The Speaker of the National Assembly cannot, without any justification, wear the hats of List Representative and Speaker at the same time, former Speaker, Ralph Ramkarran has said.
AFC Chairman and presidential candidate, Khemraj Ramjattan says that he concurred with this view. “I am in agreement with that, we’ll have to deal with that at some point in time,” he told Stabroek News when contacted today. New Speaker Raphael Trotman is also the AFC’s List Representative and when contacted, he briefly said that the party has to decide on that issue.
Ramjattan said that the Speaker cannot be the representative of the party list at the same time and the AFC would discuss the issue. When pressed about a formal process whereby a new List Representative could be named, he said that there was no need, since if the Speaker cannot be the List Representative, then the Deputy List Representative would take over. Ramjattan noted that he is the Deputy Representative of the AFC’s list.
Writing in the PPP’s Weekend Mirror, Ramkarran said that a “novel situation” has arisen with Speaker Trotman also being the AFC leader and Representative of its List. “In these capacities he is the leading official and chief spokesperson of the AFC,” the former Speaker noted. “He can also remove any Member of Parliament of the AFC and replace him or her. Mr. Trotman may find great difficulty in publicly reconciling the position of Speaker with those of Leader and List Representative of the AFC. The Speaker cannot, without any justification, wear the Party Leader’s and List Representative’s hat in the morning, deciding party strategy in Parliament, and the Speaker’s hat in the afternoon, impartially presiding over the implementation of that strategy in the face of opposition to it,” he wrote.
Trotman had told Stabroek News that his days as leader of the AFC will soon be over. He has not spoken about his position as List Representative and when reached by this newspaper today, said that he could not speak at that moment.
In his article, Ramkarran wrote that Speakers are normally identified with political parties, usually governing parties. “When elected they either relinquish their leading political roles, or suppress, or do not publicise, any overtly partisan activities. However, unique circumstances now arise from a novel situation. Mr. Trotman is not merely identified with the AFC as a leading figure or an executive member. He is its Leader and Representative of its List. In these capacities he is the leading official and chief spokesperson of the AFC,” he wrote.
Ramkarran noted that Trotman has since indicated that he does not intend to contest the post of party leader in a few months time and said that “his views on remaining as List Representative are eagerly awaited.”
