Veteran Parliamentarian Michael Finnegan Calls Friday’s Events “Unfortunate”
During the fiasco on Friday, the presentation by Espat on the damming Special Audit, which exposes corruption at the Immigration between 2011 and 2013, was muzzled when Espat was physically removed by security forces. Seasoned parliamentarian Michael Finnegan rose to call for order in the House of Representatives. He, along with former Prime Minister Said Musa, went as far as asking the Speaker of the House to allow the Cayo South Area Rep to make his presentation on the Auditor General’s report. While that attempt was unsuccessful, he says that Espat was totally out of place to refer to the Speaker as a mercenary for the ruling party.
Michael Finnegan, Area Representative, Mesopotamia
“It was unfortunate. It was unfortunate, disrespectful and disgraceful. That’s all I have to say.”
Isani Cayetano
“At one point you even got up to speak on behalf of Mr. Espat and you also crossed the floor to speak with them. What was your perspective at that specific point in time?”
Michael Finnegan
Michael Finnegan
“I never talked on behalf of Mr. Espat, that is a wrong interpretation. I got up and was concerned about civility in the House and I believe that a member must be allowed to make his or her point but a member must act within the framework and the guidelines of the law. Man, you cannot get up and say the Speaker is a mercenary, the Speaker is being paid to stop you from making your presentation, that members of the other side of the House are thieves. Man, that is uncalled for. That was totally uncalled for, but the member, I will repeat again, has all right to make his presentation, his or her presentation within the guidelines of the rules of the house.”
Isani Cayetano
“With the way that the media was treated on Friday, seeing as though we weren’t formally asked to be removed from the galleries, what is your opinion on what transpired with the way the police handled the media?”
Michael Finnegan
“That again was unfortunate. It was unfortunate on Channel Seven’s part and it was unfortunate on the police part. Channel Seven noh have to be soh and behave in that fashion either. The police never had to behave in that fashion either, that’s unfortunate. It was totally unfortunate and the police never acted on its own behalf, the police act as representatives of the Speaker. They were following the instructions of the Speaker, whether you like it or I noh like it. They have got to obey the instructions given to them by the Speaker, whether you like it or you noh like. Whether you like it or I don’t like it the Speaker is in charge.”
