Speaker urges Govt, Opposition MPs to deliver best budget Guyana has ever had
– pledges to do his utmost in ensuring a lively and fiery but not destructive debate
SPEAKER of the National Assembly Mr. Raphael Trotman has called on parliamentarians to display an unprecedented level of respect, decorum and tolerance during the 2012 budget debate which kicked off in the National Assembly yesterday. And he has pledged to do his utmost in ensuring a lively and fiery but not destructive debate, with the firm assurance that his doors are open to assist in “bridge building, facilitating and mediating” in cases of crisis and gridlock.
Trotman also noted that there are great expectations and apprehensions about the process of the budget debate on either side of the House and amongst the populace.
As such, he urged the Members of Parliament to bear in mind that they comprise the largest concentration of representative leadership of the Guyanese people.
Trotman also cautioned that the 2012 budget should not be seen as “written in stone or to be passed as defeated in a zero-sum winner-takes-all competition”, but rather as “estimates” to be debated, adjusted and finally and, hopefully, adopted.
He reminded the parliamentarians of their stake in the outcome.
“Each of you has an opinion and opportunity to exercise the right to plant that stake,” he told the MPs at the start of yesterday’s debate on the 2012 national budget which was presented by Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh two Fridays ago.
The Speaker cautioned the government not to approach the defence of the budget as ‘do or die’, and urged them to see it as its best opening position.
He said, likewise, the opposition should not see the estimates as being there to be destroyed, but as a framework on which much more can be added.
“Against this backdrop, I encourage everyone to deliver to the people the best budget Guyana has ever had,” the Speaker urged.
Additionally, he reminded veterans and newcomers alike of the time-honoured tradition which, according to him, spares first-time presenters from heckling.
“Whether we all recognise it or not, this exercise of presenting, debating and distilling the budgetary estimates, is power-sharing and inclusive governance in its purest form and it is meant to be embraced and utilised for the national benefit, and the good of all,” Mr. Trotman pointed out.
He quoted article 13 of the Constitution which states that citizens and their organisations have a right to participate in decision-making “with particular emphasis on these areas of decision-making that directly affect their well-being”. This, he said, is one such area.