Over $500K and counting! HOA has spent more on litigation than AG
Opposition Leader Marlon Penn has lambasted the governing Virgin Islands Party (VIP) administration for a seeming change in the mandate of the House of Assembly (HOA), given its recent proclivity for litigation.
Speaking during the budget debate last evening, Penn said more than half a million dollars has been spent towards litigation by the HOA in the past three years, a figure that dwarfs even the Attorney General’s Chambers’ spending in that area.
And according to Penn, this amount only covers paid invoices and does not account for pending invoices that are yet to be dealt with by the House.
In the corresponding period, Penn said the Attorney General’s Chambers has only spent about a quarter of a million dollars on litigation from its budget.
Penn further disclosed that the litigation spending was from unbudgeted amounts.
The House of Assembly is led by Speaker Julian Willock, who has been embroiled in a number of unsuccessful and costly legal ventures since his appointment to the post.
Willock filed an injunction against the newly re-elected Fourth District Representative Mark Vanterpool in 2019 to prevent him from taking his seat as a member in the HOA.
An appeal in that matter was later abandoned after it was initially lost at the High Court level, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees.
More recently, Willock filed an injunction against three Commission of Inquiry (COI) lawyers to prevent them from being called to the bar in the BVI since he felt the attorneys were practising illegally at the time.
This injunction too was abandoned after failing to garner the approval and support of the Attorney General before the High Court.
Willock was later declared by the court as being liable for legal fees incurred by all parties involved in the matter and was ordered to pay some $98,000 in court costs.
Premier Andrew Fahie subsequently moved a motion in the HOA for a committee to make a decision on whether the legal fees should be paid by taxpayers instead.
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This man need to hush. A that’s why people like him and M—n V W—n CANNOT lead this country. The public ain’t dumb. Willock suit against those allegedly breaking our laws was the right thing to do… ask the AG why she refuse to give her consent or why she allowed the situation to happen without addressing it.
You got to be smoking the things the government want to grow up Paraquita Bay. You have the gall to defend Willock’s actions? This country has some bad citizens who continue to put politics above it. Willock should be fired and here you are defending his crap. No wonder the place is in the mess it’s in.
Even Ning could have done a better job than Andrew. Myron, Marlon or Ronnie could run this country much better than Andrew and any of his misfits. Look how they got us on the brink of disaster.
obviously
Is Marlon telling lies a member of his own opposition said the AG spent way more than Hon. Willock?
@Jack just simplify it.
Tell us what the other opposition member said in terms of the AG spending.
Willock is a national disgrace. He became speaker as a reward for his s**e. It’s all so despicable.
that will not fly Willock has a lot of fans and many of us look up to him.
He loves the BVI and he loves people
is the unwitting driver of the disaffection with Fahie and the VIP. His arrogance and total inability to keep quiet is fuelling electoral defeat for the VIP. Keep it up!
See how wicked the media is. Reading this story it seems like the esteemed Speaker just wake up one morning and tried to prevent Mark from taking his seat. The fact is Mark had resigned his seat and our Hon Speaker only filed to see if his letter was valid. You all must tell the truth man.
But jump high, Jump low our local hero Willock not going anywhere and take it that to the bank, he will be speaker for another 4 years!! Bam Bam Bam
Wow! You are actually supporting William and his careless disregard fir the spending of taxpayers’ money. Willock had already gotten an e pert opinion from the attorney general. There was no need to speed another 400K to find out the legitimacy of the letter. In my opinion, he should have been made to pay that bill out of pocket too.
If I had to choose between smurf and the wig man I sticking with the blonde at least he gets things done
Smurf is pure hot air trying to work hard for the big seat but ain’t going happen
Only his friends call him Smerf. The f**t you talking call him Marlon.
LOL….
And we are struggling to build a proper high school for the children 4 years after Hurricane Irma.
I with julian on this justice for our people should be costly
well sah
anywhere else in the world and any government official would be fired or forced to resign for incurring such legal fees. The speaker is a non elected official, so how on earth can he justify his failed legal actions?
He should be forced to resign!
Fired for what? Doing his job when the Attorney General failed us? Bossie go from here with your propaganda and your hate for the best speaker we ever had!!! Fired???? you will see a real march then. We will burn the town!!!! leave the Speaker alone he is with the people and one of us from here.
Is anyone taking penn seriously? I think not
Is he still married?
yes… and happily so
If the VIP seek re-election that would be the biggest joke for me. How could they possibly come before sensible people and ask them to vote for them? How? Then again, they will because their leader has no shame whatsoever.
Willock had absolutely no right to do what he did . Know the laws the run certain department The AG was doing the right thing and Willock did the wrong thing . He should not have done his own thing and stepped up above the law
Mr ??????? did the right thing he is a man of high ideas his action against the coi attorneys breaking the law is priceless
The Territory has no one to blame but itself. There’d be no CoI without 20+ years of government mismanagement, and without turning a blind eye to large scale drug running for decades. The hospital debacle from the 90s should have served notice that fiscal prudence with public monies is important. But no, we carried on wasting monies with not much to show for it.
Failing to comply with the US DEA extradition orders following a year long investigation served notice to the big boys here that they can carry on. And, they did, and continue to do so. Sooner or later the chickens come home to roost.
best speaker ? we know that is you WIGO blogging there and a lot more of your childish sarcastic blogging using different names ( it’s time to come back to reality ( breaking news ?
All the anti Willock comments not going fool we!
Lol only looking to be relevant. Lol ?
Say what you want, the silent majority with our local prince Hon Julian Willock
Its not a single soul but Wiggy the W*co blogging on this news site for himself. That man is c**zy!