MPs tired of the bickering in Parliament

By Samuel Sukhnandan –

Nine months after a workshop was held to build better partnerships, reduce rhetoric and eliminate political agendas in the National Assembly, the august body is still the place for gridlock. But some Members of Parliament (MPs) are fed up with the situation and are hoping that there would be some changes.

The two-day workshop, held in May last year under the theme “Managing through Partnership”, was supported by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF); and the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA).
The workshop was facilitated by three visiting MPs from Canada and the United Kingdom, including David Lammy from the UK who was born to Guyanese parents. All of the foreign MPs made presentations on various topics relating to their experiences and those of their governments. At the time of the workshop, Speaker Raphael Trotman had expressed optimism that it would facilitate some positive results, given that this is the first time Guyana has had a minority government.
Trotman was expecting that the government and the opposition parties would be able to resume tripartite talks. This too has not been realised, especially since the parties have not met for months, except recently on the budget.
During the workshop, Lammy had lauded the actions of the MPs, and had expressed hope that the spirit of cooperation continues, as the seminar reflected on new initiatives to support partnership.
Deteriorating
However, during the last sitting of the National Assembly, Trotman had cause to abruptly end Parliament. The Speaker walked out of the chamber during a debate on the Fiscal Management and Accountability Amendment Bill 2013 after he had threatened to end the session due to the series of insults and slurs which were exchanged in the House. Trotman had struggled to control the behaviour of MPs.
Since the commencement of the 10th Parliament, MPs have hurled increasingly derogatory remarks at each other. The Speaker has had cause to discipline both sides of the House for their behaviour.

Government’s Chief Whip Gail Teixeira told Guyana Times International on Sunday that she respected the decision made by the Speaker to end the last sitting, due to disruptions in the House. Teixeira reiterated that some members were in breach of the standing orders, so continuing the session would have been unacceptable. She explained that several slanderous comments were made across the floor during the last sitting. When questioned about the commitment made during the workshop for all MPs, Teixeira said nothing has changed since then.

Opposition Chief Whip Amna Ally, when contacted, said she would not like to personally assess what took place during the last sitting. However, Ally did mention that she does not see the reason for the Speaker’s behaviour during the last sitting. In her words, “I think we acted like parliamentarians.”
Alliance For Change (AFC) leader Khemraj Ramjattan said the situation during the last sitting of Parliament was unfortunate. “It has to come to a stop and I’m getting very tired of it,” he declared. Ramjattan further stated that he wanted to see arguments by speakers from both sides of the House dominating rather than heckling and unfortunate behaviour.
According to him, the antagonism in Parliament is based on a number of factors, including the fact that members have not yet learnt to appreciate the new dispensation. Another reason is the tremendous disrespect shown to the procedure of passing bills and motions. Ramjattan said this has been aggravating the opposition, hence the reason for the unruly behaviour. He noted that the AFC is against such behaviour, which should be condemned.

During a business executive forum held November last, the Speaker had said that the 10th Parliament is a melting pot of excitement, providing a great deal of confusion, tumult, uncertainty and amusement. At that time, Trotman also disclosed that while government is still to make a mental adjustment to the reality that the system has changed, the opposition is yet to understand that it is not the government and to measure and quantify its own limits and extent of its powers.
In a situation such as this, the Constitution of Guyana, along with its rules and procedures, are the only guideposts to be followed, the Speaker noted. No date has been set for the next sitting of the National Assembly.