Saying that the opposition is being subjected to “extremely partisan behaviour” by Speaker Barton Scotland, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo on Monday declared that the situation is becoming overbearing and that the PPP/C would fight future attempts to restrain its representation of the people.
“This has to stop. We are not here at the pleasure of the Speaker; we are here in service of the people of this country,” Jagdeo said after a walkout of the National Assembly on Monday night.
He made the statements after the Speaker refused to allow additional time to be granted for more questions by opposition members on the estimates for the Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs.
Around 10pm on Monday, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo moved a motion for the Committee of Supply to continue until 11PM and no later. By the time PPP/C MP Pauline Sukhai took to questioning the Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs Sydney Allicock on the ministry’s estimates, there were only 10 minutes remaining but Scotland noted that the proceedings were going to end at 11PM and no later.
Upon hearing Scotland’s declaration, all of the opposition MPs became vocal and Chief Whip Gail Teixeira requested additional time to allow for more questions. However, Scotland shut down the questioning and called for a vote, prompting the PPP/C MPs’ walkout.
The government MPs moved on and voted in support of the $2.2B allocated for the ministry and at the end of the proceedings Scotland expressed his satisfaction at the progress of the day.
Afterward, Jagdeo voiced his displeasure at what had occurred, while calling the actions of the Speaker “unacceptable.”
“I am sure by now the country would understand why we had to do this [walk out],” Jagdeo said, while arguing that ever since the PPP/C has entered the National Assembly it has been restrained.
“We have, on many occasions when subjected to extremely partisan behaviour on part of the Speaker, voiced a vocal disagreement. We have respected his ruling in most of those occasions but this is becoming overbearing,” Jagdeo added, while charging that the Speaker frequently protects the government members and lectures the opposition members.
Jagdeo emphasised that the opposition members were elected by Guyanese to represent their interest and would continue to do so. “…Any attempt now and in the future by the Speaker to curtail the freedoms and privileges we enjoy in Parliament to represent the people of this country we will vigorously oppose,” he said, while adding that the state of affairs cannot continue.
Jagdeo further charged that the turn of events was highly unconscionable and patronising in regards to accountability to the Amerindian people of the country.
“We spent hours on other sectors. Are we saying that the coastal regions are better than the Amerindian people or hinterland people?” he questioned.
Jagdeo also said that many times the members of the government would seek to obfuscate the issues, which would make the proceedings run later than was projected. “We have seen the Prime Minister stand up and suspend the standing orders, [and] have us go through complex bills in all three readings at a single moment. Why could we not do this? And I am even told we didn’t start on time,” Jagdeo added, before noting that several of the ministers were fumbling for answers, which only wasted more time. “They were pretending not to understand the questions so the same questions would have to be posed over and over again,” he said.
