Parliament sitting postponed until Thursday
Stabroek News
September 21, 2002
Debate on four crime-fighting bills has been postponed until Thursday so as to give MPs more time to consider the proposed legislation.
The bills, which were presented to the house and read for the first time on Thursday were up for discussion this Monday but Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Reepu Daman Persaud yesterday moved the sitting to later in the week after some political parties made representation.
Opposition Member of Parliament, Sheila Holder (GAP-WPA) had complained about the late delivery of her copies of the bill and told Stabroek News that opposition members were being given insufficient time to study the documents including seeking studied legal opinions on measures contained therein. Stabroek News understands that Shirley Melville from the (GAP-WPA) along with Ravi Dev from ROAR also had the same reservations. They had reportedly approached Speaker of the National Assembly, Ralph Ramkarran, following Thursday’s session and he had promised to speak with Persaud.
Holder said she had only received the bills on Tuesday two days prior to Thursday’s sitting and this was after she was forced to call parliament office to enquire about them having received her order paper a day earlier.
Her parliamentary colleague, Melville who travelled from Lethem for the sitting and who has since returned, only got her copies on Thursday.
The bills, which Holder said had been available approximately a month ago, were circulated to opposition MPs late although it is her understanding that they were available to persons including non-parliamentary functionaries earlier.
Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs, when contacted yesterday would only say that his instructions as regards the issuance of bills and other parliamentary documents derive from the Speaker. Consequently the order paper and bills were sent on Monday as directed by him. However, informed sources have told Stabroek News that the Attorney General had sent the bills to parliament office some time ago.