PNP councillors discontinue plan to challenge Clarendon chairmanship in court

 

The People's National Party (PNP) caucus of councillors says it will no longer be heading to the court over the chairmanship of the Clarendon Municipal Corporation but wants changes to the composition and leadership of committees within the local government body.

 

This follows the legal opinions of the Attorney General and Solicitor General that there should be no change in the chairmanship of the corporation despite the PNP now having the overall popular vote.

 

The controversy stemmed from last September's by-election in the Aenon Town division, which resulted in the PNP and the Jamaica Labour Party having 11 councillors each.

 

Earlier this month, Local Government Minister Desmond McKenzie disclosed that the government's legal advisors had stated that the person who occupied the chair as chairperson before the by-election remains in the position after the poll, based on the Local Governance Act, 2016.

 

Councillor for the Hayes Division Scean Barnswell said while the PNP councillors believe there is ambiguity with the law, they will not go any further with the matter in the interest of time.

 

Nonetheless, he wants the PNP councillors to have the same power as JLP councillors in the Clarendon Municipal Corporation. 

 

"We will still advocate for changes...being made to the composition of the committees which are not fully constituted, changes being made to the chairman of committees, changes being made to the deputy chairman of committees, and changes being made to the signatories of the political administration and the municipal corporation's accounts," he suggested. 

 

Mr. Barnswell said going forward, he should not be referred to as the minority leader since there is an equal number of councillors on both sides. 

 

"There's no more minority inside here, so [it's] either the chairman of a political caucus or a councillor when you address anybody, especially me.... And as such, we on this side [are] demanding that those changes happen forthwith," he said. 

 

Councillor Barnswell was speaking Thursday at the monthly meeting of the Clarendon Municipal Corporation.