By Nathan ‘Jolly’ Green. November 09. 2020

It first
happened in 2010 with Girlyn Miguel. Then when Sir Louis Straker was
made Deputy Prime Minister in 2015, Peter Binose wrote in 2015 and
pointed out that there was legally no such position and therefore no
such office.

There
was no Constitutional provision whatsoever for such a position to be
occupied or even to be established, there was total silence they
ignored Binose, made no reply. There were many instances then, and
since, of ignoring the Constitution and doing whatever they liked,
even if unconstitutional.

Many of
the things Binose brought to our attention remain to this day
unanswered.

The
Governor-General is appointed by the Monarch on the advice of the
people of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines or the Prime Minister and
takes an oath of allegiance to Queen Elizabeth II, who is Queen of
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Head of State. Executive
authority is vested in the Monarch, though much of it can be
exercisable only by the Governor-General on behalf of the Sovereign
of the independent Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Ralph
Gonsalves is not World Boss; I am sure most in the hemisphere had a
good laugh at his expense, to the humiliation of all Vincentians.

Creating
the Office of Deputy Prime Minister

Under
the terms of the 1979 Constitution of Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, it is not Constitutional and therefore not legal to
select, appoint, any person and swear them in as a Deputy Prime
Minister. There is no such provision in the Constitution; the ULP
Government has no right to present a person to be Deputy Prime
Minister as they have done by asking the Governor-General swear in
North Windward member of Parliament Montgomery Daniel.

The
Constitution only allows for three Deputy positions, Deputy to
Governor-General, Deputy Speaker, and Deputy Commissioner of Police.

If there
were any intention by the draftsmen of the 1979 Constitution to
include such a position and title in the Constitution, they would
have made provision within the Constitution Deed for the position of
Deputy Prime Minister. There is no provision for such a role. If a
Deputy Prime Minister were required the political masters at the time
would have insisted that the position of Deputy Prime Minister be
included in the Constitution, they did not. In fact, by excluding it
compounds the reasoning that they deliberately did not want to have
such a position or office.

Despite
that, there are provisions within the Constitution for a stand-in for
the Prime Minister due to illness or absence.

Performance
of Functions of Prime Minister During Absence or Illness

54. (1)
Whenever the Prime Minister is absent from Saint Vincent or by reason
of illness is unable to perform the functions conferred upon him by
this Constitution, the Governor-General may authorize some other
minister to perform those functions (other than the functions
conferred by this section), and that minister may perform those
functions until the Governor General revokes his authority.

(2) The
powers of the Governor-General under this section will be exercised
by him with the accordance of the advice of the Prime Minister;

Provided
that if the Governor-General, acting in his own deliberate judgment,
considers that it is impracticable to obtain the advice of the Prime
Minister owing to his absence or illness he may exercise those powers
without that advice and in his own deliberate judgment.

Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines Constitution is online and available for
everyone to read: -

http://www.oas.org/juridico/PDFs/mesicic4_svg_const.pdf

There is
no provision in the Constitution for the Governor-General to appoint
or make someone a Deputy Prime Minister, not permanently or for any
other term or period whatsoever, not even temporarily.

There is
no provision for a Deputy Prime Minister, an Acting Prime Minister,
or Temporary Prime Minister to be appointed to act at the same time
as the Prime Minister as an aid, as an assistant to the Prime
Minister, or at all. For instance for such a so-called Deputy Prime
Minister to go abroad or to the UN to carry out duties or to attend
as Deputy Prime Minister may be Ultra Vires, as may be the very
naming and making of such an office or title. And therefore, any
treaties, Bills, Laws, contracts, or legal documents he will sign may
be refutable, unenforceable, and without force or legal reason.

The
Prime Minister and the Government are subject to the law, the law is
subject to the Constitution, whether acting by prerogative power or
otherwise. The rule of law protects the sovereignty of Parliament,
not the assertion of power by the Executive over the Legislature.

Is it
“ultra vires” et separatim “unconstitutional” for the Prime
Minister, to purport to advise the Governor-General to swear in a
minister under the title of Deputy Prime Minister when there is no
provision to do so in the Constitution.

Now in
2020, once again Prime Minister Dr Ralph E Gonsalves advised the
Governor-General to swear in someone as Deputy Prime Minister. And
that happened when the elected representative for North Windward
Montgomery Daniel was sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister at Government
House on Saturday 7th November 2020.

I am
calling for an investigation into the authority to make this man
Deputy Prime Minister and if it is a gross violation of the 1979
Constitution of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

NDP what
is your opinion?

[The
singular includes the plural and vice versa and he shall include she;
Following the custom in regulations, references to “he” or “him”
include “she” or “her”, and so on. In this policy and
associated guidance, “he” is deemed to include “she”]

If anyone thinks what I have written here is in any way incorrect, please make comments below, or write a reply to this and ask the editor to post it.

END

IMAGES: Supplied by author

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