Anthony Michael "Tony" Spaulding (20 October 1933 – 18 April 1998) was a Jamaican attorney-at-law and politician. A political firebrand, he served as a vice president of the

People's National Party The People's National Party (PNP) is a Social democracy, social-democratic List of political parties in Jamaica, political party in Jamaica, founded in 1938 by independence campaigner Osmond Theodore Fairclough. It holds 14 of the 63 seats in ...

(PNP), Member of Parliament for the

Saint Andrew Southern Saint Andrew South is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Representatives of the Jamaican Parliament. It elects one Member of Parliament, Member of Parliament MP by the first past the post system of election. It has been repr ...

constituency, and Minister of Housing under Prime Minister

Michael Manley Michael Norman Manley (10 December 1924 – 6 March 1997) was a Jamaican politician who served as the fourth Prime Minister of Jamaica from 1972 to 1980 and from 1989 to 1992. Manley championed a democratic socialist program, and has been d ...

Early life and education

Spaulding was born in Kingston in 1933 as the eldest son to family of would-be staunch PNP supporters. His father Frank Spaulding served three terms as Mayor of Kingston in the 1960s. His brother Winston Spaulding

Q.C. QC may refer to: * Queen's Counsel, the title of a King's Counsel, a type of lawyer in Commonwealth countries, during the reign of a queen * Quality control, the process of meeting products and services to consumer expectations Places * Quebec, ...

, is an attorney-at-law, and a member of the Jamaica Labor Party (JLP) who has served in several governmental capacities such as Member of Parliament,

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a v ...

, Minister of National Security and Attorney General. In his youth, Spaulding attended Wolmer's Boys School and was a batsman for the cricket team. He then pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree on Liberal Arts at

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity" and accredited by the Middle States Commissi ...

Washington D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

During his time a Howard, Spaulding was especially active on campus. This is evidenced by his membership in the

Eta Sigma Phi Eta Sigma Phi () is a collegiate honor society for the study of Classics. It grew out of a local undergraduate classical club founded by a group of students in the Department of Greek at the University of Chicago in 1914. This organization late ...

(National Classics Honor Society) fraternity, the International and Philosophy clubs. He also served as president of the Classics Club, vice president of the Caribbean Association, and appeared on the Dean's Honor Roll in 1956. In 1958, Spaulding was selected to the Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges list, which recognizes distinguished individuals nominated from 700 colleges and universities. He graduated

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

that same year. After graduating from Howard, Spaulding was admitted to the bar at Inn's Temple. he returned to Jamaica in July 1961.

Attorney-at-law

Spaulding practiced law occasionally with his mentor Dudley Thompson, representing clients as a criminal defence attorney. In April of 1962, Spaulding appeared as counsel for boxer Ralph Stephenson also known as "Kid Ralph" and George Taylor who were charged jointly with attempted murder after an incident in which an upholsterer Granville Allen was shot. Allen testified that he came upon a political meeting on March 26 at the intersection of Harris and Georges street in

Saint Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( grc-koi, Ἀνδρέᾱς, Andréās ; la, Andrēās ; , syc, ܐܰܢܕ݁ܪܶܐܘܳܣ, ʾAnd’reʾwās), also called Saint Andrew, was an apostle of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is the brother of Simon Peter ...

, when he was identified as a supporter of a rival political party. Allen was then hit with a stone and instructed to leave by a police corporal which he did. Allen also testified that the next morning he confronted the mother of the person who had accused him the day prior on Moore Street, and was afterwards shot at by Stephenson and Taylor when he went to his mother's home at Sparrow Street. Both Stephenson and Taylor were acquitted by an all-male jury in June of 1962. Spaulding would later represent Stephenson on charges of manslaughter in a truck accident involving the death of two 8-year old boys. In December 1966, Spaulding represented George "Feathermop" Spence who was acquitted of a charge of arson and rioting after the accused set fire to the West Lane business place of Louis Rashford in Kingston. Spence was a political enforcer for Spaulding and the PNP, and accompanied Prime Minister Manley on his historic trip to Cuba in July 1975 as part of an unofficial group. Spence was also a subject of an enquiry into overpayment of contracts by the

Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation The Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporation (KSAC) is a unit of local government in Jamaica. It was formed in 1923 when the parishes of Saint Andrew and Kingston were administratively merged. It is divided into 15 Political Constituencies, which ar ...

