It is illegal and it will never work.
So said Attorney Martin George, in relation to the proposal by the Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP) to share control of the Tobago House of Assembly.
The PDP proposed that the PNM fill the positions of Chief Secretary and Presiding Officer, while PDP members fill the positions of Deputy Chief Secretary and Finance Secretary, with all the other secretarial positions shared equally.
In a GML interview, George praised the PDP for offering a solution to the current impasse but said “When one looks at the law and the legislation, there is absolutely no provision within the law for any power-sharing arrangement, so you are actually being suckered into chasing down a rabbit hole in this; you will end up like Alice in Wonderland.”
George believes that both parties will operate with a metaphoric “hidden sword” anxiously waiting for an opportunity to outperform or show up the other party.
He added that “due to the lack of legal basis, any citizen will be able to challenge it and have it struck down in court as an illegal arrangement.”
George said “I have constantly advocated that there must be strict adherence to the law and the legal provisions on the statute books.”
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