ST GEORGE’S – A High Court judge Tuesday dismissed an injunction that was aimed at preventing Grenadians from voting in a referendum on Thursday for a reform of the island’s 1974 Constitution.
Attorney General Cajeton Hood and Solicitor General Dwight Horsford, told reporters that Justice Wyante Adrien-Roberts had dismissed all grounds for the injunction that had been filed by a resident of Carriacou against the Supervisor of Elections, Alex Phillip.
The resident, Valerie A Thompson-Duncan, was represented by former attorney general Jimmy Bristol and Claudette Joseph both of whom have campaigned for the public to vote no for each of the seven bills which will seek to amend sections of the constitution once a two third majority of the “yes” votes are obtained.
“None of the challenges, none of the allegations with respect to breaches of the Constitutional Referendum Act alleged against the Supervisor were made out in the Court at all, the judge found that specifically,” said Horsford.
He said that the judge also found that “there was no substantial breach of the provisions of the Constitutional Referendum Act relative to the publication in newspapers of the writs and the acts.
“There were no material or no breaches at all that would render the process of holding the referendum unlawful and so it was a wholesale decisive dismissal of the application brought by this citizen led by Mr Bristol.
“Wholesale and decisive dismissal which pays proof to the fact that it was much ado about nothing,”Horsford told the news conference.
Hood said that the writs were published in at least two newspapers “and all of the issues with respect to the ballot paper were conceded yesterday.
“The judge did not have to rule on the ballot paper, so all of the noise that was made about the ballot paper dated and distinctions, they were conceded yesterday.
“So the only issue that had to be dealt with by the judge was the issue about the newspaper publication and as the Solicitor General said it was a blackwash”.
Hood defended the decision of the team representing the Superior of Elections not to engage in public bantering while the matter was before the Court.
“If we have opinions on somethings that have not been tried, you don’t go to the public and say I am sure I am going to win this and that is going to happen. We speak when we have something to speak about,” he said, adding “there’s a time to speak and a time to shut up.
“Our opinions, the views that we held regarding the referendum have been established by the Court and now is the time to speak. There is no good speaking about what we think is right and what we don’t think is right. We have no intention to mislead the public, we are here in the public good to serve the country and we have had long hours trying to make sure that we prepare properly for what we had to do,” Hood told reporters.
Grenadians are expected to vote on whether or not to replace the London-based Privy Council with the Trinidad and Tobago-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as its final court. Among the other bills to be voted upon in Thursday’s referendum are term limits for the prime minister and to change the name of the tri-nation. (CMC)
