Several bills slated for Parliament
─ Supplementary for GECOM among legislation prioritised
DPI, Guyana, Saturday, March 30, 2019
As the Coalition Government prepares to return to the National Assembly, several key pieces of legislation are slated to be tabled; this is according to Finance Minister Winston Jordan.
Speaking to the Department of Public Information the minister explained that the legislative menu includes the Telecommunications Bill, an amended Procurement Act with debarment procedures, the Customs and Single Window Bill, a Customs Amendment HS 2017 to legalise tariff changes, along with others piloted by ministers.
Priority, he added, will be given to the Supplementary Bill which caters to funding the Guyana Elections Commission’s elections’ preparations, “we need to speak to GECOM on the procedure to get the supplementary.”
Minister Jordan reminded that “the no-Confidence Motion didn’t bring an end to Parliament so at any time we could have gone back to parliament. We still have 33 seats.” Asked about the Opposition’s threat to boycott Parliament until the conclusion of the appeal against the findings of the Appeal Court currently before the Caribbean Court of Justice, the minister recalled that when the life of the current Parliament began, the Opposition stayed away. He answered, “they subsequently stopped their marching up and down and went to Parliament. So, they not going to Parliament is nothing new.”
The Opposition’s actions, Minister Jordan opined indicate a “clear lack of respect” for the National Assembly. He further recalled that the opposing side of the House would always walk out whenever he presented the National Budgets, “They would get up and go so they don’t treat parliament with the respect that it deserves”
April 11, 2019, is the tentative date proposed for the 113th sitting of the National Assembly of the 11th Parliament according to Minister Jordan.
Paul McAdam
Image: The Department of Public Information