By Devonne Cornelius
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN): Deputy Prime Minister Hon. Shawn Richards has responded to the letter from the Office of the Clerk of the National Assembly indicating that Speaker Hon. Micheal Perkins will be seeking legal advice on the Motion of No Confidence filed by six elected representatives of the People’s Action Movement and the Concerned Citizens Movement.
“There is legislation which governs the bringing of a Motion of No Confidence before the National Assembly which speaks to 21 days. What I also find to be quite interesting is that the last time a Motion of No Confidence came before the National Assembly it was in 2020 when the Opposition brought a Motion of No Confidence in the government, and in less than five days, that Motion was heard…,” said Richards in a conversation with WINN FM on Thursday (Apr. 28).
Richards added: “One would hope that just as the Parliament heard that Motion of No Confidence within less than a week, that similar treatment would be accorded with this Motion of No Confidence.”
Hon. Micheal Perkins, Speaker of the National Assembly is said to be seeking legal advice on the Motion of No Confidence filed by the majority of the elected representatives of the National Assembly declaring that they no longer support Dr. Timothy Harris as St. Kitts and Nevis’ Prime Minister.
The letter affixed with the signature of Ms. Trevlyn Stapleton, Clerk of the National Assembly, and dated April 27, says “on the instruction of the Honourable Speaker Mr. A. Micheal Perkins, please find enclosed a copy of the Resolution which was received by the Office of the Clerk on Monday, April 25, 2022 at 3:11 p.m.
The Honourable Speaker wishes to advise that he is reviewing the Resolution to ensure that it meets the stipulated requirements of both the Constitution of St. Kitts and Nevis and the Standing Orders of the National Assembly, such review to include seeking independent legal advice.”
Making the rounds on social media, the letter is receiving some pushback with people questioning the basis on which legal advice is being sought by the Speaker.
Efforts to reach Premier Brantley for comment on the letter were unsuccessful at the time of writing. WINN FM also made efforts to contact Speaker Micheal Perkins and Clerk Trevlyn Stapleton but to no avail.