that same month. Spence was murdered at his shop in west Kingston on December 12, 1975. In November 1967, Spaulding along with his brother Winston, served as defense counsel for Loban Campbell who was acquitted of the charge of fatally shooting Albert Brown in August of 1966 on Chestnut Lane. Two witnesses testified that Winston "Burry Boy" Blake, who was later described as a political enforcer for the PNP, subdued the victim as he was shot, although the first witness stated that the given testimony was untrue after being shown her deposition by Spaulding. It was also suggested in court that the first witness resided in a house acquired through then Minister of Development and Welfare

Edward Seaga Edward Philip George Seaga ( or ; 28 May 1930 – 28 May 2019) was a Jamaican politician. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Jamaica, from 1980 to 1989, and the leader of the Jamaica Labour Party from 1974 to 2005.Saint Andrew South Western constituency Wilton Hill of the previous administration were missing. In May 1972, Hill sought a censure against Spaulding on the grounds that the current minister made previous statements and produced a Ministry Paper that was inaccurate or misleading, regarding the Hampstead Park lands. During the same session, the House approved two resolutions providing for the extension of the Independence City housing scheme in Portmore and for the establishment of the St. Catherine Mount Scheme in Montego Bay. In another exchange with Hill later that month, Spaulding alluded to giving priority to individuals who had not been employed within the previous 10 years, for positions working on the resumption of the Sandy Gully improvement project which has been halted after the elections. Spaulding said that of the 1280 persons previously employed, only 21 had been re-employed and that a person who the Labour Party had not given a job in the last 10 years was easily identifiable because "You see them everywhere". In June 1972, Spaulding said that he planned to write to Prime Minister Manley about the "tear-gas-like" fumes radiating from the Industrial Chemical Company (ICC) in

Spanish Town Spanish Town ( jam, label=Jamaican Creole, Panish Tong) is the capital and the largest town in the parish of St. Catherine in the historic county of Middlesex, Jamaica. It was the Spanish and British capital of Jamaica from 1534 until 1872. Th ...

. Residents reported fainting and the death of livestock as a result of the fumes. Although the issue fell under the purview of the then Minister of Health and Environmental Control

Ken McNeill Kenneth McNeill, Doctor of Medicine, MD, Member of parliament, MP (1918 – 2001), was a Jamaican political figure and a renowned surgeon. He died at the age of 83 in Jamaica. He is the father of five children including present politician Wykeham ...

, Spaulding commented that he received criticism for referring to them (ICC) as "rapacious capitalists " and that he is "personally going to take the strongest possible course of action to see that they respect they health of the community". On July 11, 1972, Spaulding outlined to the House of Representatives in his budget speech that the target of the Ministry of housing was to build 21000 housing units over the next five years at an average of 4000 per year. He also added that the displacement of individuals in slums created a "nomadic population" in the Corporate Area, and expressed his disappointment at the handling of the ministry by his predecessor with respect to issues such as surrounding the management of the housing fund, the signing of cheques, the hiring of individuals to fill non-existent vacancies among other things. As a result of the disagreement which had developed over the housing fund and Spaulding's view that there had been no serious effort to collect rent in the two years prior, effort was made to evict some tenants in

Tivoli Gardens Tivoli Gardens, also known simply as Tivoli, is an amusement park and pleasure garden in Copenhagen, Denmark. The park opened on 15 August 1843 and is the third-oldest operating amusement park in the world, after Dyrehavsbakken in nearby Klampe ...

. Later in the speech the minister claimed emphasis would be placed on co-op housing for individuals of lower income levels, and that a certain percentage of housing in all schemes would be made available for policemen. He remarked that "if the old yardstick of profit and loss as it applied to housing was not changed, his job would be just as watching post...waiting and waiting until he too was seized by the people and placed before the Revolutionary Court and asked: 'Why did you not do more for me'". In November 1972, there was a heated exchange in the House of Representatives between Spaulding and Minister of Parliament for

Saint Thomas Western Saint Thomas Western is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Representatives of the Parliament of Jamaica, Jamaican Parliament. It covers the western part of Saint Thomas Parish, Jamaica, Saint Thomas Parish. It has been repres ...

and former Minister of Trade and Industry Robert Lightbourne. Lightbourne who was also a parliamentarian in the

West Indies Federation The West Indies Federation, also known as the West Indies, the Federation of the West Indies or the West Indian Federation, was a short-lived political union that existed from 3 January 1958 to 31 May 1962. Various islands in the Caribbean that ...

was making his contribution to the austerity debate when he exclaimed that the people should express their disinterest in

Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

and that Minister Spaulding had sought links with communists with the expectation of gain. This resulted in Spaulding referring to Lightbourne as a "

