By Ariana Gordon

MINISTER of Citizenship, Winston Felix, and Minister within the Ministry of Social Protection, Keith Scott, were absent from the National Assembly on Monday as the Speaker of the National Assembly sought to abide by Friday’s High Court ruling by the outgoing Chief Justice Ian Chang.Chang has ruled that the two ministers cannot sit in the National Assembly as unelected members or technocrats because they were on the list of elected candidates for the coalition.

Parliamentarians are usually selected from the list they present to the Elections Commission.

Minister Scott was seen in Parliament just before the start of Monday’s sitting, but Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Barton Scotland, made it pellucid that while he has not been served an order from the High Court, the reports of Chang’s decision were sufficient for him to act.

“The Hon. Anil Nandlall did send me, this morning, a copy of the decision which was written on the matter. It proved useful, though I must tell this Honourable House that I had determined as of (Sunday) that the information which is available in the newspapers was sufficiently reliable for me to act on, and that today (Monday) I would have requested the Honourable Members not to occupy their seats,” the Speaker disclosed.

He informed Members of Parliament (MPs) as a matter of priority, on Monday afternoon before the start of the final day of the consideration of the Budget estimates, that the two Ministers would not sit in the House.

“I can find no other way by which one must respond to a decision of the court other than by respect and submission,” said Dr Scotland. He emphasised that there can be “no equivocation” while noting that “a decision of the court must be unequivocal at all times. “So the honourable members are not here, but I believe that I owe it to members of this House to understand their absence,” he said, noting that it is the National Assembly’s first obligation to obey the decisions of the Court.

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams, immediately after the announcement of the Speaker, said Government will obey the court orders, but vowed that Felix and Scott will return to the House.

“We will uphold the rule of law in Guyana, Mr Speaker,” Williams said amidst loud cheers from his colleagues. He also affirmatively stated: “We can assure that we will leave no stone unturned to restore our brothers here to their rightful place.”

The Attorney General reminded the House that it was under the APNU-AFC Coalition Government that it was decided that Constitutional Commissions will be independent, as they were designed.

“We wish to say on the part of the Government…that court orders are obeyed until discharged or set aside.”

The Chief Justice’s ruling followed a Constitutional Motion filed by People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) member Desmond Morian last July, questioning the legality of the appointment of the two APNU-AFC ministers of government. The party was vocal about its concerns over the selection of Felix and Scott as technocrats to serve in the 11th Parliament, and claimed that the posts have been allocated in an unconstitutional manner.

In his ruling, Chang declared that Felix and Scott are elected members of the National Assembly, and that despite their status of elected members of the National Assembly, they cannot sit in the National Assembly, since their names were not among those extracted from the APNU+ AFC list of candidates to hold seats on behalf of the persons named in that successful list.

The PPP had contended that Articles 103 (3) and 105 of the Constitution and Laws pronouncing on the eligibility of appointment of technocratic ministers do not confer technocratic status on these persons, already sworn in by President David Granger as ministers. Additionally, the Chief Justice, in his ruling, said that despite President Granger appointing the duo to become executive members of the government, the appointments do not entitle Felix and Scott to hold seats in the National Assembly.

In a statement to the media on Monday, the PPP welcomed the outgoing Chief Justice’s ruling, noting that it “as consistent with the laws of Guyana and a vindication of the Party’s view that the seating of the two ministers of the APNU+AFC is an electoral travesty and in violation of the Constitution and Representation of the People’s Act.”