United Progressive Party Senator Jonathan Wehner has accused Attorney General Steadroy ‘Cutie’ Benjamin of showing a lack of empathy and humanity after remarks made in Parliament about the absence of Opposition Leader Jamale Pringle and Barbuda MP Trevor Walker during Monday’s sitting of the House of Representatives.

Speaking on Observer Radio on Friday, Wehner who is also UPP PRO, spent several minutes explaining parliamentary procedures governing absences before criticizing comments made by Benjamin during the sitting.

During the parliamentary debate, Benjamin mocked the opposition benches for being empty and questioned the reasons given for the absences.

“Isn’t that passing strange? That today, of all days in Parliament history, some sort of excuses be made. People being sick. Travelling?” Benjamin said as government MPs laughed during the exchange.

Wehner argued that the Attorney General’s remarks ignored established parliamentary rules allowing members to be absent with valid excuses.

“There is a provision within the standing orders of Parliament for both houses of Antigua and Barbuda for members to be absent with excuses,” Wehner said. “A member cannot be absent without an excuse for three sittings in a row.”

He stressed that Pringle and Walker had followed the proper process by submitting letters to the Speaker explaining their absences and noted that the explanations were read aloud in Parliament before Benjamin made his comments.

Wehner also argued that Monday’s sitting was largely procedural, centered mainly on parliamentarians taking the oath of allegiance, and therefore was not a sitting where critical legislative business required every member’s presence.

The senator explained that newly elected or appointed parliamentarians are required to take the oath before officially functioning in Parliament, but noted that this can occur at any sitting and is not limited to one specific day.

According to Wehner, Walker cited a family emergency, while Pringle disclosed that he had traveled overseas with his young daughter for medical treatment after she had been struggling with health issues for some time.

“MP Pringle had to travel overseas with his daughter for a medical procedure,” Wehner said, adding that even disclosing that information publicly was more than should reasonably be expected from a public official.

Wehner said the comments and laughter from government MPs crossed a line.

“I’m sad to say that the AG’s comments were inhumane, distasteful, disgraceful, and totally unempathetic,” he said.

He questioned whether it was unreasonable for a father to accompany his sick child overseas for treatment.

“Is it unreasonable for a father to say, ‘I want to support you in your time of distress and difficulty?’” Wehner asked.

The senator also criticized members on the government benches for laughing after hearing the explanations for the absences.

“All of them would have seen the press release explaining why they were absent. All of them would have heard the Speaker of the House read out the reasons,” he said. “But they still found time to laugh. They still found time to mock and jeer.”

Wehner linked the incident to broader concerns about political discourse in Antigua and Barbuda and argued that the exchange undermined Prime Minister Gaston Browne’s recent calls for national unity following the April 30 general election.

“The Prime Minister got up and said he wants to have a harmonious nation, calling for unity,” Wehner said. “But you can’t just say these things. Your action must match.”

He added that political leaders should avoid involving family matters and children in partisan attacks and said the country’s political culture needs improvement.

“It is high time that we raise the standard of our political discourse in Antigua and Barbuda,” Wehner said.

Wehner concluded by calling for Benjamin to apologize publicly on the floor of Parliament.

“The same way the offence was committed is the same way that the apology needs to come,” he said, adding that the apology should be directed not only to Pringle and Walker but also to the nation.