CRC says sole allegiance to Jamaica should be a prerequisite to sit in Parliament

 

Amid widespread debate on the citizenship status of those eligible sit in Parliament, the Constitutional Reform Committee (CRC) says sole allegiance to Jamaica should be a prerequisite.

 

This comes as Opposition Leader Mark Golding's citizenship status has become a point of contention after he admitted that he was also a British citizen, by way of inheritance.

 

Member of the Constitutional Reform Committee, Dr. Lloyd Barnett, gave a breakdown of the Committee's considerations which led to the proposal.

 

"The question which has arisen is not as to whether Jamaican citizenship should be the essential qualification, but what is the impact where a person has dual or other citizenships. And the approach which was taken by the Constitutional Reform Committee is that other citizenship, which as we know can result from the fact that my grandmother married somebody else in another country which gives me citizenship by descent, should not disqualify me," he sought to explain at the post-Cabinet press briefing on Wednesday morning.

 

But Dr. Barnett said the Committee focused on whether or not such a person would have conflicting allegiance.

 

"We took the view that if a person is representing Jamaicans in our Parliament, then that person cannot owe a duty to another state, which may sometimes come into conflict with Jamaica's interest."

 

In the 103-page report which was tabled in Parliament on Tuessday, it was also explicitly stated that any references to Commonwealth citizenship status should be removed from the Jamaican Constitution.

 

It says the Constitution is not the appropriate legislation to deal with citizenship matters and has recommended that separate legislation be crafted.

 

The CRC noted that there were no provisions in other Commonwealth jurisdictions that allow a Jamaican citizen to become a member of Parliament.

 

The Committee has also recommended that Parliament be empowered to confer privileges on or make special provisions for CARICOM citizens by way of ordinary legislation.

 

The recommendations cover matters relating to the President, the composition of the Senate, and the enactment of a referendum law, among others.

 

The report is available to the public via the Ministry of Legal and Constitutional Affairs' website. 

 

Meanwhile, Dr. Barnett said the Committee had not discussed whether dual citizenship was grounds for an individual to be deemed ineligible to sit in Parliament.