Speaker of the National Assembly Manzoor Nadir on Tuesday rejected claims by the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) that it received “no meaningful response” to questions about a proposed meeting between Opposition MPs and President Irfaan Ali. The Parliament Office said that all issues raised by Opposition Chief Whip Tabitha Sarabo-Halley had been addressed.
WIN had announced on Monday that its Members of Parliament would not participate in the meeting, citing what it described as a lack of transparency and respect for the constitutional role of the Opposition and Parliament. WIN made these comments after Ali, during a press conference, said that he would meet with those bodies.
The party said it had sought clarification from Nadir, including an agenda or indication of the purpose of the meeting, but claimed that “no meaningful response was received.”
However, in a statement issued Tuesday, Nadir said Sarabo-Halley had written to him on Sunday with several questions concerning the meeting requested by President Ali and had asked for an early response.
According to Nadir, the Parliament Office dispatched a letter to Sarabo-Halley early Monday morning.
“The Speaker wishes to make it very pellucid that all the questions that the Member raised were addressed,” the statement said.
Those questions from Sarabo-Halley and answers from Parliament Office were not shared with the media.
The Speaker also pointed to Article 51 of the Constitution, which states that Parliament comprises the President and the National Assembly.
Nadir’s statement came after the Office of the President also issued a statement Tuesday confirming that Ali had met with members of the Parliamentary Sub-Committee on Foreign Relations.
Guyana Standard understands that the meeting focused on key foreign policy matters, including Guyana’s proceedings before the International Court of Justice and the Third Country National Agreement between Guyana and the United States.
The President’s Office said all members of the committee had been invited through the Speaker of the National Assembly, but claimed that, up to the time of the meeting, Opposition members had neither accepted nor declined the invitation.
“Those present welcomed the engagement and expressed their desire for continued engagement in furtherance of the development of Guyana’s foreign policy agenda,” the statement said.
