THE HOUSE APPROVES THE BOUNDARIES

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Trust Michael Scott and Andre Rollins and Richard Lightbourn to be the ones involved in a fool’s errand. They went to court on Tuesday 14 February to try to challenge the boundary changes proposed by the government for the general election.

Mr. Rollins who has a double personality, one day welcoming and affable, the next day full of fire and strangeness, told the House on 15 February that he would do anything for the FNM to win and Hubert Minnis to become Prime Minister. So the court case was another strategy to do that one supposes. He asked all those who helped to overthrow Dr Minnis back in December to join him. Edison Key MP said immediately in the House that he would never re-join under Minnis. Richard Lightbourn who is in on the fool’s errand earlier had said no to re-join Dr Minnis in this lifetime. So where does that leave Dr Rollins?

Well first the court case. Dr Rollins asked the Speaker to stop the debate from going ahead on the basis of Parliament’s sub juice rule. The Speaker refused and told him Parliament cannot be injuncted by the Courts. They could not get the Judge (one supposes) they were before to do what Fred Smith did purportedly injunct MPs from speaking in the House. When that didn’t work, he then sought to hang his hat on a strange letter written by the MP for St Anne’s who was at a Caricom meeting but who claimed that the report that he signed was not the report he agreed to. He claimed it was changed. His fellow commissioners were flabbergasted by the charge. Deputy Prime Minister Philip Davis said that Mr Chipman did not have his priorities right and should have been in the Bahamas to deal with the matter.

The debate finished. The order was passed and signed by the Governor General and gazetted. Why is that important? The constitution says if those steps have been taken it cannot be questioned by any court. So the court will rule on Tuesday 21 February but they are unlikely to get leave to proceed to judicial review. The Parliamentary term is coming to an end and Mr Rollins and Mr Lightbourn have no place to go. No one wants them. It’s a last ditch effort to remain relevant. Michael Scott as their lawyer on his best day needs help. But he provided perhaps the clue to this all. It’s perverted but everyone needs their 15 minutes of fame. This is his. He said if the courts rule against him, the elections will not be free and fair. We think they know they will lose the case and they fear that the FNM will lose the election so they are setting up the pretext to justify the loss. The government cheated.

The real plan is to say that the elections were not free and fair.  Michel Scott says that if the court agrees that the boundaries can go ahead that is what the result will be.  They know they will lose but are setting the stage for a larger battle to delegitimize the PLP’s victory.

Bunk.

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