A repeal of the Former President’s (Benefits and Other Facilities) Act 2009 will not affect the basic pension of former president Bharrat Jagdeo, AFC Chairman, Khemraj Ramjattan has emphasized.
Presidential Advisor Gail Teixeira told Stabroek News last week that repealing the act will have consequences for other constitutional post-holders. Noting that the issue is “extremely complex,” she said that “you cannot take away people’s pension rights.” The presidential advisor added that pensions for constitutional post-holders such as the President, Speaker of the National Assembly and others are tied to an index first started by the late president Forbes Burnham in the 1970s and added to by the PPP.
The main opposition, APNU wants to amend the controversial Former President’s (Benefits and Other Facilities) Act 2009, while the AFC wants to repeal the act but is prepared to discuss its amendment with APNU. Ramjattan told Stabroek News on Sunday that the