Parliament suspends Senator Lugay from House of Assembly

Parliament passed a motion this afternoon to suspend Senator Daniel Lugay from the House of Assembly.

The motion, moved by Legal Affairs Minister Ian Douglas, was supported by the Government's side of Parliament. The Opposition walked out of the House while it was being read.

The motion reads as follows:

"WHEREAS on Thursday the 3rd day of July 2014, at a public meeting in the village of Soufriere, Senator Daniel Lugay made an outrageous and reprehensible statement, unbecoming of a Member of this Honourable House, namely,

" ....you know not too long ago we met with the Electoral Commission and I am looking Alick Lawrence in the face and he would not say a word and these are the guys that are obstructing electoral reform in Dominica. You know I have said in a public meeting in Fond Cole if I wasn't a believer I would take out some people in Dominica. My heart is different and that is the only reason why I wouldn't do it. But it have some people that deserve to die in Dominica, honestly, when you see the sort of thing that they do to keep back Dominica."

"AND WHEREAS Senator Daniel Lugay on Tuesday the 8th day of July admitted having made the aforementioned statements, stating, "On Thursday July 3rd 2014, at the public meeting of the United Workers Party Team Dominica held in Soufriere, I made certain Statements targeted at questionable behaviours which I consider to be harmful to the public interest. The statements were unbecoming of me and are inconsistent with my personal beliefs and convictions. I sincerely regret the statements and without reservations apologize to the people of the Soufriere constituency, in particular, and the people of Dominica in general. I am deeply sorry for the inconvenience and embarrassment that may have been caused to members of my family, the constituencies of Roseau North, my colleagues of the United Workers Party Team Dominica and the Parliament of Dominica."

"AND WHEREAS Senator Daniel Lugay was on the 17th day of July 2014 arrested and charged by the Commonwealth of Dominica Police Force in respect to the said aforementioned statements AND WHEREAS this Honourable House considers the aforesaid conduct and statements of Senator Daniel Lugay to be unbecoming of a Member of this House, untenable and to have brought this Honourable House into grave disrepute

"BE IT RESOLVED THAT Senator Daniel Lugay be forthwith suspended from the service of this Honourable House until the final disposal of the criminal charge which he currently faces."