MINISTER of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira had cause to rise during opening remarks by House Speaker, Manzoor Nadir, to bring attention to the disruptive heckling of opposition parliamentarian, Sherod Duncan.

Teixeira, during Monday’s sitting, cautioned the House that it is customary that the Speaker of the House may not be disrupted while carrying out their duties.

Speaker of the National Assembly, Manzoor Nadir agreed with Teixeira, saying he intended to raise the matter as it could be seen as disruptive.

The National Assembly of the 12^th Parliament of Guyana is currently holding its 32^nd Sitting, now coming out of recess after a few months.

In the Standing Orders of the National Assembly, which governs procedures in the House including parliamentary behaviour, Standing Order No. 45 provides ‘Rules for Members not speaking’.

That standing order says that members not speaking, “shall maintain silence while another Member is speaking and shall not interrupt, except in according with these Standing Orders”.

Standing Order 40 further speaks on ‘Interruption’, noting that where interruptions do occur, these must be within the Points of Order already established in the Standing Orders. These must be stated at the point of interruption by the objecting Member.

The Standing Orders also includes a detailed ruling in February 2007 ruling by the Speaker on a similar matter.