THE continued harassment of Clerk of the National Assembly, Mr. Sherlock

Isaacs by the Opposition Leader is a most unfortunate development and perhaps is unprecedented in our parliamentary history.
Anyone who is acquainted with Mr. Isaacs would be aware of his professionalism and affable disposition and therefore it is bewildering as to why one would seek to harass him.
His diligence and commitment to his work have been exemplary and he has had an unblemished career as a long-serving public servant and has never been accused of being biased either by the government or opposition benches in our Parliament.
However, Mr. Isaacs has been so upset by the attitude of the Opposition Leader that he is contemplating  resigning from his post, describing the 10th Parliament as “the worst ever” that he has served in.
This unfortunate development has prompted the People’s Progressive Party  (PPP) to condemn this continued harassment of Mr. Isaacs by the Opposition Leader.
According to the PPP, “their (Opposition) latest attack on the Clerk is yet another manifestation of their dictatorial tendency. It is clear by now that they will use all means possible to forge ahead with their agenda of illegalities.”
The PPP said it also finds it strange that the AFC, through Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan, would accuse the government of not assisting Mr. Isaacs and in the same vein, acknowledge the fact that the Chief Parliamentary Counsel at the Attorney General’s Chambers has been assisting the Clerk.”
But what are the motives behind the attacks on Mr. Isaacs?
To answer this question one needs to go back to the election of the Speaker/Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly following the 2011 elections.  Having a combined one-seat majority, the Opposition  hogged both positions, which is perhaps unprecedented in any parliamentary democracy.
Next they sought to control the parliamentary sectoral committees. So it is clear from the beginning of this 10th Parliament that the Opposition sought dominance and control and wanted to be the Government  from the outside because it seems embedded  in their psyche that the combined one-seat majority makes them the Government.
It is also obvious that they want to control the parliamentary process by over-riding rules and regulations that govern this process and it seems that Mr. Isaacs, being a true professional, is unflinchingly upholding those rules and regulations and norms and conventions that govern the parliamentary process and not towing the Opposition line.
He is therefore an obstacle to the agenda of the Opposition. Anyone who is even vaguely acquainted with the Opposition would know that when anyone gets in their way they go on a relentless attack on him/her or find other means to eliminate them.
In this instance, they partially succeeded because Mr. Isaacs has become so frustrated and disgusted, as reported in the media, that he has indicated that he may resign.
If he does so, then we could be in a bit of a parliamentary crisis because it might be a difficult proposition to find a suitable and capable replacement for Mr. Isaacs. This of course ties in with the Opposition’s strategy of destabilising and stalling of progress.
Having achieved their objective of stalling the Amaila project, they are now flexing their muscles in other directions to further stall progress. Undermining the parliamentary process seems to be their latest adventure in this regard.