The whole truth, Mr PM

The Editor, Sir:

Prime Minister Bruce Golding has finally addressed the Manatt, Phelps & Phillips (MPP) issue more fully in a statement in Parliament on Tuesday, May 11. Based on his pronouncements it leads me to ask: Given all he says he knows and that he sanctioned the initial action, why was he not forthcoming with this information before now? And why did he appoint Karl Samuda as point man on the issue and not just deal with it himself? The pronouncements of the PM have opened up a myriad of questions instead of settling the issue.

The fact that the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) sought the help of Harold Brady to solicit MPP to deal with the extradition matter concerning the Government of Jamaica and the Government of the United States is worrying. To the best of my knowledge, any treaty matter between two governments has to be dealt with by either of the two governments and has to be initiated by either government, not a third party or private citizen or organisation. This begs the question, on what authority did the JLP, along with Mr Brady, try to engage MPP to initiate talks with the Government of the United States?

Terribly misled

Also, if and when Golding spoke to Brady, was he not advised that the action the JLP wanted to take could not be done but had to be initiated by the Government of Jamaica? If this was not done, Mr Brady should be censured by the Jamaican Bar Association of Jamaica for not properly advising his client and also for soliciting MPP under the guise of representing the GOJ. The PM has said this was not the case. But, even so, it seems that someone was terribly misled or something more serious was committed.

Additionally, what is the interest of the JLP and the PM in this whole matter of the extradition of Christopher Coke to the United States? Is Mr Coke a member of the JLP? What is his position in the party? Is it so substantive that the party is willing to put itself on the line to contract Brady at a fee and also pay MPP US $100,000.00 per quarter for this service? Is the JLP so generous to all their members that they are willing to spend so much on legal fees for them? Who are these financial backers of the party who put up the money to lobby the US for Mr Coke as the PM stated? Did they know that their monies were going to be used for this purpose?

Credibility on the line

The other question that the people of Jamaica must also ask is: Why is it that when the PM was asked by Dr Peter Phillips about the Government's contracting MPP in the extradition matter in Parliament on March 16, did he (the PM) not just clear up the whole matter by just telling the whole truth about the situation? Why did he omit to tell what he knew and lay the matter to rest as opposed to allowing it to languish for over a month with many speculations, controversies and accusations? The omission has now caused the credibility of the PM to wane significantly and it's of his own doing! His omission in Parliament at the least makes his statement now seems coerced and disingenuous and just to appease the discontent of the people and the Opposition and to shut them up.

I must also question why is the PM so integrally involved in the whole matter as to sanctioning MPP's lobbying on the extradition matter of Mr Coke? He is president of the JLP; however he is also PM and this puts him in a very precarious position. He should have recused himself from this party issue as he had and still has a conflict of interest. His duty as prime minister is first to the people of Jamaica not to party or to Mr Coke. The PM's statement to Parliament on May 11 only serves to show us the web of deceit that the JLP/ Government has weaved. The PM has lost if not all, then most of his credibility and needs to work real hard at re-establishing it as his words have to be trusted as the PM of our beloved Jamaica.

I am, etc.,

CRAIG FRANCIS

Kingston