Speaker of The House Denies Opposition’s Questions About Pompeo’s Visit

The current administration refuses to be held accountable to the Guyanese people.

Speaker of the House, Manzoor Nadir, denies the opposition an opportunity to ask questions about the U.S. Secretary of State’s two-day visit to Guyana.

“Two days ago, (Amanza) Walton Desir submitted questions without notice, yesterday I ruled, and it was re-submitted by [Christopher] Jones, again today.”

“Under Standing Order 18, it requires that questions without notice have urgency and importance. I maintained that the questions submitted do not qualify as urgent,” Nadir said.

The opposition would like to know if Venezuela would be a topic of discussion and the costs for facilitating such a visit to Guyana. According to a statement from the Leader of the Opposition, Joseph Harmon, “the decision to blocked the questions was unfair.”

During the elections campaign, President Irfaan Ali promised Guyanese that he would be a president for all Guyanese, and today we have seen another step to withhold pertinent  information from the Guyanese public. The questioning period, which is a part of Westminster Democracy, is intended for parliament to hold the government accountable, which can be a potent tool. 

The Guyana Human Rights Association (GHRA) is urging the new administration “to make public, well in advance of the visit, what are the non-negotiable elements with respect to Venezuela” and “avoid any recklessness devised to interfere with electoral matters.”