Doubt in opposition camp over no-confidence motion – Min. Ally

DPI, Guyana, Thursday, December 20, 2018

Minister of Social Protection, Amna Ally said there is doubt among some members of the Parliamentary opposition regarding the no-confidence motion set to be debated in the National Assembly tomorrow.

The minister was speaking on the televised Budget in Focus programme on the National Communications Network (NCN) earlier this evening. According to Minister Ally, some members of the opposition seem to be against the move by the party.

“I know that there has been talk around that they are not in favour of the no-confidence motion, but the party discipline is they have to go with what the party says they have to do,” she said.

According to Minister Ally, it is obvious that the opposition did not carefully think through the motion before taking it to the House, especially in light of their minority.

“They must know that they cannot win on a motion like that, because we have 33 voting members while they have 32 voting members and most certainly our 33 members are solid and firmly believe in the Coalition.”

The Social Protection Minister said the government is fully prepared to handle the motion tomorrow and has assured all Guyanese that there is “nothing to fear.”

“I believe that the no-confidence motion is a joke to Guyanese, but it has evoked a lot of interest in the population, on both sides of the coin. However, we are prepared to debate it and we know that we are going to defeat the motion in Parliament,” she said.

Minister Ally said she is yet to understand what yardstick the opposition is using to measure what it hopes to be a victory, particularly after the recently held Local Government Elections (LGE). She said the party has lost significant votes when compared to the LGE results of 2016. She said their calculation is a “waste of time”.

The no-confidence motion was filed by the Parliamentary Opposition in the National Assembly mere days after the country was informed of President David Granger’s diagnosis of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.

A letter was subsequently sent to the Speaker of the House, Dr. Barton Scotland regarding the Prime Minister’s presence in the National Assembly while the president was out of the jurisdiction for the purpose of receiving medical treatment (in Cuba). The Speaker referred the matter to the Standing Committee on Constitutional Reform to be discussed while the debate regarding the Opposition-led no-confidence motion is set for tomorrow in the National Assembly. Since the motion was filed, the government has confidently stated their position that the motion will not be passed.

Alexis Rodney.

Image: Department of Public Information.