Parliament makes amendments to facilitate Commissioner of Corrections post

Thursday’s sitting of Parliament concluded with several bills being amended and all seemingly pointing to the Commissioner of Corrections position.

The Prison Bill (Amendment) 2019, Criminal Procedure Bill, Prison Extramural Sentences Amendment Bill 2019, Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (St. Christopher and Nevis) Amendment Bill 2019 and Magistrate’s Code of Procedure Amendment Bill 2019 were all passed. They were read and seconded by Prime Minister Harris and Attorney General Vincent Byron, respectively.

The government has been pushing for the creation of a Commissioner of Corrections position, which was reportedly accepted by Assistant Commissioner of Police Terrance James. Prime Minister Harris toted that the position falls in line with a new restructured prison service.

However, the opposition St. Kitts Nevis Labour Party thinks otherwise.

The party questioned the rationale of the bills which paved the way for the position and queried whether the amendment was based on research or some technical recommendation.

The opposition also alleged that the name change came about as a result of political gymnastics, with the intent to try to justify promotions within the institution.

There have also been allegations that several amendments were made to sanitize questionable practices within the prison system.