By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE House of Assembly’s Committee on Privilege has recommended that Opposition MPs Shanendon Cartwright and Adrian White apologise for misleading or inappropriate conduct during this year’s budget debate, warning that future acts of deception or disorder in Parliament should be met with formal condemnation.

Education Minister Glenys Hanna-Martin, who chairs the committee, presented the findings yesterday nearly six weeks after both matters were referred on June 18. The committee met last Wednesday, with members including Iram Lewis and Keith Bell.

The first case involved a dispute between South and Central Andros MP Leon Lundy and Mr Cartwright, the MP for St Barnabas, over Water and Sewerage Corporation billing practices.

During the budget debate, Mr Cartwright questioned Mr Lundy about “fee changes” at the corporation. Mr Lundy denied any fee increases, but Mr Cartwright disagreed and tabled documents he said supported his claims.

Mrs Hanna-Martin said Mr Lundy later returned to the House to clarify his comments but Mr Cartwright responded by accusing him of misleading Parliament.

“He used more colourful language, which we will not refer to,” she said. “In so doing, the member for St Barnabas used words that the member for South and Central Andros found objectionable.”

After Mr Lundy raised a complaint with the House Speaker and requested a withdrawal of the remarks, Mr Cartwright refused. The exchange escalated, with other MPs joining in and ignoring calls for order from the chair. The deputy speaker eventually referred the matter to the Privilege Committee, which concluded that Mr Cartwright’s claims were “unsupported” and “unwarranted”.

Mrs Hanna-Martin said the committee advised Mr Cartwright to “take the high road” and apologise for accusing Mr Lundy of deliberately misleading the House.

The second matter concerned Mr White, the MP for St Anne’s, who displayed a large poster during his budget contribution. The poster showed a small image of a vehicle parked in a disabled spot, alongside a larger image of Minister Myles Laroda.

Mrs Hanna-Martin said the presentation implied that Mr Laroda was the one who parked illegally, which the committee found “a deliberate attempt to bring the minister’s reputation into odium and contempt.”

In fact, the parked car belonged to Marathon MP Lisa Rahming.

“The committee has no doubt that the member for St Anne’s was deliberate in his action,” Mrs Hanna Martin said yesterday. “The committee is of the view that the member for St Anne’s should apologise to the Member of Parliament for Pinewood and indeed, to this House for his acts of deception.”

She also urged Parliament to take such matters seriously, recommending that future acts of deliberate deception toward the House or the public be met with formal resolutions of condemnation.

Neither Mr Cartwright nor Mr White were present during the presentation of the report. However, East Grand Bahama MP Kwasi Thompson requested that they be given time to review the committee’s findings.