Firestorm at first sitting… Region Six RDC erupts minutes into inaugural meeting

Dec 05, 2025 News

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(Kaieteur News) – Region Six’s newly installed Regional Democratic Council wasted no time diving into chaos Wednesday, as its very first statutory meeting exploded into heated exchanges within minutes of coming to order.

Chairman Junior Bassant, sworn in just last week by President Irfaan Ali, opened the 10:00 a.m. session in New Amsterdam with Vice-Chairman Wajid Shaheed Khan and REO Narindra Persaud at his side. But calm quickly crumbled. The sparks flew early. APNU Councillor Collin Moore clashed sharply with PPP/C Councillor Shawn Smith over a proposal to remove urgent matters from the council’s agenda, an agenda Moore argued members were not properly acquainted with.

Chairman Bassant then had his first standing as mediator of such formal contentions swiftly calming the ensuing wrangling between the two councilors. He advised that the agenda is a creature of the council, which retains such discretion as would see it being modified where and when necessary. “As it relates to the issues of matter of urgent public interest, to the best of my knowledge I understand that there is no single piece of universal legislation that governs these things. This is an agenda that was created by this RDC, and it can be corrected, fashioned and reshaped by this RDC,” the chairman posited.

Moore heat to the meeting

Briefly it seemed that there was some calm restored, until Moore resumed with much vigour, directing same this time to Regional Health Officer for Region, Dr. Vineshri Khirodar. The impassioned APNU councilor pursued details from the senior official regarding the whereabouts of the baby who was removed from his family days ago while warded at the New Amsterdam Hospital. He also sought answers pertaining to investigations on the maternal incident that occurred two weeks ago at the same facility, where 36-year-old Latoya Griffith and her newborn died.

In relation to the maternal death, Moore enquired whether there was an investigation, and what were the findings. He also asked directly where the newborn child was, who had been removed from his mother. In a firm response, Dr. Khirodar confirmed to the council that a probe is ongoing, and the process is phased. She also explained that such an undertaking is not one she can execute alone.

“The RHO cannot be investigating a maternal and child death by herself…the internal investigation has to be done by the hospital. This investigation is furnished to myself and the CMO (Chief Medical Officer, and there the CMO summons another investigation and makes a deliberation on this. When the CMO deliberates on this and makes a decision, then the RHO is given liberty through the chair to speak.”

She pointedly informed Moore and the council that pertaining to the investigation, the CMO will be in the Region on Friday. She affirmed that all necessary answers being sought will be provided at the conclusion of the probe. With regard to the baby that was removed from the ward, Khirodar stated that the mother did not act in the safety of the child, and underwent self-delivery of the child, during which she also reportedly severed the umbilical cord herself “under unsanitary conditions.” These actions associated with several other flagged issues prompted the doctors to call in the welfare officers. The mother was discharged while the child was held for observation, as per the recommendation of the welfare officers, Dr. Khirodar explained.

Moore, however, was not satisfied and probed emphatically on the child’s whereabouts, to which the RHO stressed that she did state that the baby was admitted at the NA Hospital. Maintaining that her job is not to manage the welfare officers, but to ensure that the child remains healthy, Dr. Khirodar said, too, that “the RHO is not answerable to the welfare officers, and I’m certainly not answerable to Mr. Moore.”

That remark would further incense the APNU councillor, who interrupted and informed the RHO that she is accountable to the council, and a defiant Moore would hold his positions even at the request of the chairman for him to stay calm.

Other matters

Meanwhile, the regional chairman allowed for the submission of names of councilors who will constitute the several sub-committees of the council. Names were presented for the Finance, Health, Education, Works, Sports and Culture, Women and Gender Affairs, National Events, and Agriculture sub-committees. The all-important finance Committee will see representation for the PPP/C in the persons of the chairman, the vice-chair, the REO, and Deputy REO Mary Samaroo. Noticeably, no names was submitted from the APNU nor We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) camps for this critical committee.

Declaring the present outline of the council as “historic,” Bassant informed the body that “for the first time, we have a representative from Bara-Cara, representing the People’s Progressive Party. We also have a representative from Sandvoort here that is representing our party and our interests, and they are representing all of the interests of the people of Region Six.” We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) sits on the council with six seats, while APNU retains three representatives. The AFC has come up short at the last General and Regional Elections, failing to muster enough votes in the Region to earn a seat.

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• Junior Bassant, Narindra Persaud;, RDC, Region Six RDC

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