Leader of the Opposition and Parliamentary Representative for Micoud South Honourable Allen Chastanet is continuing to fight back against efforts to silence him and infringe on our
Constitutional Rights.
The Opposition Leader is heading to court again, just three months after the High Court ordered Speaker of the House Claudius Francis to pay costs to the United Workers Party Leader.
On the first occasion, the court issued a consent order after House Speaker Francis acknowledged several procedural missteps in his effort to take the UWP Opposition Leader before the House Privileges Committee.
The latest matter centers on the May 2nd 2023 suspension of the Leader of the Opposition from the House and its precincts by the Speaker enabled by the SLP Parliamentarians.
The May 8th 2023 Affidavit from the Leader of the Opposition to the Eastern Caribbean
Supreme Court in the High Court of Justice is seeking relief from the courts citing that the House “has no power to suspend for an indefinite period or at all any of its members, save and except in accordance with and pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution and/or the House of Assembly (Privileges, Immunities and Powers) Act.”
It was also put forward that Standing Orders 43 (4) and 43 (6) are “unconstitutional, null and void.”
The Opposition Leader further offered that the suspension from the House was “effected in a manner that violated” his rights “under sections 1 and 8 of the Constitution to the protection of the law and was, accordingly, illegal, unlawful and null and void and of no effect.”
The Claim also asserts that the Speaker of the House Claudius Francis “had no power to order the detention of the claimant when he attempted to leave the Chamber of the House of Assembly or at all.”
The Affidavit further states: “The arrest or detention of the Claimant was unlawful and violated the Claimant’s rights under sections 3 and 12 of the Constitution to personal liberty, freedom from arrest and free movement in Saint Lucia was accordingly illegal, unlawful and unconstitutional.”
The Leader of the Opposition is also seeking from the Courts an Injunction against the Speaker of the House restraining him in his capacity as Speaker of the House “whether by himself, his servants or agents or otherwise howsoever, from excluding or otherwise preventing the Claimant from attending any sitting of the House or entering the precincts of the House.”
Mr. Chastanet is seeking damages for the breach or other contravention of his Constitutional Right and damages for wrongful arrest and detention, as well as for the unlawful suspension and the breach of his rights to serve as a member of the House.
The Opposition Leader’s request of an interlocutory injunction would restrain the House Speaker until the conclusion of the trial “from excluding or otherwise preventing the claimant from attending any sitting of the House or entering the precincts of the House.”
The very detailed and well-researched 43-page Affidavit lists the facts upon which the claim is based, giving information about what was said in the House of Assembly, information about the Bananes Bay Land sale which the Leader of the Opposition was enquiring about during the House session in question and the events leading up to and subsequent to the point of order raised by the Castries Central MP.
The claim details the ruling by the Speaker of the House, the arrest and suspension of the Leader of the Opposition.
In a statement after the case was filed, Opposition Leader Honourable Allen Chastanet noted thatthis case is not just about him but for the people of Saint Lucia.
“I will not be silenced,” said Hon. Chastanet. “I took a crucial step in upholding justice and
protecting our constitutional rights. This legal action is in response to the multiple breaches of my constitutional rights, including unlawful detention and their attempts to prevent me from attending future sessions of Parliament. I firmly believe in the importance of transparency, accountability, and the preservation of our democratic values. This fight is not just for me, but for the democratic principles and values that we all hold dear. Since July 26th 2021, we have consistently witnessed the Government use its 15-2 majority to abuse parliamentary procedure and the civil liberties of citizens. This case is a stand for all the people feeling the chilling effect of the abuse of power perpetuated by the Philip J Pierre administration. I will not rest until justice is served.”
SOURCE: Office of the Leader of the Opposition
No one is attempting to silence you as you are doing a very good job of revealing your disdain for anything St Lucian with your utterances.
However, you need to respect the House just like everyone else.
It is pellucidly clear that both Chastanet and Claudius had difficult childhoods in which they were severely criticized and undermined. Now our society is suffering the consequences.
IDIOTS, both of you.
That’s Right MP Chastanet Don’t rest until he pays and he Apologises! Sant meas
lol yall messing with chas and his wife is one of the Baddest lawyers and has a top law firm? She will get every detail to accompany a well written affidavit. MR speaker Since when thats your roll!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
I like this one it will go down in history and a case law . These police don’t even know their powers idiots, only the courts can instruct the police .
It was quite obvious that the speaker had stepped into a trap
4) If a Member shows disregard for the authority of the Chair, or abuses the
rules of the House by persistently and wilfully obstructing the business of the House or
otherwise, the Speaker shall direct the attention of the House, to the incident mentioning
by name the Member concerned. The Speaker then shall call upon a Minister to move
“That the Member for …………….. be suspended from the service of the House”, and
the Speaker shall forthwith put the question, no seconder being required and no
amendment, adjournment or debate being allowed.
(6) If such Member be suspended under any provisions of this Order, his
suspension shall last until determined by the House.
If those two sections are supposed to be part of the broader rules which govern operations of parliament and now are being challenged as unconstitutional, something is wrong in our land.
People of St Lucia, I am warning you all, please stay away from Allan Chastanet.. But then again he will lose the case . He has to respect the house of assembly. …
Remember my comments last week, under what section are you Claudius stopping the UWP leader from leaving a public house. Under what section of the law?
