Justices of the Peace who are not Commissioners to Oaths cannot sign affidavits

Dear Editor,

A few recent incidents force me to pen this letter seeking publication in your letter column in the interest of the unsuspecting public.I ran into four disgruntled parents in my neighbourhood (Melanie) over the past four days who, it would appear, had been conned by a Justice of the Peace posing as a Commissioner to Oaths signing affidavits to facilitate the granting of subsidies to low income parents.

I did some research and I learnt that a Justice of the Peace who is not a Commissioner to Oaths cannot sign affidavits. It would appear that this conman had signed quite a number of affidavits and these have been accepted by the police, school administrations, NIS offices, NDCs and other places which need affidavits to be tendered as part of their legal requirements. In some cases some persons have been lucky to have their documents accepted, but many persons had to go to bona fide Commissioners to Oaths to get their documents done properly. This is an additional cost for the unsuspecting public.

Yours faithfully,

Charles Selman