It’s time St Joseph MP Herbert Volney sees his friends for what they are. This was the advice given by Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley after Speaker Wade Mark declared at the end of yesterday’s budget presentation that the St Joseph seat was now vacant. Speaking at a news conference held after the budget presentation, Rowley said he was not surprised by Mark’s announcement. “This government has brought to the country nothing but bacchanal and confusion in public administration. “And any government whose prime minister could pick the day of the budget, and also pick, on that day, to solve its political problems by this development, which has absolutely no benefit...the only people who would benefit from this development are lawyers chosen by the Attorney General, and nobody else,” Rowley added.
Saying the development had no precedence in Parliament Rowley added he was absolutely certain that there would be “toing and froing” in the court. “If it was the prime minister’s intention to do what she has done and knowing the background to this, all she had to do was ensure that the House and the committee comply with the law, put the necessary standing order in place so that there would be no credible legal challenge, all that could be done within a week and this legal challenge that they would embark upon would have saved tax payers millions,” Rowley added. He said the money could have been used instead to upgrade community centres, health facilties and buy vaccines for children. “The Four Roads community centre is falling down on children and to see the government wasting millions on their political problems, it is just unacceptable. “The prime minister had the ability and the responsibility to do something like this, and what does she do? Write the Speaker to take political action against her colleague. “All I expect to come out of this now is, I hope Mr Volney understands now it couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. He has seen his friends for what they are,” Rowley added. Whether Volney was in or out of the Parliament “does not change the price of cocoa” to the average person in the country, the Opposition leader said.