Defaulting MPs to face full sanction of the law – Dr Luncheon

Jan 30, 2009 News

The full sanction of the law will undoubtedly be brought against Members of Parliament (MPs) who fail to declare their income and assets to the Integrity Commission.
Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon made this disclosure yesterday when he held his weekly press briefing at the Office of the President.
The constitutionality of the Integrity Act of 1997 has been questioned by a number of MPs after President Bharrat Jagdeo declared that they must declare their assets to the Integrity Commission.
Defaulters, the President had said at that time, will have their names published in the media.
Dr Luncheon had noted that since the president’s exhortation was within the limits of the law it should be taken seriously, not only by MPs but also by those others defined in the Act as persons in public life.
But according to Dr Luncheon, Cabinet noted, incredibly, that a body of argumentation had arisen and is being foisted on the public and on society to accept and even glorify the actions of those non-compliant MPs with the law.
He noted that the arguments put forward by some include the presence of unfinished court action about the status of the appointed commissioners that would allow the law to be put on hold or even to be ignored.
Dr Luncheon also alluded to the fact that persons are questioning the President’s remit in terms of his engagement within the law on the matters dealt with by the commission.
“The bigger picture, however, is the effort to confuse the public about the primacy of disclosure of financial assets of public officials and to create some ambiguity of a commitment to this fundamental aspect of accountability.” According to Dr Luncheon, the Integrity Commission, as a tool of ensuring accountability and to prevent corruption in public office, is standard fair within parliamentary democracy and as such it could not be attacked.
“So instead, the mechanism resorted to by its detractors has been to undermine its application. Cabinet noted strangely that many who today are maligning the actions of the administration with regards to ensuring compliance with the law were yesterday the champions of accountability in public office.”
Dr Luncheon said that Cabinet’s contention is that the law must be complied with and all MPs among others must submit declarations. “If they don’t then the full sanctions of the law will be brought against them,” he asserted.

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Defaulting MPs to face full sanction of the law – Dr Luncheon

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