– Minister Teixeira
AS a result of COVID-19, Parliament will now be held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, Minister responsible for Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira confirmed.
Teixeira explained that to minimise the risk of infection, the Parliament will also reduce the number of staff and invitees during the sitting while ministers and MPs will be seated in accordance with COVID-19 guidelines.
The parliamentary affairs minister noted that the first sitting is yet to be decided, but as part of the coronavirus regime, a number of restrictions and measures will be in place.
The Conference Centre was established to host major deliberations for the public and private sectors and to provide quality service to organisations and entities desirous of hosting meetings, seminars, symposia, AGMs, press conferences and workshops.
In many countries, meetings of the Parliament are reduced and in some countries meetings are held through a combination of remote and face-to-face meetings.
Vice-President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, on Friday, announced that a national emergency budget is likely to be presented in three weeks. The budget is debated and approved by Parliament. According to Jagdeo, in the emergency budget, significant focus will be placed on expenditure in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Guyana.
He explained that the normal budget cycle is 179 days from the day the circular goes out to the various agencies to the date of presentation in Parliament.
“But we have made it clear that we want the budget prepared and we’re working towards preparing a budget in three weeks – 21 days. So the 179 days in the normal cycle will have to come down to about three weeks,” Jagdeo stated.
The vice-president said that the circular went out recently, which means that the budget could be ready early next month.
According to Jagdeo, while the budget will include funding for critical areas to keep the country afloat, funds to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic is a top priority.
In fact, he disclosed that frontline workers, especially those in the medical field, can look forward to being adequately rewarded.
