Alliance For Change Leader Khemraj Ramjattan yesterday walked out of a select committee of Parliament meeting on the anti-money laundering bill in protest at President Donald Ramotar’s use of the word terrorism to describe the opposition’s vote on Thursday against two matters pertaining to the Amaila Falls Hydropower Project.
When the committee considering the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering of Financing of Terrorism (Amendment) Bill met at Parliament yesterday, the opposition MPs passed a motion condemning the President for his remark. The chairperson of the committee, PPP/C MP Gail Teixeira then argued against the condemnation and Ramjattan said that it was at this point that he decamped from the proceedings with the argument that the committee was deliberating on a bill which addressed matters such as terrorist financing and it would be regrettable if President Ramotar would have to assent to a bill composed in part by a “terrorist”. He said he told the committee he will not participate in its work until the President has retracted the remark against all opposition parliamentarians.
In a statement to Stabroek News today, Ramjattan provided an account of the proceedings at the committee.
“Yesterday at around 5:45 pm, I, Khemraj Ramjattan, a member of the Select Committee dealing with the Anti-money Laundering Bill, walked out of the Committee’s proceedings.
Earlier in the week the President had called the Opposition Parliamentarians who voted down the Hydro Amendment Bill and the Motion to up the Guarantee to public corporations to $150 B terrorists. This I found most offensive and insulting. I have since written a piece explaining that it was out of prudence that the AFC voted as it did.
“At yesterday’s meeting, the Chairperson’s attention was drawn to the President’s comment by Mr. Carl Greenidge. He on behalf of the Opposition members urged the Select Committee to pass a Motion to condemn what the President said in public. The Government members namely Anil Nandlall and Bishop Juan Edghill sought to deflect the significance of the comment as not being material and relevant to what the committee was doing and that whatever grievance the Opposition members felt, should be taken to another forum.
“There was a vote on the Motion by Greenidge which saw the Opposition four members-Greenidge, (Joseph) Harmon, Basil Williams and Ramjattan out voting the Govt members Nandlall and Edghill.
“The Chairperson, Gail Teixeira, then argued that the condemnation of the President was unwarranted and ought not to be allowed under the Standing Orders.
“It was at this point that I, Ramjattan, made an intervention arguing that since the committee was preparing legislation to catch terrorists and prevent their financing, and since the President would have to Assent the legislation for it to become law, then it was most regrettable and repugnant that I as a `terrorist’ should continue to be an author of this anti-terrorist law. I then walked out of the meeting, saying as I did so that I will not participate further until the President retracts his description of myself and all the Opposition parliamentarians as “terrorist”. This is the same President who has failed to apologise for calling another AFC colleague a jackass recently.”
The President had delivered an address to the nation on Friday over the opposition’s rejection of the Amaila matters which was headed `An act of terrorism against the development of Guyana’.
The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering of Financing of Terrorism (Amendment) Bill itself has been a source of much controversy and the government has been pressing the opposition to have the bill approved so that Guyana could avoid possible sanctions by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF). The opposition has accused the government of dithering for years on the requirements of the CFATF.
