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IT WAS supposed to be a simple bill – to reinstate justices of the peace (JPs) and others as legal officers empowered to issue search warrants. But the debate on Friday in the House of Representatives descended into uproar as MPs yelled at each other across the floor.

Despite its long-winded name, the Administration of Justice (Indictable Proceedings) (Amendment) Bill, 2025, it did not send MPs into a doze but instead sent House Leader Barry Padarath (Couva South) into a yelling match with opposition MPs Kareem Marcelle (Laventille West) and Dominic Romain (Malabar/Mausica).

Even before the House sat, a hint of things to come was given when Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander, when met by reporters outside the Red House, sent a bizarre message to opposition chief whip Marvin Gonzales by blowing up a plastic bag, which Alexander said was a bag of hot air and was an apt gift to Gonzales, the Arouca/Lopinot MP.