Either Claudius is not qualified to do the job, he is confused or a bully. In my opinion he should undergo cognitive function test to ensure he knows what his role and responsibilities are to carry out the job. Or he is confused.
All those who believe the Bananes lot which was numbered 11 and now numbered 50 is not the same lot, is an idiot. These are the persons Frederick speaks to.
@Vanguard it would help if you would tell your 17 SLP cabal to respect the parliamentary procedure and constitution of the land. When your canals were on opposite side of the house no one tried to stifle them, so yes tell your corrupt cabal with questionable characters to concentrate on the governance of the country instead of their jealousy and obsession with Chas that we the people sent to represent us and not the nonsense being spewed and repeated by some of you the cabal labeled as marlayway who inevitable can’t think for yourselves after drinking the red cool-aid.
Uncle Chas I stand with You.
You should have ask that the hearing be televised on national TV so the world can witness an incompetent Speaker being repremanded in public – Incompetency can be very Expensive. If you think I lie, go ask Claudius. He will soon find out.
It is really annoying to see how the speaker and government cabinet deliberately attempt constantly to redicule and silent the leader of the opposition in every house sitting.This leaves me and most St.Lucians to ask why. Do they want to hide some information away from the public?I am beginning to like this man because he does not back down. He is game and determined like Compton. We need this man to constantly continue his very effective job of ensuring checks and balances, accountability and transparency in the government transactions and behavior
When corrupted commentators write or say something they often expose their venal mindset.
An SLP hack in commenting on Jazz made the point about “sharing the spoils”.
You share spoils when you TAKE something from someone else and usually in a violent way. The vulgar hack was clearly referencing SLP scroungers having access to some of the $8 million spent on Jazz. And of course you know that means you exclude 3/4 of the country that did not vote for you.
For the SLP victory at the polls was not about good governance but about getting the SPOILS of war. And since it is war it does not matter how you get it: whether you beg, steal or borrow.
So if you are a Lucian overseas wanting to come back to contribute to society and make a living – you can forget about that because the SPOILS of electoral victory only go to a few. Judging from the arrogance, highhandedness, grasping ways of the government and leadership of the SLP they endorse the method of sharing the spoils of war.
HE IS GOING TO LOOSE AND I CAN’T WAIT TO LAUGH
St Lucians like to condone criminal activities too much. This is not the first time Mr. Chastanet is breaking the laws of St. Lucia. Remember what he told Andy Daniel? No Deputy Speaker for 5 years. The Judge never give a verdict on this, let me see how fast they will deal with that one.
If Chas wins that case it means the rules for parliament is null and void. The law is only for one set of people.
So, what will y’all say if Chas loses? All of you “Avoca ti papier” who are commenting in this forum, consider that for a moment. Would y’all then come up with “the system corrupt”? Would y’all take Chas and throw him in the dustbin of forgetfulness? Would y’all say that he is an embarrassment to The Party? Or would y’all do like the Republicans and stick with Trump . . . Tropical Trump?
Hiding the comments will not save the SLP.
The whole Bananes affair stinks. The attempt to silence Chastenet also stinks. Unfortunately we have criminals in high places and deluded, deranged star struck hacks/idiots that believe that their red excrement smells like roses. These people make Guy look like a choirboy. We need an end to this high handed arrogance from this perverse cabal of pretend socialists.
The Speaker is as much use as a chocolate teapot.
The SLP has shown its absolute aversion to democracy and free speech. They actually changed the constitution to DENY St. Lucians the right to a vote on the CCJ. That in itself speaks to their mentality. It is appalling and disgusting that compromised RF and EH had a vote on my grand children’s right to fair and equitable justice but my family and fellow citizens were denied that right. They are now up to their dirty tricks. Having bought members of the press, they now try to silence the opposition. Chastenet must fight this evil all the way.
I think Claudius is a confused lad with extreme limited capabilities in his role. While the rules of the parliament must be upheld you at the same time cannot falsely imprisoned an election member. He can be suspended ofcourse but not to unilaterally order in his words to prevent a member from leaving the house. Claudius doesn’t know the difference from his house and a public house. He obviously doesn’t care wasting tax payer money at the detriment of his clouded cognitive capacity…lol
@ Titonius: that’s funny man.
@ The Same, you should know not to mention – Bannan in here – you did and now it’s gone.
Joseph George answered: “do they want to hide some information away from the public?”
Was that what brought out all that discussion? its getting very interested.
Filing a frivolous lawsuit against the speaker of the house is your prerogative however you are duty-bound to follow the constitution and the standing orders of the parliament. No one is above the law. Chastanet isn’t acting as the leader of the opposition but as a privileged brat who believes he can circumvent the rules of St. Lucia. Stop acting like a victim because your motives are glaring and staring us all in the face. It is puzzling to believe that Chastanet really cares about St. Lucia’s democracy.
Claudius Francis is ruffling your feathers because no one else had the temerity to stand up to your madness prior to his appearance on the scene. Your invocation of democracy is just a smokescreen fill with lies and hypocrisy.
Have you noticed that every time Chas says something the media is at it and SLT posts most comments? Now check the articles on slp ministers. Some have no comments. I strongly believe SLT is deliberately removing negative comments about made about Slp .They are slowly taking our freedom away
Lucian’s fight for your freedom
We stand with you Chas! This is an important case for the people of Saint Lucia.
The spirit of God be with you. Be not afraid!