Opposition walk out after heated debate in Parliament

Dec 18, 2015 News

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By Kiana Wilburg
After much mudslinging and over an hour of debate, the Opposition walked away with a hollow victory

yesterday in the National Assembly, as it was able to get the Government Members of Parliament (MPs) to go through two crucial bills instead of three.
The Bills which Government decided to follow through with were the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Bill and the Municipal and District Councils and Local Authorities (Elections) (Amendment) Bill 2015. The Anti-terrorism and Terrorist activities Bill was dropped until the next meeting of the House on December 30.
However, it is against parliamentary protocol to have three readings of a Bill followed by a vote on it in the same day. But since this was not observed, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo took the floor to lay a motion to suspend the Standing Orders to allow for the smooth passage of the three Bills.
But his motion was met storm of negative comments and opposition from the People’s Progressive Party (PPP).
Taking the floor to present her arguments was Opposition Chief Whip, Gail Teixeira.
The former Presidential advisor contended that not all of her members had the opportunity to properly read the Bills, as some of them live in the interior and are without access to the internet. She went on to state that she is quite certain that some of her “learned” members of the Government side did not even read the Bills properly.
Teixeira also blasted the government for seeking to rush through all the stages for the passage of the Bills. She contended that the Opposition and the nation, by extension, were being denied their democratic right to properly go through the Bills and make meaningful contributions.
The Opposition Chief Whip said that the only reasons Bills are rushed is in the case of an emergency. With that said, she passionately stated, “My colleagues ask me, why are we rushing? What is the rush? What is the emergency?”
Teixeira also argued that the Bills were not properly circulated and that complex Bills such as the AML Bill are supposed to be sent to a select committee.
The PPP Executive member said that since government has been in office for seven months, it has suspended the Standing Orders to do as it pleases more times than the former administration.
She added, “I know that Nagamootoo is a spin doctor, but he didn’t even do any spinning for us. He just get up, read the motion and sit down. This is wickedness and it is undemocratic, comrades.”
She recalled that Attorney General, Basil Williams had said that Guyana was not blacklisted and that the country is “fine.” On that basis, she said, “If the country is fine then why are we rushing? This bill should be properly scrutinized in a select committee and allow for persons to come and make presentations on it as what was done before. We are not alone in this call, but we have support from the Private Sector and the Guyana Human Rights Commission.”
Teixeira argued that the government has spoken extensively about Article 13 of the Constitution which speaks to inclusive governance and the need for the citizenry to participate in decision-making. She said that Government’s by its very actions has damaged the framework for democracy in Guyana.
“It’s only been seven months and this government has harmed democracy in this country. What more do you have planned? If you have damaged parliamentary democracy then you are eroding the democratic framework of the country by rushing these Bills,” Teixeira asserted.
“This motion denies civic society the opportunity to be informed and to have an opinion on these Bills, and it is unconscionable that this government is trying to railroad these Bills through Parliament. We object, but we know you have the majority, so you can bulldoze it through. This is bulldozing.”
She then called on the Prime Minister to “do the honourable thing and withdraw” the motion.
Her comments were strongly supported by former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall.
But it was the impassioned presentation by Nagamootoo which threw the House into uproar and fits of laughter.
The First Vice President was appalled that Teixeira had the audacity to lecture the eastern side of the House about the tenets of democracy given their “sins against the nation”. He emphasized that the motion to see the passage of all three Bills was deemed admissible by House Speaker, Dr. Barton Scotland.
So passionate was Nagamootoo about his presentation that his hands began to visibly tremble. He was instantly heckled by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo who shouted, “why your hands shaking Moses.”
The Prime Minister responded, “My hands may be shaking, but they are clean.” This sent both sides of the House into loud applause for the retort.
Nagamootoo went on, “On what grounds are they exempt from their own sins… these democrats were spending billions without parliamentary approval and you lecture us about democracy? …They want to delay and frustrate the work of the people.”
“The ones who bawl of democracy being destroyed did not hold Local Government Elections, but they seek to frustrate our process of revolutionary democracy.”
The Prime Minister insisted that there is indeed great urgency in seeing all the Bills passed. He however amended the motion to have all three Bills passed and reduced it to two.
Given the Government’s majority hold in the National Assembly, Nagamootoo’s motion to suspend the Standing Orders was passed.

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