End THA mess

ANCIL DENNIS is just 33 but he’s already made history three times. At 26, he became the youngest-ever assemblyman, a year later the youngest deputy presiding officer of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA). On Wednesday, he was made its Chief Secretary, the youngest person to hold the post. But the appointment has been controversial, with THA Minority Leader Watson Duke questioning its legality. It’s a controversy we could do without.

It’s encouraging when young people play a role in governance. Political leaders often implore youth to speak up and speak out and court the “youth vote” at elections. But rarely do young people get a chance to shape things. Which is odd because the decisions of today, for example in relation to climate change, have a direct bearing on the world young people will inherit tomorrow.

However, the positive signal sent by Dennis’s elevation risks being overshadowed by the legal questions raised by the Minority Leader. He contends the THA Act has a gap in that it does not spell out the power of the Assembly to meet to elect a new Chief Secretary in the wake of the resignation of Kelvin Charles.

It’s worth noting courts rely on the Interpretation Act, common law or scrutiny of the spirit and purpose behind statutes to give life to their provisions, which cannot be expected to spell out everything. Yet, as counterintuitive as it may seem from a commonsense perspective, it may well be the case that this is a matter best settled in a court of law.

That said, is it ideal to be testing the fine print of the THA Act in court in the middle of the covid19 crisis? Arguably, the pandemic makes the question of legality more important than ever. At the same time, there is a vexatious and frivolous aura to the suggestion that the only way in which a new Chief Secretary could be appointed after one resigns is through an election. Perhaps that absurd position is where we will end up if we follow the objection raised to its logical conclusion.

Alternatively, it would be incredible if a court were to find, decades after the THA Act was passed and notwithstanding exhaustive efforts at Tobago law reform since, such a fundamental omission.

Worsening matters is the perception, through no fault of her own, of lingering tensions in the wake of Tracy Davidson-Celestine’s historic ascent to leadership of the PNM’s Tobago Council. Given the downward spiral of Tobago’s tourist economy, which needs all hands on deck now more than ever, the timing of all of this could not be worse. Now is not the time for commess.

End it. End it now. If it comes to it, put the legal questions to rest. And do so speedily. Or else get on with the job.