprehend the country’s constitution — Once he became aware that his interpretation was wrong, he didn’t find it necessary to make an apology to the members of his fraternity…. He too big fu dat !
Unfortunately, Antiguan society continues to fosters that notion of superiority based on certain superficial achievements, family name/status, etc.
“The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking.” — Albert Einstein
I hope the Speaker remembers, if he’s really still coherent, the manner in which Lester Bird went out. He paraded himself in an embarrassing moment for the world to see after his bigger-than-life attitude and he slipped rapidly down-hill immediately after. Watt’s recent flaws might be an entrance to that end.
Speakers of the house in recent times…all seem to display show me your party colors nasty biases…Louise Lake Tack was baaaaddddd..clearly a UPP financial contributor…D. G Isaac after claiming concrete evidence that the Former P.M was involved with that infamous teen but to date failed to produce a shed…was a high ranking member of the UPP Speaker of the house was blinding bias….
I’m totally surprised that the aging former PLM member was chosen to be speaker in the first stint and then yet again….he is way pass his prime…his bias is engraved since his PLM ..UNDP ERA ..a 🐆 leopard can’t remove its spots.
Case close….last three speakers of the house was bad.
@Cannibas Indica,
I could not agree with you more.. and may I add skin complexion; which allows the European grifters a leg up soon as they arrive.
Oh please. Opposition is just that…Opposition the ppl kept y’all in OPPOSITION 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣
Chat when you’re in the M-A-J-O-R-I-T-Y!!!
Comments are closed.