~Opposition MPs demand Justice Minister appear before Parliament over fatal crash, prosecution concerns~
PHILIPSBURG:--- Calls are mounting within Parliament for the Minister of Justice to urgently appear before Members of Parliament following growing public concern over the handling of recent criminal justice matters, particularly the fatal June 11 traffic collision that claimed the life of Ryan Gumbs.
Opposition MP Lyndon Lewis raised the issue during Monday's notifications, expressing frustration that an urgent meeting he requested last week has yet to be added to Parliament's agenda.
"I sent an urgent meeting request last week for the Minister of Justice to be called here in Parliament," Lewis said, adding that after reviewing this week's parliamentary schedule, he was disappointed to find no meeting had been scheduled.
Lewis questioned whether the request had been received by the Chair and stressed that the matter demanded immediate parliamentary attention.
"I find it unfortunate that we are not taking the people's business seriously, and it's about time we take it seriously," he declared.
The MP also reminded Parliament that the Minister of Justice had received a series of parliamentary questions approximately two months ago and had committed to responding within three weeks, in accordance with the Rules of Order.
Appealing directly to the Chair of Parliament, Lewis urged that urgent requests submitted by Members of Parliament—particularly those from the Opposition—receive the prompt attention they deserve.
The call was later reinforced by MP Egbert Jurendy Doran, who devoted much of his notification to the controversial handling of the investigation into the fatal traffic accident.
Doran said he deliberately waited several days before speaking publicly because he wanted to understand the facts surrounding the case. However, after reading the Prosecutor's Office statement, he felt compelled to raise what he described as serious concerns.
Among the issues highlighted by Doran was the Prosecutor's Office's statement that no surveillance footage of the accident exists, and that it made no public appeal for witnesses.
"In every case... drug cases, everything... they ask anyone with information to come forward. That's not the case here," Doran observed.
The former Minister of Justice also questioned the decision to release the suspect from pre-trial detention before transferring him to Immigration and Border Protection Services.
Doran reminded Parliament that deportation orders require ministerial approval and questioned how the country intends to ensure a future criminal trial if the suspect is deported to his home country.
"How are you going to bring back somebody from their native country if we don't have those kinds of agreements?" he asked.
Describing the situation as sending "a bad, bad, bad message," Doran warned that public confidence in the justice system is being undermined.
He threw his full support behind Lewis' request for an urgent parliamentary meeting.
"I see that a meeting was called to discuss these things... if it's not urgent to you, I would like to say it's urgent to me; it's urgent to our faction as well as those that requested," Doran stated.
The coordinated interventions from Lewis and Doran signal increasing political pressure on the Ministry of Justice to publicly explain the handling of the fatal crash investigation, the suspect's release, and the legal procedures surrounding deportation while criminal proceedings remain pending.