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

agent in Jamaica", stupid and senile. Throughout the exchange, Spaulding also told Lightbourne several times to sit down and shut up before the speaker of the house Ripton MacPherson intervened. Spaulding then left the chamber upon conclusion of Lightbourne's presentation. In early 1973, Tivoli Gardens was one of several areas selected by Ministry of Housing for eviction. Tivoli Gardens is located in the Kingston Western constituency and was developed in the 1960s by Edward Seaga and inhabited by individuals loyal to the JLP. Within several days of the repossession, new tenants had moved in to which Spaulding responded that the houses had been letted to individuals who had shown the ability to pay for them. The location and the circumstances surrounding the previously existing culture of consolidating power using government housing, led opposition minister of housing Hill, to express concern and note that Tivoli Gardens had the best record of payment in the corporate, that it was against previous government policy to evict individuals who always found it difficult or impossible to pay, and that Spaulding stated soon after taking office that he would never put people's belongings out on the sidewalk. In May 1973, Spaulding announced that land had been acquired from the

Anglican Church Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...

in order to provide 60 low-income housing units in Santa Cruz and Siloah in

Saint Elizabeth Parish Saint Elizabeth, one of Jamaica's largest parishes, is located in the southwest of the island, in the county of Cornwall. Its capital, Black River, is located at the mouth of the Black River, the widest on the island. History Saint Elizabet ...

. Later on in that year, Spaulding announced the Popular Housing Programme for families with an income of less than $1200 per year to start in January 1974. This programme allocated $20 million from the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...

for the development of 6000 units located in Kingston,

Montego Bay Montego Bay is the capital of the Parishes of Jamaica, parish of Saint James Parish, Jamaica, St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Jamaica, Kingston, Spanish Town, and Por ...

and

May Pen May Pen is the capital and largest town in the parish of Clarendon in Middlesex County, Jamaica. It is located on the Rio Minho river (Jamaica's longest), and is a major market centre for the Parish. The population was 61,548 at the 2011 cens ...

. Ground was also broken for the start of the construction of 28 two bedroom houses in Central Village in

Saint Catherine Parish Saint Catherine (capital Spanish Town) is a parish in the south east of Jamaica. It is located in the county of Middlesex, and is one of the island's largest and most economically valued parishes because of its many resources. It includes the f ...

. In August of 1974, it was announced that ground would be broken for the development of the Braeton scheme in St. Catherine. The scheme would consist of 1000 two bedroom houses at a cost of $13500 requiring a 10 per cent down payment and serviced by the Jamaica mortgage bank. The development was a joint venture between the Ministry of Housing and Gore Tuca Investments Limited. At the PNP Youth Organization's annual conference on 20 July 1975, Spaulding commented that there was no room for criminality in the struggle to correct the ills of the society and that politicians who criminal acts under the guise of politics "would have to go". He also remarked that "Those who opposed socialist progress should be eliminated", later clarifying that elimination did not mean a violent death, but through the consciousness of solidarity among the progressive forces". Spaulding then called on the "campus socialists" who were members Trevor Munroe's pro-Soviet Marxist-Leninist Workers' Liberation League (WLL), to stop disuniting the people over "who is more revolutionary than who". Spaulding also addressed the racial makeup of Gordon House in saying that it "must have a different complexion in five to eight years" and that "Youth man must be there. Old people have no everlasting tenor on leadership". Two days later in the House of Representatives, Spaulding was questioned on the Allen Gardens housing scheme in Trout Hall, Clarendon by

Edwin Allen Edwin Leopold Allen (April 17, 1905 – February 19, 1984) was a Jamaican politician, representing the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). He served twice as minister of education (1953-1955) and (1962-1972). He was the first and longest-serving minist ...

, the JLP Member of Parliament for the Clarendon North West constituency. There were questions surrounding the approval process for the housing scheme which took applications in 1970 when the previous government was formed by the JLP. Allen contended that there was evidence suggesting that approvals were made on a political basis between 1974 and 1975 to which Spaulding replied that he was unaware. Allen also posed questions suggesting that unauthorized persons occupying houses after 1972 in the scheme were PNP supporters who had not paid deposits, that legitimate prospective applicants were turned away and told the forms were reserved for others and a number of male teenagers appeared at the scheme on 27 April 1975 to eject residents from certain houses. Spaulding replied that the date in question was a Sunday, a day on which evictions were not required to be carried out. Spaulding later referred Allen to this response when he was asked about the alleged theft of money carried out by the teenagers and the existence of a report that they were armed with a gun and knives. Spaulding was cleared of complaints of political interference by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in September 1975. The complaints were filed by the Police Federation and made public in May 1975 at the 30th annual joint central conference of the organization, stemming from an incident on January 26 when a member of the Police Mobile Control questioned the rider of a motorcycle in Arnett Gardens. During the incident, Spaulding appeared with a group and said "Me no want to (expletive deleted) Police come and investigate anything here. Me in charge of the area and any investigation as must me". This quote however, did not appear in the complaint. Spaulding was cleared on the grounds that there was no allegation made that any police was obstructed, that there was no warning for prosecution or objection made on the police's part, and that it would be unfair to Spaulding to pursue this matter based on sweeping allegations made by Inspector Rainford Smart, the chairman of the Police Federation.

