GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Government says Parliament will meet on June 5, more than three months after the last session, while criticizing the public positions outlined by representatives of various Western countries here.
Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Minister, Gail Teixeira, in a video message, said it is “regrettable” that the ambassadors and those embassies and high commissions did not see it fit to first engage the government as the ruling party in the House in the National Assembly in terms of what its plans were for Parliament…”
She said that it is “regrettable because had they done that, they would have been told that there was a sitting planned for June 5,
“But unfortunately, there seems to be like a new style of diplomacy where our friends and allies in these embassies believe they should only listen to one side of the story and not listen to the other side, and the other side, in this case, is the government,” she added.
Earlier this week, the minority opposition Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) questioned the lack of parliamentary sittings, petitioning the Clerk of the National Assembly to compel the Speaker to reconvene the Parliament immediately.
The party also sent letters to the various diplomatic missions here, and FGM parliamentary representative, Amanza Walton-Desir, said that the formal petition delivered to the Clerk focuses strictly on the total paralysis of the National Assembly.
She said that the government’s refusal to hold sittings directly undermines the constitutional principle of representative democracy.
The European Union Ambassador to Guyana, Luca Pierantoni, told the media, “We look forward to intensive parliamentary engagement that will enable Guyana to advance its ambitious reform agenda.
“The work of Parliament is essential in fulfilling the democratic principles shared by Guyana, the Caribbean Community, and the European Union.”
For its part, the United States embassy, in a statement, sought to underline the link between legislative oversight and the country’s ongoing economic boom.
“A well-functioning parliament with legislative oversight is an important part of democratic governance,” it said, adding, “such oversight is important to safeguard Guyana’s continued economic growth and transformation and represent the voices of its citizens”.
The Canadian Ambassador, Sébastien Sigouin, said his country “attaches great importance to democratic institutions, parliamentary accountability, media freedom, and the rule of law, particularly as Guyana undergoes rapid transformation.
“We would encourage Members of Parliament, across party lines, to make full use of the mechanisms and levers available to them to ensure that the National Assembly plays its essential role in considering, scrutinizing, and debating the government’s ambitious agenda.”
