Senate President Alincia Williams-Grant said senators must respect her rulings while proceedings are underway, even when they disagree, as she defended her record of impartiality and called for changes to the chamber’s rules.

Williams-Grant made the comments Monday after acknowledging that she had received letters from Sen. Malaka Parker and another senator concerning the Senate’s previous sitting. She did not disclose the contents of Parker’s two letters, saying she planned to respond to them in due course.

She said one of Parker’s letters had not been copied to all senators, including the members from Barbuda and the independent senators.

Williams-Grant identified the main complaint in a letter from Sen. Scholl as a request to have a statement made by a senator at the previous sitting ruled out of order, removed from the record and followed by an apology. She said her remarks about the letters were intended as a general statement on the role of the chair.

“I have no personal axe to grind in the discharge of my responsibilities as President of this honourable Senate,” Williams-Grant said. She added that she had not regarded the office as a means to settle personal scores, advance private interests or pursue political vendettas.

The president said she had sought to act fairly and impartially during her tenure, while acknowledging that no human being was infallible. She said the chair’s independence should not be judged by whether a member agrees with a ruling or by how often decisions favor one side.

“You are entitled to disagree with my rulings,” she said. “But you have to respect it.”

Williams-Grant said the presiding officer was responsible for making decisions as proceedings unfolded and did not have authority under the Standing Orders to revisit a ruling months later. She said senators could challenge interpretations through the appropriate procedures.

She also said members could interrupt a speaker on a point of order if they believed a statement breached the rules. The presiding officer, she said, determines whether the point is valid.

Williams-Grant urged senators to identify the specific Standing Order they believe has been breached when raising a point of order. She said she would not allow members to make such interruptions without knowing which rule they were invoking.

The Senate’s rules need attention, Williams-Grant said. She cited the absence of a provision allowing private members’ bills to be placed on the order of business without the House’s leave, and said an attempt by Sen. Wenner to table a private member’s bill had encountered procedural deficiencies.

She said she had asked the clerk to issue notices of committee assignments and hoped the committees would meet before the Senate resumed in January to strengthen parliamentary procedures.

Williams-Grant also said she had made a deliberate effort to include members from both political sides and independent senators in training, conferences and other opportunities for international representation. She described those opportunities as a way to strengthen Parliament, rather than as political rewards.

At the start of the sitting, Williams-Grant offered condolences to Parker on the death of her father and said the Senate would continue to hold Parker and her family in prayer.

This article was originally published by Antigua News Room. Read the original article here: Antigua and Barbuda Senate president defends impartiality amid bias concerns.