Commission on the job

Three weeks after being officially installed, the Constitutional Review Commission has hit the ground running.

Its chairman, retired Justice Christopher Blackman told Barbados TODAY the 10-member commission which is charged with reforming the island’s aged Constitution, had started the process of reaching out to Barbadians to h

ear their thoughts and suggestions on what a new Constitution should look like.

Justice Blackman said the popular radio show Down to Brass Tacks was being used as a medium to communicate with the public.

“The public started yesterday with Brass Tacks and there will be a Brass Tacks programme every day for the next three or four weeks, which will have a number of things and as yesterday’s programme demonstrated some new interesting things came out which will be looked at to see the practicality of making it happen.

“One was about the idea of having a hotline number for people who can’t write or make submissions, but the problem with that is the methodology of capturing a hotline and recording that process,” Justice Blackman said.

“We’ve been receiving submissions and we are also booking appointments to talk to stakeholders, so there is a lot of behind-the-scenes work happening…and we’re doing things on a number of tracks.”

Justice Blackman explained that once the Brass Tacks initiative ends the Commission would then switch its focus to town hall meetings.

On June 24, Justice Blackman along with the other committee members were appointed during an official ceremony at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre. He gave the assurance then that the commission would use more than town hall meetings to get the views of Barbadians.

Calls had come from both leader of the Alliance Party for Progress, Reverend Joseph Atherley and political scientist Senator Dr Kristina Hinds, for the commission to find other ways of communicating with Barbadians besides town hall meetings.

The commission has been given an 18-month deadline in which to complete the arduous task of reforming Barbados’ Constitution.

However, Attorney General Dale Marshall has indicated that additional time will be granted if necessary.

It is estimated that the commission will cost around $1 million.

The other members are Suleiman Bulbulia, Reverend Senator Dr John Rogers, Senator Gregory Nicholls, former Attorney General Adriel Brathwaite, trade unionist Mary-Ann Redman, businessman Christopher de Caires, attorney-at-law Sade Jemmott, president of the Barbados Council for the Disabled Kerryann Ifill and youth advocate Khaleel Kothdiwala.

randybennett@barbadostoday.bb