Malahoo Forte asks Holness, Golding to commit to continue constitutional reform after general election
The Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs, Marlene Malahoo Forte has implored Prime Minister Andrew Holness and Opposition Leader Mark Golding to commit to continue the constitutional reform process after the next general election, regardless of the outcome of the polls.
The next general election is constitutionally due by 2025 and the Constitutional Reform Committee that has been tasked with moving Jamaica from a Constitutional Monarchy with King Charles as Head of State, to a Republican style Government, has its work cut out for it with Malahoo Forte conceding that it was a far more exhaustive process than first thought.
The deeply-entrenched provisions of Jamaica’s Independence Constitution, such as the King being Head of State, require a two-thirds vote in both houses of Parliament along with a referendum for them to be removed.
That and the length of time the relevant bills must be tabled in the Parliament before debate will help to delay the process.
Malahoo Forte acknowledged that there is a challenge.
“We will not achieve all the goals at once. We do not yet have the capacity to absorb monumental and complex changes all at once, of the magnitude that would come if we were to amend all of the constitution, all at once,” she said.
“On top of it, many Jamaicans do not even know what is contained in the constitution,” she added.
The minister said members of the reform committee have agreed that the populace must first be educated about what is contained in the constitution, a process that will itself take time.
With the expected delays, Malahoo Forte addressed both Holness and Golding directly.
She said: “It is my hope that the work to reform the constitution will continue with commitment from both sides, regardless of what happens after a general election. It is too important a work to be pushed aside, as have been done on many previous occasions”.
“Hopefully, we will have a commitment from the leaders on both sides of the parliamentary isle about committing to the people of Jamaica, that the goals to be pursued are so important that we will continue regardless of the changes made after a general election,” Malahoo Forte added.
