Latest update September 7th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jul 11, 2022 News
– National executive says was shut out of planning
By Zena Henry
Kaieteur News – With the National Toshaos’ Council (NTC) conference opening today, Heads of various Indigenous communities will be seeking to have key issues including rights violations, victimisation, and access to services earnestly addressed even as they lament an apparent government takeover of the event.
The NTC meeting, under the theme ‘Good governance and Fast-tracking Amerindian Development’, is being held at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre after a two-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The event is an annual one where village leaders have one on one interaction with government ministers and key officials on matters affecting their communities.
This year’s event is being coordinated and managed by the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs with agency officials also chairing proposed meetings. The first day of the July 11-15 NTC agenda will see the arrival of Prime Minister, Mark Phillips, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, and then President Irfaan Ali who will deliver the feature address. Moraikobai Toshao, Derrick John will give the welcome while Amerindian Affairs Minister, Pauline Sukai will deliver remarks ahead of the NTC executive elections, the adoption of the NTC agenda and presentation of report as well as the low carbon strategy and Amerindian land titling matters; each of which will occur with an hour to an hour and a half.
The remaining four days will see Amerindian leaders meeting with various ministries and state agencies such as the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC); the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security and the Ministry of Natural Resources, but all the sessions will be chaired by the Amerindian Affairs Ministry Permanent Secretary Sarah Browne. This is a change from what occurred under the last administration, one Toshao stated. He told the newspaper that the last government allowed the NTC executives to chair the sessions “giving more control to the Council in getting its business done. What we have now is a removal of control from the NTC, and moderating what comes out of the meetings. A copy of the 2019 NTC agenda showed that the NTC meetings were chaired by either the NTC chairman or an executive, or specifically Toshao.
Another Toshao, who has recently highlighted grave human rights issues taking place in his village, feels like the NTC meeting will not allow issues to be earnestly addressed given the “controlled” environment under which the meeting will be held. “And this is the forum where our village issues should be addressed. I don’t see any provision on the agenda for our issues,” the Toshao lamented.
NTC secretary Russian Dorrick told the Kaieteur News that the executives received no invitation from the government, and was not a part of the conference’s preparations. He said there was no correspondence or information to state that the conference was being held. Dorrick became NTC secretary in 2018 when elections for the executives were last held. The last NTC conference was held in 2019.
Since NTC elections are held every three years, the next voting round was supposed to be last year, but the pandemic prevented large gatherings. Dorrick said the Council awaited a formal letter or some correspondence from the government on the way forward, especially regarding the life of the executive, but none was received. “And so we were left hanging not knowing what is happening,” the secretary exclaimed. Now with the government chairing the five-day event, he believes interactions will be done in a “dominated and instructed” way with Toshaos taking back “little to nothing”. The fact that the last executive is not slated to speak at the opening of today’s event speaks volumes, Dorrick indicated. He said through word of mouth, he understands that the last executive was dissolved.
Former Ministerial Advisor on Indigenous People’s Affairs matters, Mervyn Williams has lambasted the government over their treatment of this year’s NTC meeting. He said that there was no budgetary allocation for this year’s NTC meeting and that pressure brought the government to host the event which they now dominate.
“From the onset, the PPP, through its agents at the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, is dominating and controlling this NTC conference. Many are uncomfortable, but must do as instructed.” He said, “The immediate past executive members of the NTC (Chairman, Deputy Chairman, Secretary and other committee members) are not on the invitation list. This according to Toshaos, is disrespectful and inexcusable.”
“There is no opportunity on the programme for the immediate past executive of the NTC to present its report which is usually discussed prior to being approved. There is no room on the programme for an official handing over by the past executive to the incoming executive body…” The former advisor said that his information is that elected Toshaos “were not consulted with regard to the agenda and none of them is scheduled to chair any session of the five-day programme.” He said there is no place in the programme for Indigenous bodies to make any presentation on behalf of Indigenous citizens or to discuss matter behind closed doors. Among important issues to be discussed are rights violations, Chinese Landing matter, the Marudi Mountain issue, rising cost of living, access to essential services, LCDs and consultations and victimisation.
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