THE prorogation of Parliament, a decision President Donald Ramotar took last Monday, can last for six months, at the maximum, according to the Constitution.However, the Head of State at a news conference last Friday, made it clear that during the prorogation period, the development of the country will not be held back.
“I will not hold back development of our country if we are getting good investments…I do not know why anyone would want to stymie the development of our country if we are getting good investments; and we (the Government) would be acting perfectly legally and constitutionally by dealing with any investments that we have,” he told the media at his news conference, which was held at the Office of the President on Shiv Chanderpaul Drive.
The President’s comments follow threats by the Opposition that any agreement inked during the period of prorogation will not be honoured. However, these threats have left the Head of State unmoved.
“If we judge things (investments) by a case by case basis, and we determined that this is good for the country then we will go ahead,” Mr. Ramotar stressed.
His decision to suspend Parliament was by way of a prorogation proclamation, which essentially means that the current session is suspended up to a maximum of six months – a move that is provided for in Section 70 (1) of Guyana’s Constitution. The effect of ending a session by prorogation is to terminate business.

As a result, the Alliance for Change (AFC) no-confidence motion was not considered. The main Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) had, prior to Monday, signalled its intent to support the push through of the motion.
Had it not been for the proclamation to prorogue Parliament, if the no-confidence motion was passed, Guyana would have been headed to early general elections within three months.
According to the Head of State the move to prorogation was intended to pave the way for greater dialogue among political parties, while keeping the 10th Parliament alive. However, Mr. Ramotar has made it clear that if these efforts prove futile, there will be a move to fresh general elections.
The prorogation has not had significant impact on Guyana’s ability to attract major foreign direct investments, even as the private sector and civil society, after meetings with the President, have called for dialogue among the local political parties.
As recently as last Wednesday, indications of investor confidence were clear, with two massive investments being announced – a GY$1B investment by Rubis Guyana Inc. to increase local fuel supply and a US$200M by Exxon Mobil into offshore oil exploration.
Additionally, the mid-year report on the performance of the local economy indicated that despite the challenges facing global and regional economies, as well as the new political situation locally, Guyana has been able to record a 3.2 per cent growth in the economy.
The Guyanese economy has experienced eight consecutive years of growth up to 2013 and is projected to expand by a further 5.6 per cent by the end of 2014.