Recent developments in our politics led us to this gem of a contribution to the Parliament in January this year.

The subject of the discussion was the Electoral Commission of Jamaica (ECJ) and recommendations contained in its report on continuing legal reform.

“Many times there are reports coming here in which the commission is overreaching and there are cases in which they have gone beyond sanity,” said the person making the contribution. “They are asking us to delegate our responsibility to a group of persons and if we go along with a lot of what they are asking for here it would be a dereliction of duty. There are some aspects that are acceptable but there are others that are totally unacceptable.”

Our report on the debate stated that the speaker further took issue with the commission’s suggestion that it be allowed to act independently in deciding the rate of remuneration for employees.

“The issue here is that Government is responsible for people’s taxes, Government ought to hold the purse strings and we cannot delegate this responsibility to a group of persons who are commissioners for a particular body,” the speaker said. His comments won approval from Mr Robert Pickersgill who responded: “Hear, hear.”

The speaker was also at odds with the ECJ’s request that the Representation of the People Act be amended to allow the commission to be the one to advise the governor general as to the postponement of an election, an action that is the remit of the governor general, acting on the advice of the Cabinet.

Said the speaker: “How can we, as elected members of Parliament, give up our responsibility that the people place in us and delegate such responsibility in four or eight persons who are not answerable to the people of this country?”

He went on to state that he is answerable to the people of his constituency and declared boldly that “I am answerable to Jamaica”.

He also said: “I want to know if the other 59 members inside here don’t believe they have the obligation to stand and defend the people in their constituency… I am asking my 59 colleagues not to give up this right that is imposed in the Cabinet, the governor general and the Parliament of this country to give to a group of persons up at Red Hills Road… We need to ask this to be deleted and removed.”

The speaker also took issue with the proposal that the salary of the ECJ chair be increased and made equal to that of a senior puisne judge — an estimated $10.8 million.

“It is offensive, it is greed and it is egregious arrogance which cannot be accepted inside here,” he said. “The serious problem I have is that the nine commissioners get a salary of $8.3 million per year for a part-time job and they meet an average of two hours per week twice per month.”

Commendable and apposite arguments, we must admit. Pity, though, that they were delivered by a man who had no legitimate claim to a seat in the Parliament.

Yes, we are talking about Mr Everald Warmington, the man who, until last week, illegally sat in the highest court in the land since September 2007 and played more than a passing role in the formulation of laws.

The question Mr Warmington needs to ask himself — since he resents being questioned by journalists — is why should any Jamaican observe any law which he had a hand in passing when he is guilty of breaking the law?