A series of verbal clashes between Prime Minister Bruce Golding and Queen’s Counsel KD Knight coupled with the incessant interruption of the proceedings by party supporters led to the early adjournment of yesterday’s sitting of the Dudus/Manatt Commission of Enquiry.

The day’s adjournment followed on the heels of a brief adjournment earlier by Commission Chairman Emile George, QC, to allow for a cooling down of tempers as a result of the tense and insulting exchanges between both men that marked most of the day’s proceedings.

Both supporters of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and the People’s National Party (PNP) had been vocal throughout the sitting. But the level of interruption on display from the JLP supporters was such that Knight, who is representing the PNP, had to petition the chairman to take charge. The supporters had been applauding and making loud comments while Golding was being questioned by Knight.

At one point, when a suggestion was being made to the prime minister that he had deceived Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke’s supporters when he (the prime minister) said in Parliament that he was willing to pay a political price to defend Coke’s constitutional rights, the supporters, in unison, bellowed, “No! No!”

But even as George issued the warning, some supporters refused to yield, causing Knight to threaten not to proceed further if the interruptions continued and Knight asked for an adjournment which was granted at about 4:35. The matter was scheduled to end at 5 o’clock.

Moments earlier George, in an attempt to take control of the proceedings, sternly warned both Knight and Golding to knock off the banter. Following adjournment, political and legal commentators opined that the sitting was the worst in the 42 days of the proceeding, which started in January.

The verbal sparring between both men started during the morning session when Knight suggested that the prime minister had “deceived” the public in his answers regarding the hiring of the US-based law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips. There would also be clashes over Knight’s suggestion to the prime minister that he conspired with Justice Minister Dorothy Lightbourne and attorney Harold Brady to stall or block Coke’s extradition to the US to face gun and drug-running charges.

The exchange grew in ferocity which saw the boisterous JLP supporters getting involved, over the suggestion that Golding was weaving a web of deceit.

At that point, Knight was referring in particular to Golding’s earlier testimony that he meant that Liguanea, the location of the United States Embassy in Jamaica, was the new line of demarcation between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have-nots’.

“I suggest to you that when you spoke of Liguanea as the mark of demarcation… you were being deceptive,” Knight said.

“…This is the only forum where I have to tolerate this rudeness from Mr Knight,” Golding shot back.

At that point JLP supporters began shouting jeers at Knight, prompting George to call for the lunch break.

Golding’s attorney Hugh Small then rushed over to the area where Golding was sitting, flanked by Labour Minister Pearnel Charles and member of Parliament Andrew Gallimore, with his arms outstretched begging for calm.

But tempers did not cool after the luncheon adjournment and in no time both men were soon at each other. As a result George had to take an unscheduled adjournment, which he said was “necessary to cool off”.

However, Knight remarked that it was not him who needed “cooling off”.

At that time, the prime minister accused Knight of being rude and of wrongfully accusing him of hiding behind a standing order of Parliament so as not to be fulsome with the answers relation to the Manatt issue. The two also sparred over the unrelated Trafigura issue — this, after Knight had made a reference to Golding’s previous comment, when that controversy raged, about “which skin Colin Campbell was in”, during the former PNP minister’s involvement with Trafigura.

Knight had yesterday asked the prime minister, “which skin”, whether JLP leader or prime minister, he was in” when answering in Parliament to questions posed over the Dudus/Manatt issue.

The prime minister said that he would not answer because he found the remark to be “impertinent”.

But Knight pressed ahead with the question, despite an objection from Golding’s lawyer, prompting the prime minister to quip, “How yu so hard of hearing? I am not going to answer that question.”

After the short, unscheduled adjournment before the proceeding was abandoned for the day, the commission chair commented: “Tempers seemed to rise at this hour… let’s just keep our tempers please.”