WORK has resumed at the level of several Parliamentary committees, according to the Parliament Office on Tuesday, despite the fact that there is still no fixed date for the next sitting of the National Assembly.

However, the long overdue first meeting of the Parliamentary Security Oversight Committee is still to be convened.
In the latter part of July, Speaker of the House, Mr. Raphael Trotman committed to convening the first meeting when the Assembly comes out of recess. The Assembly’s two-month recess ended on October 10, and now, nearly two weeks later, there is still no move in this regard.
In an invited comment yesterday, Trotman told the Guyana Chronicle that he will be writing the House leaders on the matter next week. “I will be writing to the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition next week on the matter,” he said.
Additionally, the contention of several Government Members of Parliament (MPs) is that the Opposition is avoiding a meeting because the Chair has to be a Government MP.
DISCIPLINED SERVICES

Former Attorney-General, Mr. Doodnauth Singh had, in 2009, tabled the Constitution (Amendment) Bill 2009 in the National Assembly. The Bill was intended to amend the Constitution by inserting a new Article, 119 D, providing for the establishment of a Standing Committee called the ‘Parliamentary Oversight Committee on the Security Sector’, which would have responsibility for the policies and administration of the country’s Disciplined Services.
The move was in keeping with an agreement made by national stakeholders during security consultations as recent as last March. The original recommendation was made by a Special Select Committee reviewing the report of the Disciplined Forces Commission. The issue had also been the subject of discussion at the level of the Parliamentary Management Committee.

COIs

Since the commencement of the 10th Parliament, the combined Opposition has posed numerous questions on the security sector, and moved a few Motions demanding the appointment of Commissions of Inquiry (COIs) to investigate alleged breaches in the sector.
There are currently four sectoral committees, responsible for economic services, social services, natural resources and foreign relations.

(Vanessa Narine)