NATIONAL Security Minister Senator Dwight Nelson yesterday testified that he never told former Police Commissioner Rear Admiral Hardley Lewin that the extradition of accused drug lord Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke could topple the Jamaica Labour Party administration.

Lewin, in his appearance at the Dudus/Manatt Commission of Enquiry last week, had given evidence that the minister expressed concern that Coke’s extradition “could cause the Government to collapse”, when he sought to enquire why the authority to proceed on the matter had not been signed on August 26, 2009 — a day after the country received the request.

“I never uttered such words or any words that could be interpreted as such,” Senator Nelson declared during his examination-in-chief led by his attorney, Queen’s Counsel John Vassell.

Further to that, the minister said that the issue of Coke’s extradition was never mentioned in the August 26 meeting, which he had with Lewin; Major General Stewart Saunders, former Jamaica Defence Force chief of defence staff, and former permanent secretary in the security ministry, Major Richard Reese.

Senator Nelson testified that he first learnt about the extradition request a day before it arrived, when Lewin contacted him and subsequently informed him in a meeting with Saunders that the request would arrive the following day.

The minister said he immediately informed Prime Minster Bruce Golding as he felt it was something that could affect the prime minister’s West Kingston constituency.

Nelson said Golding requested a meeting with both men, but he was not a part of that meeting.

Meanwhile, the minister said he was not aware that Coke was a “reputed don” when he was being cross-examined by Queen’s Counsel KD Knight, who is representing the People’s National Party.

“I didn’t know anything about him. I knew of his existence,” Senator Nelson said.

“I knew nothing of Mr Coke, I knew nothing of his activities, I never met the man, I have never spoken to the man,” insisted Nelson, who appeared flustered while being asked a string of questions relating to his knowledge of and intelligence on Coke.

On the matter of the two controversial Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs), which were signed by former minister of national security under the PNP administration, Dr Peter Phillips, Senator Nelson testified that he would never have signed the documents without the approval of Cabinet or the prime minister.

“Signing these documents as a Cabinet minister creates an obligation on the part of the Government and the Cabinet must have collective responsibility for any agreed obligation on the part of the Government. And, for individual members of the Cabinet to have collective responsibility on a matter they know nothing about, I think would be unacceptable,” he said.

“All agreements between Government and foreign governments or agencies must have Cabinet’s approval,” Senator Nelson said.

He also dismissed claims made by Dr Phillips that Cabinet was not an appropriate body with which the information about the controversial MOUs should be shared.

According to him, there were no levels of secrecy within the Cabinet as it relates to information or levels which excluded the prime minister.

“I can say that all intelligence matters that are reported to me as minister of national security — for the most part they are in writing — are shared in Cabinet,” the senator said.

Under further cross-examination by Knight, he said he would have shared intelligence on Coke with the Cabinet. But when asked if he had, in fact, shared those intelligence with Cabinet, he declined to answer.

Nelson also testified that he supported the view that the MOUs challenged the constitutional rights of Jamaicans.

However, when he was asked if he supported statements made by Golding that his Government “wholeheartedly endorsed” the MOUs, Nelson said he supported the prime minister’s position on the principle but not on the methodology.

Meantime, Dr Phillips will continue his testimony today at the enquiry which is being held at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston.