THE Government of Guyana has requested that the Sitting of the National Assembly scheduled for November 12th, 2015, be rescheduled to a later date.The request for the rescheduling was made on Thursday by Prime Minister and Leader of Government Business Moses Nagamootoo to House Speaker, Dr. Barton Scotland. According to a release from the Office of the Prime Minister, the request for the rescheduling was made as a result of Guyana’s attendance at an international summit. From November 9th to 13th the Summit of South American-Arab Countries (ASPA) will be held in Saudi Arabia and Guyana’s attendance is of critical importance at this time. This has necessitated the attendance of His Excellency, President David Granger and Vice-President and Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Greenidge.

The government notes that during this period several other key government functionaries, Members of Parliament and Clerks of the Assembly are likely
to be on travel duties overseas to attend important conferences and training courses. “In an effort to ensure a full complement of Members of Parliament in the National Assembly, the Leader of Government Business had previously requested that the sitting be brought forward to Monday, November 9th, 2015 but he later withdrew that request to the Honourable Speaker as it did not satisfy the requirement of six days notice for a change of date,” the OPM release stated. “The Government of Guyana expresses regret for requesting the rescheduling of the Sitting of the National Assembly of November 12,” noting that it is of national importance that Guyana, as an emerging oil-producing state, participate in this strategic summit.
ASPA is a bi-regional mechanism for cooperation and political coordination. ASPA is made up of the 22 member states of the League of Arab States and the 12 countries of South America.