— Ganesh Mahipaul leaves House after feeling ill

IN addition to moderating Day Two of the debates on the 2021 National Budget, Speaker of the National Assembly, Manzoor Nadir, was also engaged in solving the mystery behind a missing Apple laptop on Wednesday. As the afternoon-leg of the debates progressed, Nadir informed the house of a “very serious development”, calling on Opposition Member of Parliament, Catherine Hughes to relate what had transpired. The A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change

(APNU+AFC) member explained that earlier in the day, she packed up her files, along with her laptop and went to lunch; however, when the debates recommenced after the lunch break, the laptop could not be found. The item was believed to have been stolen from the dome of the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, where the National Assembly is being temporarily housed.

“I find this [to be] totally unacceptable,” the former Telecommunications Minister told the House.
In expressing deep concern over the incident, the Speaker even indicated that the proceedings would have to be suspended to allow for every person at the Conference Centre to be searched, especially since the surveillance cameras installed in the dome may not have been operable.
“I normally leave everything here on the desk too, and I am worried,” the House Speaker related. As the debates took a 45-minute afternoon break, the police were called in to probe the missing item, which was found right behind the chair where MP Hughes sits.
Meanwhile, Nadir had informed the House also, that Opposition Member of Parliament, Ganesh Mahipaul, had taken ill and had to seek medical attention. As at 20:00 hours, the House had not been updated on Mahipaul’s condition.