GORDON House might be in for some serious changes in terms of how it operates, institutional strengthening and its internal security.

Currently, the focus seems to be on security issues. However, the way that it is being approached suggests that the building is fast becoming intimidating to visitors, including members of the media, who must be at the facility to report on its activities.

The number of security personnel on duty at Gordon House on meeting dates of the House of Representatives makes one wonder about police personnel available to handle crime on the streets.

In addition to personnel provided by nearby police stations, such as the Central Police Station, there are huge numbers of security personnel assigned to ministers and other members, as well as plainclothes security assigned to the building, including well-armed officers assigned to the ceiling, who must use the fire escape in the press room, to the roof where they are assigned, or spend time in the tiny, over-populated press room whenever it rains or threatens to.

The most recent developments include the assignment of plainclothes policemen to the entrances; the instalment of security locks to doors accessed by the press and the public, which can only be opened by obtaining synchronised passes from staff; and, cameras installed inside and outside the building, including the passages and overlooking the sidewalks.

It must be very discomforting for both the staff and the parliamentarians moving around the building, very obstructive to the media in trying to get access to them for information and clarification, and terrifying to the public who seek access to their MPs.

But the fact is that, even if the parliamentarians feel threatened in the political environment in which they operate, if the efforts being pursued to protect them from their constituents, supporters and adversaries, as well as the media, continue in this same vein, they are going to end up working with a very frightened staff, a disconnected media and an angry public who feel that all these efforts are merely to insulate them from their MPs.

But there was a very encouraging sign last week, with the tabling of the Parliamentary Oversight of Public Finances Institutional Review. The review was conducted by a team headed by financial management specialist, Mozammal Hoque, as part of a World Bank project to provide technical assistance in strengthening the structure and capacity of Parliament to undertake its constitutional role, especially with respect to oversight of Jamaica’s public finances.

The team had discussions with Cabinet ministers including Dr Peter Phillips, the minister of finance and planning; Dr Omar Davies, minister of transport, works and housing and former chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC); Leader of the Opposition, Andrew Holness; Dr Wykeham McNeill, former chairman of the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC); former Speaker and Deputy Speaker, Opposition MPs Delroy Chuck and Marisa Dalrymple Philibert; Auditor General Pamela Monroe Ellis; and former Contractor General Greg Christie.

It was not surprising that the review found that the resources allocated to Parliament are insufficient for a modern legislature including the oversight committees, noting that:

“While government ministers have the support and resources of a ministry, within Parliament there is only limited support for some chairs of committees and the Leader of the Opposition…”

The review found that there is need for additional support for committee clerks and that, in considering current and proposed staffing arrangements, there is need to address the challenges facing committee work.

For example, the report said that the need for timely production of Hansard (the verbatim record of speeches) and the challenges of staffing, technical training and availability of up-to-date equipment should be addressed.

“Hansard reports should be on the website within one or two weeks. Currently it can take over a year before the printed version is available,” the report said.

“Hansard is a bequest to and a resource for all Jamaicans. An official record of proceedings is crucial information for journalists, civil society and parliamentarians, themselves,” the report stated.

It suggested that to improve timeliness, Parliament could work towards two versions of the report: A weekly Hansard proof version made available on the Internet, three working days after the last sitting for the week; and a longer term project to move from a weekly Hansard to a daily Hansard. This would reduce the number of enquiries from the public and members on the contents of Hansard.

However, to achieve this, the report noted the need for Parliament to increase its Hansard staff; acquire the appropriate technology and institute the necessary training; and prioritise resources to enable purchase and maintenance of reliable equipment.

The report noted that the library, “which operates more as a document centre”, is subject to severe space shortage and lacks equipment: It does not possess its own printer or photocopier”.

“The library receives about 50 requests a month from members, but receives more queries from the media and the public. These requests will often be for routine pieces of information, such as contact numbers for MPs in their constituencies (information that should be on the website),” the report noted.

The review found that a serious problem at Gordon House is the lack of a dedicated server for Parliament (The current server is maintained by the Jamaica Information Service.)

“The systems analyst estimates that the server will cost J$200,000-$300,000, but would give Parliament more options (e-mails, database). It would also potentially help alleviate the issue of lack of physical space by enabling some staff to be home-based workers,” the report stated.

Next week, we will continue to look at the report, the problems detected by the World Bank team, and how they see these problems being addressed.