AFC boycotts sitting of National Assembly

Oct 31, 2008 News

…says PPP/C flouting Standing Orders

The Alliance for Change yesterday boycotted the sitting of the National Assembly because of what it called the flouting of the Parliamentary Standing Orders by the People’s Progressive Party Civic.
The People’s National Congress Reform leader, Robert Corbin, also made known his protest of the situation, saying that were it not for the fact that the financial papers were up for debate yesterday the PNCR would have boycotted the sitting as well.
The party in a statement issued to the media yesterday said that it was because the AFC recognises the crucial role the National Assembly of the Parliament of Guyana has to perform in developing this country’s fledgling democracy that it takes very seriously what it called the minimalist efforts being made by the PPP/C Government to undermine the role of the parliamentary opposition.
It added that the PPP/C was achieving that by flouting Standing Order rules and agreements reached in regards to the rights of the parliamentary opposition to have their business accorded precedence on Wednesdays.
According to SO rules No. 24 (2) states: “Subject to the provisions of these Standing Orders, Government Business shall have precedence on every day except Wednesdays when Private Members’ Business shall have precedence”.
The party added, too, that by an agreement reached last December the Parliamentary Management Committee (PMC) it was agreed that: ‘every fourth sitting of the National Assembly will be held on a Wednesday’. Further, it was concluded that the PMC could determine whether there was sufficient business to warrant a Special Sitting to deal with private members issues.
Since the parliamentary recess ended on October 10, no meetings of the PMC have been held but there have been three sittings of the National Assembly, with the fourth conducted yesterday, on a Thursday.
“This is being done even though AFC Member, Sheila Holder, had written requesting the postponement of her Motion dealing with ‘Access to local and external channels, other than NCN Television channel, at Linden’ to the next sitting that should have been held on Wednesday to give precedence to Opposition business.”
The party noted that in view of the contempt being displayed by the PPP/C Government for the parliamentary Standing Orders rules and agreements reached with the parliamentary opposition, “the AFC regrets it has no other option but to boycott today’s sitting of the National Assembly to bring to the attention of the public that such conduct could have destructive consequences for Guyana’s fledgling parliamentary democracy.”

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