A day after Stabroek News reported that naturalisations were up and no information was being released by the government, the Ministry of Home Affairs yesterday announced that it had held its inaugural citizenship ceremony and that 42 persons from 10 countries had received certificates.
The statement from the ministry did not say from which countries the 42 persons originated. It said that the 42 received their certificates as part of the first naturalisation and registration ceremony at the Ministry of Home Affairs Conference Room, Brickdam.
“We all should embrace diversity; we can all learn from each other,” Permanent Secretary Andre Ally told the audience in brief remarks.
The ceremony also included remarks from the Head of Immigration Support Services, Michelle Davis, who expressed her elation to be part of this inaugural ceremony.
The inaugural ceremony began with the recital of the National Pledge and the National Anthem. Following the official ceremony, the Permanent Secretary, Ally, presented certificates to the new citizens.
On Tuesday, Stabroek News reported that the PPP/C, while in opposition, had criticised the APNU+AFC government for its hesitancy to release information on naturalizations, but now in office, there has been a blackout on what those figures currently are, even as the number of persons applying for citizenship here continues to increase daily.
The report noted that nearly every day, the dailies post notices of persons who have applied for citizenship and they include some persons who have been living in this country for over two decades.
Stabroek News had repeatedly reached out to Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn, for assistance in getting those numbers as it is his ministry which is responsible for the citizenship issuances.
Benn had a few weeks ago, promised to get someone to assist, but since then, he had not responded to this newspaper’s messages or answered calls.
While it is unclear the countries the persons applying for naturalisation are originally from, it appears that the applicants are mostly Cuban, Venezuelan and Indian.
