People’s Progressive Party stalwarts Reepu Daman Persaud and Gail Teixeira have been retained as advisors to President Donald Ramotar.
This is according to Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon, who on Friday also said that Odinga Lumumba and Shyam Nokta have also been retained as advisors. Under the Bharrat Jagdeo administration, Persaud served as an advisor on spiritual issues, Teixeira an advisor on governance, Lumumba an advisor on empowerment and Nokta an advisor on climate change.
Luncheon on Thursday also announced the reappointment of Navin Chandarpal as Advisor on Sustainable Development and Science and Technology. Chandarpal, also a longstanding member of the PPP, was fired and came under a scathing attack from Jagdeo, who accused him of frequenting “rum shops” and being guilty of non-performance in his advisory post. Chandarpal rejected Jagdeo’s statements and accused him of engaging in gutter politics.
Meanwhile, according to the Government Information Agency (GINA), in addition to the appointments of advisors, sub-committees of Cabinet have also been reconstituted and new sub-committees, including on infrastructure and justice, have been added.
GINA said sectoral ministers have also been directed by the President to form advisory bodies on which the local and foreign non-governmental personalities would sit and advise the sector ministers.
Luncheon added that Cabinet has already placed local government reform among its priorities and which would be the subject of its very first sector strategy meeting in 2012.
