And the PUP successfully argued to the Chief Justice that the Prime Minister didn't properly follow the law when he sent the Writ to the Governor General for a signature. A technical defect in the writ of referendum was what ultimately convinced the Chief Justice to grant the injunction. Today, the Prime Minister said he followed the advice of the Chief Elections Officer:
Jules Vasquez
"Sir if you could speak on the alleged procedural effect that you brought the writ under - I'm not expert in it but what we heard in court, 2-1D - when it is being argued you should have brought it under 2-1A which requires that a debate in the House of Representatives. What council for the PUP Mr. Courtenay is saying, is that you wanted to avoid a debate in the house because it is a vote of conscience for your members and you may not have had the unanimous support."
Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"Well ,you know, that has to be nonsense because it has been made clear to the public that we do have complete unanimity on our side. With respect to the way the application for the issue of the writ was framed - I took the instructions if you will from the elections and boundaries commission via the chief elections officer. I was assured that in fact legal advice had been sought and so I followed there wording to the letter."
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