Eli Matalon Eli Joseph Matalon, OJ (January 9, 1924 – October 31, 1999) was a Jamaican businessman and politician, representing the People's National Party (PNP). He served as Mayor of Kingston from 1971 to 1973, as Minister of Education from 1973 to 1 ...

, then Minister of National Security and Justice, disclosed this to the House of Representatives on September 23 and further stated that the DPP's report completely lays to rest all rumours surrounding Mr. Spaulding. In November 1975, Spaulding appeared as defence attorney for PNP General Secretary Dr. D.K. Duncan, who was charged with assaulting a woman constable, Maxine Malcolm of the

Port Maria Port Maria is the capital town of the Jamaican parish of Saint Mary. Originally named "Puerto Santa Maria", it was the second town established by Spanish settlers in Jamaica. The ruins of Fort Haldane, built 1759, overlook the town. It has a p ...

Police. Spaulding was seen with supporters as he arrived at the Port Maria Resident's Magistrate court house on 6 November 1975. A report was later submitted to the Commissioner of Police Basil Robinson by the Area 2 police regarding incidents of disorder by the large crowd which reportedly invaded the court house. On 22 November 1975, the Office of the Prime Minister issued a statement challenging press reports of a surrounding this situation. The statement indicated that the PNP executive arm and the cabinet ordered an investigation which found that there was no attempt to intimidate or interfere with the court. The statement went further to call the allegations that Spaulding and Duncan led a large mob to the courthouse with the aim of intimidating the court and preventing a fair trial of the case, totally false and mischievous. In December 1975, Spaulding disclosed that construction of the Trench Town Sport Complex was to be undertaken by Clover Construction Company on a strict cost basis. The sports complex was to include football and cricket field, an Olympic sized swimming pool and tennis courts. The German government also contributed a set of weight lifting equipment. On 17 February 1976, a statement released by then senator

Pearnel Charles Pearnel Charles (born 1936) is a Jamaican politician with the Jamaica Labour Party who was the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Early life Charles was born in 1936 in the parish of St. Ann. He attended Lime Tree Garden Elementary School ...

outlined the decision made by the Wilton Gardens' Citizens' Association to oppose any search of homes in Wilton Gardens as previously announced by Spaulding. Wilton Gardens is a more popularly known as Rema and was built during the previous JLP administration. Residents also outlined in the statement that they are willing to pay rent but are unable to do so since the Ministry of Housing's office had been relocated to neighouring PNP stronghold Arnett Gardens a few months prior. They also shared that they would be seeking to pay at the Tivoli Gardens office to avoid problems with the ministry. The same day, Member of Parliament

tabled a motion calling for the revocation of Spaulding's ministerial appointment. This was on the basis of there being no denial by Spaulding of his intention to instruct the "PNP Watchmen Force" to search private homes in violation of the constitution. On 23 February, Spaulding stated in a letter to the editor that he would not encourage any action that led to heightened tensions in the area. He also stated that members of the PNP had agreed to a proposal at a constituency meeting, to have their homes, PNP headquarters and Group Homes searched by the Defence force and that no decision was made to undertake a wide scale search of every home. This is as they "all have reason to believe that the enemies of

Socialism Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

will deliberately frame the Comrades". The JLP released a statement on February 27, condemning the February 24 attack on the house of a police constable. Constable Noel Stephens was the arresting constable and was expected to testify in a case to commence hours after the attack, against five defendants regarding a seizure of guns, ammunition and explosives at Spaulding's constituency office. The statement discounts Spaulding's condemnation of the attack and attempt to convince the public that no PNP supporters were involved. It also makes mention of the transfer of officers who are members of the Mobile Reserve to rural areas as punishment for protesting against political interference. At the tenth annual of the Kingston Central Constituency held on 13 June 1976, Spaulding told the crowd that CIA was involved in attempts to destabilize the country. This is contrary to what Prime Minister Manley had told the crowd prior to Spaulding's arrival. Manley had also ordered pamphlets circulating in the crowd, accusing specific people of being involved in the destabilization attempts to be returned.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spaulding, Anthony 1933 births 1998 deaths People's National Party (Jamaica) politicians Government ministers of Jamaica Members of the House of Representatives of Jamaica