Dr Dayton Campbell - FILE PHOTO
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Beyond the Headlines host Dionne Jackson Miller and Dr Dayton Campbell
Dr Dayton Campbell, a Commissioner of the Electoral Commission of Jamaica, has revealed that there is no mechanism in place yet for how the body is to operate as Political Ombudsman.
Dr Campbell, who is one of four political appointees on the ECJ, says the issue is still at the discussion stage.
The Office of the Political Ombudsman was subsumed into the ECJ by statute last year.
Since then, former Political Ombudsman Donna Parchment Brown as well as civil society representatives have called for a reversal of the 2024 legislative amendment, especially with an imminent parliamentary general election.
One of the concerns is that the new arrangement places the commissioners of the ECJ in a difficult position to maintain neutrality and confidentiality.
Dr Campbell, speaking Tuesday on Radio Jamaica's Beyond the Headlines, said while discussions are taking place at the level of the Commission, no decision has been arrived at yet concerning an effective mechanism to carry out the role of Ombudsman.
He recalled that during the Local Government Election in February 2024, "the mechanism that was employed was pretty much for the politically appointed persons to speak to members on their side when an issue came up."
He conceded however that this was not satisfactory, "because I do not believe the issues that came up during that campaign were sufficiently addressed, nor do I think they will be in this instance, either."
Dr Campbell was reacting in the Tuesday discussion, to the People's National Party's dispute with the Mayor of Montego Bay and Chairman of the St. James Municipal Corporation Richard Vernon over the removal of political campaign billboards.
In his capacity as PNP General Secretary, Dr Campbell said he had sought the intervention of the ECJ, but expressed his lack of confidence in the issue being resolved at that level.
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