Latest update April 18th, 2024 12:59 AM
Dec 14, 2017 Letters
DEAR EDITOR,
Regardless of the fact that the $68M is ghosted and that the allotted time for questions was not extended, Juan Edghill was out of order. He was not afforded that courtesy by the Speaker of the House. By all indications, the Speaker was most polite in requesting that Mr Edghill take his seat.
While Mr Edghill’s concerns are legitimate and speak to another sinister multi-million dollar ghosting, his refusal to heed the request of the Speaker was unparliamentary.
Parliamentary rules allowed for the Speaker, Mr Barton Scotland to call upon the Sergeant at Arms to have Mr Edghill removed from the house.
That being said, recent past incidents, Monday’s uncalled for ruckus and the ensuing unprofessional police response, are a reflection of the sad reality of the partisanship and nasty politics in the hallowed chambers.
The Speaker having thus far handled the matter graciously, erred by not taking the appropriate steps to immediately adjourn the hearings, suspend Mr Edghill, and call the party whips in his chambers to lay down the rules.
The Speaker may also have erred in his instructions to the Sergeant at Arms. Reports in the local and social media suggest that the Sergeant at Arms, acting on the Speaker’s instruction, called in the police unit.
This was a procedural issue that should have seen Mr Edghill censured. It’s no criminal matter. It did not compromise security or safety and well-being. And that is where the double standard is so odious and obvious.
Given that the Speaker is in control of the house and its proceedings, the recent ‘Santa Claus-capade’ in the House was a security breach that was dismissed as a good-natured prank.
The desecration of the house by Simona Broomes was fluffed off by the Speaker and the President with a chorus of silent partisan support.
The Speaker is yet to take action on last week’s disparaging, “I am Not a Chatree” remarks by Nicolette Henry. It is even more appalling that the Minister of State excused and dismissed the flagrant violation while condoning her remarks on live television.
The vulgar screams of “rape! rape!” by a PPP member ought not to be treated lightly either. It was crass and low class. This member lacked parliamentary decorum. The vile hollering constitutes an affront to civility and common decency. The PPP must reprimand that member for such behaviour.
Given all that transpired, the Police have absolutely no business in the house. The security services cannot be used as pawns in the execution of procedures of the hallowed Chambers. There is something to be said of the arms length separation of the branches of the legislature, the judiciary and the security services. Certainly a travesty was committed and an investigation ought to be launched.
The Speaker and the coalition MP who called in the Police and the senior members of the deployed unit should be held to account for violating the sanctity of the house and for compromising the separation of the branches of governance and the security apparatus.
These are challenging times for Guyana. Closures of sugar estates and massive terminations with no alternative source of income make for a restless and desperate population. An $18M US signing bonus is surreptitiously squirrelled away by the Granger regime. A $68M contract awarded to an unknown (ghosted) entity with no answers forthcoming. Drug bond rental fiasco, Moses’ lucrative travel budget, a Minister’s $500,000 monthly rental allowance, it all piles up.
This Government has so far demonstrated striking levels of similarities to the corruption that it accuses its predecessor of.
It is time for astute leadership. Time to step back, reflect and do what’s best for all of Guyana. Either that, or be done with all of the coalition and the opposition. They are all seemingly complicit in the state of backwardness that continues to suffocate this nation 50 years post-independence.
Jay Mobeen
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