Premier Andrew Fahie has said that his government has not dismissed the judgement set out by the Supreme High Court but is merely undergoing a secondary procedure to determine whether Speaker Julian Willock should be indemnified for his legal bill.
The premier made the comment while concluding the debate for the motion to establish a select committee which will decide on Willock’s fate, after the motion was passed in the House of Assembly with a 5-2 majority vote.
Premier Fahie said that under the BVI’s Constitution the House of Assembly has the authority to indemnify the Speaker for any legal cost attained, if it chooses.
He said, “I just want to state that no one is setting aside the decision of the judge, this doesn’t do it at all. The House has the legal scope to always indemnify the Speaker. I’m not saying the House will do it or do it not, the law allows the House to do it and the House has the legal authority to ratify the Speaker if it so chooses to exercise such authority.”
“And the leader of the Opposition’s motion which was placed for his intentions is one that leans to suggest to exempt rather than to indemnify the Speaker which in law and House is afforded by law for the recommendations which is what a select committee would have had to be doing anyway. No one is criticizing the judge at all, that is not our scope,” he added.
Main goal is to collect all the facts
The Premier said the motion’s main goal is to collect the facts surrounding the Speaker’s action to determine whether he can be compensated for his legal fees through this measure.
“The only action the substantial motion seeks is to allow for a fact-finding mission of the actions to be determined whether or not the facilitating of the payment can be undertaken or not or should the facilitating of the payment should be undertaken or not. So, that is the main thing with it,” the premier stated.
Voting in favour of the motion was Premier Fahie, Deputy Premier Dr. Natalio Wheatley, Transportation Minister Kye Rymer, Health Minister Carvin Malone and Junior Minister for Tourism Sharie de Castro.
The only two opposing votes came from the two present opposition legislators which were leader Marlon Penn and Melvin ‘Mitch’ Turnbull.
The other members of the House of Assembly were absent during the voting stage.
Meanwhile, Premier Fahie said that the select committee will consist of three members. Namely, Labour and Immigration Minister Vincent Wheatley and Opposition legislators Mark Vanterpool and Julian Frazer.