Opposition, not Gov’t, responsible for ‘unparliamentary behaviour’ in House — Morgan

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Deputy Leader of Government Business Robert Nesta Morgan has condemned the conduct of Opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) during Tuesday’s sitting of the House of Representatives, singling out Manchester North Western MP Mikael Phillips over an expletive-laden confrontation with Government MP Desmond McKenzie. The incident occurred shortly after the House was adjourned following heated exchanges during debate on a motion seeking to censure the Government over Jamaica’s decision to abstain from a United Nations resolution calling for an end to the United States embargo on Cuba. According to Morgan, tensions escalated after Phillips verbally confronted House Speaker Juliet Holness. Morgan said McKenzie intervened and urged Phillips to show respect towards the speaker, prompting Phillips to respond with a series of expletives before moving aggressively towards McKenzie. Morgan said Phillips had to be restrained by several members of the House. He also referenced video footage of the incident, which he said showed Phillips making apparent physical contact with Opposition Leader Mark Golding as he moved towards McKenzie. READ: WATCH: House in turmoil over Cuba censure motion In a statement on Wednesday, condemning the conduct of Opposition members, Morgan criticised comments allegedly made towards the speaker during the sitting. “We wish to decry the unparliamentary behaviour of several members of the Opposition, both during the sitting of the House, as we were carrying out the nation's business, and after. Particularly the leader of the Opposition, who made unparliamentary comments to the speaker, Angela Brown Burke, who also made unparliamentary comments off mic, but especially Mikael Phillips, who moved aggressively towards Member of Parliament from West Kingston, Desmond McKenzie, and had to be restrained by several members of the House based on his behaviour. “We are representatives of the people. Our duty is to go to Parliament and conduct the business of the country and the people of Jamaica in a respectful and professional manner,” Morgan said. He said the Government would not condone the conduct displayed by Opposition members, arguing that it reflected poorly on Parliament and set a negative example for the public. “Our side, that is the Government side, will not tolerate, condone or support the type of behaviour that we saw today [Tuesday] in Parliament from the Opposition. It sets a bad example to everyone who is observing what is happening in the House,” Morgan said. “We do not want it to be said that all parliamentarians or the Parliament is behaving in this manner. The distinction must be made that the behaviour was of the Opposition and not the Government side. A behaviour that we condemn, a behaviour that we reject and a behaviour that we will constantly speak and act against,” he added. The confrontation followed an increasingly contentious sitting of the House, during which Opposition members protested after Leader of Government Business Floyd Green called for debate on the censure motion to be brought to an end. The motion, brought by Opposition MP Anthony Hylton, challenged the Government's decision to abstain from the October 28 United Nations General Assembly resolution on the US embargo against Cuba. The abstention marked the first time Jamaica had not supported the resolution since it was introduced in 1992. READ: Shift in policy