NOTWITHSTANDING the dissolution of Parliament on Monday 30th, December, persons who hold specified offices will continue to hold these offices and will be paid salaries and allowances and be provided with other benefits in accordance with the Constitution.

These persons include Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr. Barton Scotland; Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo; Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo and Ministers of government. Opposition Members of Parliament (MP), as well as government MPs without ministerial portfolios, have ceased to be members thereof.

Apart from those listed above, those who will continue to hold their offices include: Vice President and Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan; Vice President and Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock; Minister of Social Cohesion, Amna Ally; Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams; Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan; Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr. George Norton; Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan; Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman; Minister of Public Health, Volda Lawrence; Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson; Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix; Minister of State, Dawn Hastings-Williams; Minister of Public Telecommunication, Catherine Hughes; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Karen Cummings; Minister of Agriculture, Noel Holder; Minister of Education, Dr. Nicolette Henry; Minister of Business, Haimraj Rajkumar; Minister of Public Service, Tabitha Sarabo-Halley; Minister within the Ministry of Social Protection, Keith Scott; Minister within the Ministry of Communities, Annette Ferguson; Minister within the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Valerie Garrido-Lowe; Minister within the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Jaipaul Sharma; Minister within the Ministry of Agriculture, Valerie Patterson-Yearwood and Minister of Youth Affairs, Simona Broomes.

They will remain in these offices until elections are held and new representatives are sworn in. On Friday, President David Granger issued the proclamation for the dissolution of Parliament and the 10 Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs). According to Chapter 1:01 of the Constitution, Article 70 (2): “The President may at any time by proclamation dissolve Parliament.”

Meanwhile, Article 70 (5) says that after a dissolution and before the holding of an election of members of the Assembly, the President can only recall Parliament in the case he considers there to be a “state of war” or a “state of emergency”. Article 61 of the Constitution states: “An election of members of the National Assembly under Article 60 (2) shall be held on such day within three months after dissolution of Parliament as the President shall appoint by proclamation.” The dissolution took place yesterday, three months after the President proclaimed that General and Regional Elections will be held on March 2, 2020.

Early elections in Guyana were triggered when, on December 21, 2018, the Parliamentary Opposition – the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) – secured a one-seat majority in the House to defeat the government on a Motion of No-Confidence. Former Member of Parliament, Charrandass Persaud, had used his vote in the House to support the motion, thereby giving the opposition an edge over the government in the 65-Member National Assembly. GECOM, faced with its own challenges, in September, 2019, informed President Granger, for the very first time since the motion, that it would be in a position to conduct credible elections by the end of February, 2020.