Dear Editor,
It is my humble opinion that there is no longer room for dialogue and compromise when dealing with an opposition that is just consumed with its new-found power seeking to abuse that power at every opportunity they get.
The APNU/AFC parliamentary coalition has continued to ignore the rule of law, the standing orders of parliament, the will of the people and basic common sense during parliamentary sittings. We have seen the behaviour of these people who aspire to lead this great land of ours. Senior leaders of both the AFC and APNU continue to act disrespectfully during sittings.
I have witnessed Moses Nagamootoo blatantly at-tempting to mislead the National Assembly when they were debating the former president’s benefits bill.
Mr Nagamootoo misled the House when he told members in the presence of the media that he never voted for the same bill he now opposes while he was an MP in the Ninth Parliament.
Thanks to our always vigilant Attorney General this statement was quickly exposed, but instead of apologizing Mr Nagamootoo stayed quiet while other members of his party tried to deem the Hansard incorrect.
On the issue of Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee speaking in parliament, again we have seen an opposition that put personal vendettas and a settling of scores above common sense and the rule of law. Chief Justice (ag) Ian Chang in his ruling said “It is difficult to see how in the face of the doctrine of separation of powers, the Speaker can prohibit a member (particularly an elected member) from speaking or making a presentation in the National Assembly on account of the absence of confidence of the majority of the members of the Assembly in that person qua an executive minister, when he sits in the Assembly not qua minister of the government, but qua member of the National Assembly.”
Yet the opposition continue to bully their way in the National Assembly.
The Speaker of the National Assembly Raphael Trotman even sought the advice in the first instance of Senior Counsel Rex McKay and Attorney Stephen Fraser, who by the way are sympathetic to the opposition parties, and these two gentlemen in their legal wisdom determined that there was no legal way that Minister Rohee could be prevented from speaking in the National Assembly, but yet again the opposition continued to defy all that makes sense. Finally when the Speaker made his ruling on the issue he was accused of being a sell-out just because he let wisdom and the rules prevail.
I call upon level-headed fair-minded Guyanese to speak up on these issues and not allow an opposition that is just bent on getting power trample on our democratic gains, interrupt our progress or divide us.
Yours faithfully,
Ossie Rodgers
