WITH the announcement of a date for elections, May 11, a proclamation to officially dissolve Parliament is expected to be made soon by President Donald Ramotar.

And Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs, told the Guyana Chronicle that once that is done, the current Members of Parliament (MPs) will be written to.

“Once Parliament is dissolved, I will write the MPs to notify them that they are no longer Members of the House and I will also be writing to the Auditor General to stop payments for their services in that post,” he said, in a telephone interview last evening.

STANDS PROROGUED
According to him, until then, the business of the National Assembly will continue, as it relates to routine operational activities, given that Parliament stands prorogued, since November 10 last.
Given the current political gridlock and the posture of A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC), President Ramotar has always maintained that the need for dialogue was uppermost in his mind when he made his decision to Prorogue Parliament on November 10.
Paving the way for greater dialogue among political parties, he contends, would have kept the 10th Parliament alive to address critically important issues currently before the House.
The effect of ending the first session of the 10th Parliament by way of prorogation is the suspension of the business of the National Assembly.
As a result, the Alliance For Change (AFC) sponsored ‘No-Confidence’ motion was not considered. A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) had, prior to November 10, signalled its intent to support the motion.
However, President Ramotar has made it clear that if these efforts prove futile, there will be a move to early general elections. Since the prorogation, APNU and the AFC have made it clear that they will not engage the President in talks unless the prorogation is lifted.
The most recent contention of the current Administration, following these positions, is that the prorogation objectives have been lost. Consequently, President Ramotar has since indicated that Guyana will head to early general and regional elections, just over three years since the November 2011 polls.

NEXT PARLIAMENT
Isaacs added that once the proclamation of dissolution is issued, preparations for the next Parliament – the 11th Parliament – will commence.
The new 65 Members, relative to representation in the House, will be decided based on the outcome of the upcoming General and Regional elections and who those individuals are will be based on the names submitted, via a Candidates List submitted on Nomination Day, by the contesting political parties.
Meanwhile, Speaker of the House Raphael Trotman, said, “Personally I am very happy. I think the nation is relieved that a date has been fixed, because the country is exhausted by the political gridlock and wants a resolution.”
The 10th Parliament was convened on January 12, 2012.

(Vanessa Narine)