DESPITE the fact that work has resumed at the level of several parliamentary committees, according to the Parliament Office, there is still no word on when a meeting will be fixed for the Parliamentary Security Oversight Committee.

House Speaker, Mr. Raphael Trotman, last week told the Guyana Chronicle that the matter will be addressed in a matter of days; however, there have been no confirmed moves to convene the long overdue first meeting of the committee.
“I will be writing to the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition next week on the matter,” he had said.
Several attempts to contact Trotman on this matter have proved futile and the Clerk of the National Assembly, Mr. Sherlock Isaacs, when contacted was unable to confirm whether the letter from the Speaker was sent to the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition.
In the latter part of July, the Speaker of the House, Mr. Raphael Trotman, had committed to convening the first meeting when the Assembly comes out of recess. The Assembly’s two-month recess ended on October 10 and nearly two weeks later, there is still no move in this regard.
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.
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.
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 (CoI) 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)