Hayles injunction highlights disparity in rule of law - JAMP

 

Jeanette Calder, Executive Director of Jamaica Accountability Meter Portal (JAMP), says the granting of and length of the injunction filed by former Member of Parliament Ian Hayles is another example of the disparity in the rule of law.

 

Mr. Hayles was granted an almost five-year injunction, preventing the Office of the Contractor General from making the findings of a report, of which he was the subject, public.

 

The investigation, carried out by the then Contractor General, pointed to allegations of conflict of interest, irregularity and or impropriety in relation to the construction of a building by Mr. Hayles, without approval from the Hanover Parish Council.

 

Mr. Hayles applied to the Court for declarations and orders in relation to the report arising from the investigation.

 

He obtained a temporary injunction restraining the publication of the OCG report, until the full hearing of the judicial review.

 

But Ms Calder argues that a temporary injunction would not have been afforded to the average Jamaican under similar circumstances. 

 

"One of our concerns [was] the extent to which some of the opinions of members of the public was ‘Yeah man, MP, man who rub shoulders with the elite can afford to get a temporary injunction for five years. That couldn't happen for us.’ So part of our concern was the extent to which this delay would have just reinforced the idea of two different rules of law," she explained Thursday, while speaking on Radio Jamaica's Beyond the Headlines.

 

The OCG report pertaining to Mr. Hayles had been submitted to Parliament on February 13, 2017 but, as a result of the injunction, had not been made public.