By Mwangi Ngamate
Mwangi@caymannetnews.com

Opposition Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Alden McLaughlin on Monday hit out at the Leader of Government Business, Hon. McKeeva Bush, for bypassing the judiciary in administering funds allocated for legal aid.

Speaking to the national council of the People’s Progressive Movement at the Cayman Islands Seafarers Association Hall on Monday, Mr McLaughlin referred to the action as a fiasco that would deny deserving cases legal aid.

Quoting from article 6 of the new Bill of Rights, he said any accused person is presumed innocent until convicted by a duly convened court of law.

Amidst cheers, Mr McLaughlin said that it was unfortunate that the legal aid money was transferred from the custodian of the monies, namely the chief justice, and taken to a politician.

The George Town MLA said that by stripping CI$1 million from the legal aid budget, Mr Bush was compromising the defence of persons charged with capital punishment.

According to Mr McLaughlin, the government cannot step into the role of being the arbiter of justice.

The MLA, who served as the Minister for Education, Sports and Finance in the previous administration, said that by denying accused persons the money, this gave them a field day should they go to appeal on the grounds that they did not have sufficient defence.

“Something is fundamentally wrong, given that legal aid should be administered by the judiciary; this move will tend to undermine our jurisdiction by refusing to give in to basic principles of the law,” Mr McLaughlin explained.

Mr Bush had previously noted that the legal funds allocated should not be used to defend the criminals who were shooting people indiscriminately.

According to a press report, the government’s new plan will transfer responsibility for legal aid from the Chief Justice to the Leader of Government Business, reduce the present fiscal year’s funding from $1.85 million to $300,000, re-allocate $1 million to the Office of the Leader of Government Business for various projects and pay $500,000 to attorneys Steve McField and Theresa Lewis-Pitcairn to establish and administer a Legal Aid Office.