Carvil Duncan, man-made laws and moral laws

Feb 09, 2016 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

The Prime Minister told this newspaper that he knows of no law that could result in the removal of a person (from a Board or their workplace) if they are charged by the police. But it is not as complicated as the PM thinks. He may be right. The person has not been found guilty and if you remove him he could say that you are pre-judging him. The PM was responding to questions about Carvil Duncan.
Let’s look at a related dimension. The Minister of Finance told this newspaper that under the law, he has to assign the Auditor-General to audit NICIL. The question was asked because the Auditor General did that before so this newspaper questioned the wisdom of a re-examination by the AG. The Minister cited the law.
But it is not as complicated as that. The paper asked me for a comment and while I agreed with the Minister, my knowledge of the law told me there was no statute preventing the Minister from asking a firm in Barbados or New York to audit NICIL. After the publication of the item in the KN, I sought the advice of three lawyers. Much to my confusion, all three asked not to be named. This aspect of life in Guyana continues to irritate me.
A motorist stopped me at the junction of Quamina and Camp Streets and requested my help in getting a letter published in KN. He said that when roads are being repaired or trenches are being cleaned drivers are at a disadvantage when they reach the spot only to be told they must divert. He wants to see the sign two streets away before you come to the site.
Then he said, “Freddie ah doan waan meh name publish.” I was angry. For a commonsensical comment for which he will get universal praise, he was afraid to use his name. How long are we going to continue with this cowardice?
Anyway three lawyers told me with unambiguous grammar that there is no legislation that prevents the Finance Minister from employing an auditing firm to work with the AG office to audit NICIL. Let’s leave it at that. Back to PM Nagamootoo. Is he right? And if he is, then, how about this question. Do the Police Service Commission and the Judicial Service Commission (Duncan is a member of both) have the legal authority to suspend a sitting member? In other words, is there a legislation under which Duncan can be asked to withdraw temporarily?
I don’t know the answer to that question. But as someone a little bit familiar with the law, I would think that any Commission could suspend a member if the suspension is not arbitrary or irrational. I think it is best to give an example. Suppose the member is wanted in another country for murder and his extradition is being sought. Obviously, he has not been found guilty. But can’t the Commission suspend him until the outcome of the extradition hearing given the nature of the accusation?
Now if I am wrong and a member of these two Commissions cannot be removed even for valid reasons, then there needs to be a re-examination of the particular law that restricts the Commissions from so doing. The Bar Association found time to ask the President if he followed legal procedures in his pardon of over forty young convicts. I hope it finds the time to enlighten us, lay people on these important legal issues
Is there a moral obligation here? If the law does not allow for Duncan’s removal, is it not the morally proper thing for him to do and withdraw from these Commissions? Does it look bad in the eyes that a person is before the court but he sits as a member of the Judicial Service Commission? That is the body that deals with Judges and Magistrates, in other words, the law itself.
In any discussion on the question of Duncan’s removal from these Service Commissions, moral laws come into question. A society is not governed only by legislation made by its parliament. All societies rest on priceless moral guidelines. A first year philosophy student learns that from his/her textbook.
We all would not have been alive today if civilization as a matter of instinct had put laws as the only standard for judging behavior and did away with moral values. Which law prevents a Judge from trying a case involving his cousin? Which law prevents the Head of a company from tendering for contracts from a bank that he heads? But what about moral conduct? Can civilization survive without moral guidelines?

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