THAT’S A WRAP… FOR NOW: House of Assembly prorogued amid mounting speculation of snap election

THAT’S A WRAP… FOR NOW: House of Assembly prorogued amid mounting speculation of snap election

Moultrie: If they want to remove me, the only option is to dissolve Parliament

Davis: Ring the bell, PM

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The House of Assembly was yesterday prorogued until September 22 in a shocking turn of events as House Speaker Halson Moultrie was set to host his first “open Parliament” in Parliament Square.

Commissioner of Police Paul Rolle, serving in his capacity as provost marshal, read a proclamation from the governor general from the steps of Parliament officially proroguing parliamentary procedures at 9.30am.

He returned to those steps some four hours later to announce the new meeting date.

The initial announcement came minutes before dozens of people gather for the open Parliament that Moultrie had labeled a democratic exchange between the Bahamian people and the legislative branch.

Police Commissioner Paul Rolle (center), serving as provost marshal, reads a proclamation from the governor general proroguing Parliament on the steps of the House of Assembly on Wednesday, August 18, 2021, as House Speaker Halson Moultrie (rear) looks on.

Speaking to members of the media on the front steps of the Lower Chamber, Moultrie said he was not surprised and that he had been expecting some action after hearing rumors about the possible prorogation on Tuesday.

Asked whether he believed it was a move to block his open Parliament initiative, Moultrie said even if it was the intention, the prorogation had “no bearing” on the planned events.

“What it does do is exempt all members of Parliament from participating in and it sends a strong message to all of the members of Parliament in the governing party by this action of the prime minister not to participate in the open Parliament,” he said.

In an interview with Eyewitness News, Moultrie insisted that proroguing the Parliament will not affect the position of the speaker at all.

“If the government returns and wishes to bring a vote of no confidence in the speaker, they are free to do so,” the speaker said.

“But still, even if that is successful, the speaker still has the option of whether or not he will resign based on a vote of no confidence.”

Moultrie noted that at the end of the day, the Constitution provides three options with respect to removing him from office: either he becomes incapacitated, he resigns or Parliament is dissolved.

“If they want tor to remove the speaker from office, the only option available to the government right now is to dissolve the Parliament,” Moultrie said

The house speaker had previously accused the prime minister and the Cabinet of “unconstitutionally” shutting down the Parliament for an “unprecedented period” of more than 90 days — from June 21 to September 22 — and was expected to host the open Parliament weekly until Parliament returned or was dissolved.

House Speaker Halson Moultrie.

However, parliamentarians returned on August 11 to debate and pass a resolution to extend the emergency powers order to November 13, “for the last time”.

The prime minister also tabled the Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Management Bill, 2021, for public consultation. The bill would put in place a statutory framework to mitigate public health emergencies.

Moultrie said he believes the government has no intention of moving on that particular bill, once again accusing the executive branch of encroaching on the jurisdiction of the legislative branch.

“This is another clear indication to me that we need to push even harder for the separation of powers and for the independence of the Parliament,” he said.

“While the prime minister has a constitutional right to prorogue and dissolve the Parliament, actions like this, in my estimation…is a blatant abuse of the powers of the prime minister’s office and a total disregard of the disrespect for the Constitution and the jurisdiction of the legislative branch”.

 

Election speculation

While the House was prorogued, it was not dissolved yesterday. The difference between the two is that prorogation ends a session of Parliament and the government’s legislative agenda falls away, while dissolution ends the life of Parliament, which is usually five years.

Moultrie noted: “I don’t think that the prime minister intends to come back to Parliament. I don’t know when he intends to call an election, but I don’t think he has any intentions to come back to Parliament.”

Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Leader Philip Brave Davis also commented on the prorogation, renewing his call for the prime minister to ring the bell, signaling the date of the next general election.

Davis said: “The country cannot afford any more chaos and dysfunction and uncertainty. The government is playing games while the country burns. Stop playing games, man. Things are falling apart. People are hurting. Ring the bell — it’s the first step to better days.”

The prime minister has repeatedly shut down speculations that he will call an early election, indicating that the next general election is not “due” until May 2022.

About Sloan Smith

Sloan Smith is a senior digital reporter at Eyewitness News, covering a diverse range of beats, from politics and crime to environment and human interest. In 2018, Sloan received a nomination for the “Leslie Higgs Feature Writer of The Year Award” from The Bahamas Press Club for her work with Eyewitness News.