APNU, Gov’t Chief Whips still to settle on a date

THE Government of Guyana maintains that the date for the next sitting of the National Assembly is exclusively its decision, even as the Alliance For Change (AFC) is pressing for a date to be set and the Speaker of the House, Mr. Raphael Trotman, has indicated that he will be seeking advice from former speakers on reconvening the House. 

Attempts to contact Mr. Trotman yesterday for an update on his engagements with the former speaker proved futile.

AFC SPONSORED MOTION
The National Assembly came out of recess on October 10 and the hot-button issue up for consideration is the AFC-sponsored No-confidence Motion against the current Administration.
The first inkling the public had that the AFC planned moving a no-confidence motion against the Government was back in mid-June, when party Vice-Chairman Mr. Moses Nagamootoo hinted at it.
He did so by way of an article published in the Stabroek News and headlined, “AFC considering no-confidence motion against Gov’t.” He however acknowledged that to do so would require the support of the Main Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU).

The AFC’s position was strengthened on Tuesday, August 5, when APNU Leader Brigadier (rtd.) David Granger publicly confirmed that his party was fully behind the No-confidence Motion.
The first page of the Motion reads: “Be it resolved that this National Assembly has no confidence in the Government.” It was seconded by AFC Executive Member and Member of Parliament (MP), Mrs. Cathy Hughes.
As stated in Section 106 (6) of the Constitution: “The Cabinet and President shall resign if the Government is defeated by the vote of the majority of all Members of the National Assembly on a vote of confidence.”
This is made even clearer in Section 106 (7), which states: “Notwithstanding its defeat, the Government shall remain in office, and shall hold an election within three months or such longer period as the National Assembly shall, by resolution supported by no less than two-thirds of all elected members of the National Assembly, (approve); and shall resign after a new President takes the oath of office following the election.”
Since then, the AFC has been pressing for a sitting either on Wednesday, October 22, or on Friday, October 24.

APNU’S POSITION

General-Secretary of A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), Mr. Joseph Harmon, told the Guyana Chronicle yesterday that the coalition maintains its support for the no-confidence motion.
According to him, APNU is looking forward for a sitting at the earliest date possible.
He added that the Speaker of the House is the person who “ultimately” decides on a date for a sitting.
“We should let the Speaker go through the consultations with the former speakers and let him do what he has to do,” Harmon said. “Parliament is not the Government arm. It is arm of Government, but not an arm of the Executive, so the rule of separation of powers must apply.”

The APNU General-Secretary added that the Government has to explain its position.

GOV’T POSITION EXPLAINED
Government, through the Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr. Roger Luncheon, has explained its position.
At his most recent press conference, Dr. Luncheon stated that the Government’s interest in getting the date for the next sitting of Parliament is dependent on a number of factors, other than just the AFC’s no-confidence motion.
He said there are outstanding Financial Papers, Bills and committee reports that remain to be addressed. Some of these include: The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism

(AML/CFT) (Amendment) Bill, the Education Bill, the Wildlife Import and Export Bill and the Telecommunications Bill.
The HPS added that several other pieces of legislation are also on the agenda for the new parliamentary session, such as the Agriculture Ministry’s Food Safety Bill, and the Legal Affairs Ministry’s Motor Vehicle Third-Party Insurance Bill to facilitate the presence of Brazilian motor vehicular traffic in Guyana.
Additionally, the Government will also be tabling the Anti-Terrorism Bill, which has combined features of the commitment to the international anti-money laundering agenda, as well as features of the local anti-terrorism commitments.
“The date for the sitting, were it to be exclusively decided by Central Government, would depend on all of these factors, other than the No- confidence Motion and its hearings,” Dr. Luncheon said.

STANDING ORDERS
The Standing Orders, which guide the proceedings of the National Assembly, make clear on what grounds sittings are called.
Standing Order 8, Ordinary Sitting of the Assembly, states that: “(1) Save as otherwise provided by the Constitution or resolved by the Assembly upon a motion moved by a Minister, the Assembly may sit every day except Saturdays and Sundays and, unless the Assembly otherwise decide, every adjournment of the Assembly shall be to the next Sitting day.
“(2) If, during an adjournment of the Assembly, it is represented to the Speaker by the Government, or the Speaker is of the opinion, that the public interest requires that the Assembly should meet on a day earlier than that to which it stands adjourned, the Speaker may give notice accordingly and the Assembly shall meet at the time stated in such notice. The Clerk shall, as soon as possible, inform each Member in writing, or telegram or by appropriate electronic means of any such earlier meeting.”
Also, Standing Order 5 says that there shall be Special Sittings of the National Assembly: (a) When the President desires to address the Assembly on the State of the Nation; and (b) When the Government desires that a visiting Head of State, Head of Government or other dignitary shall address the Assembly.

PARLIAMENTARY MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Management Committee has agreed to let the party Whips, APNU’s Amna Ally and the Government’s Gail Teixeira, hold discussions to settle on a date.
Clerk of the National Assembly, Mr. Sherlock Isaacs, in an invited comment yesterday, said since the last meeting of the Committee, last Wednesday, there has been no decision from the two Whips.
“The two whips met last week and they were asked to work out a date, but since then the Parliament Office has not received word on a possible date,” he said.
Prior to the House going into recess on August 10, there had been no sitting of the house since the first week in July.

(By Vanessa Narine)