Speaking during his Issues in the News programme on Tuesday, the attorney general rejected criticisms of the proposed legislation, saying its purpose has been deliberately misrepresented.
“I see in certain political quarters that a deliberate campaign has been deployed designed to mislead, distort, and scandalise the Former President’s Benefits and Other Facilities Bill of 2026,” he said.
The attorney general explained that the bill mirrors the Former Presidents’ Benefits and Other Facilities Act of 2009.
“First, the bill is simply a replication of the Former President’s Benefits and Other Facilities Act of 2009. There has been absolutely no material addition to or subtraction therefrom,” he stated.
He further stated that the 2009 legislation was enacted to formally establish benefits for former Presidents, replacing an arrangement that had no legislative backing and could have been altered by any sitting government.
Nandlall argued that the APNU+AFC administration repealed the 2009 Act in 2015, but its replacement law could not remove benefits already vested in former Presidents because it did not apply retrospectively.
“They passed a law that they told the people would rescind all the benefits that former Presidents were getting, but the law could not operate retroactively. So, the law had no teeth,” he said.
The legal affairs minister also referenced the Hamilton Green Pension Bill passed in 2017, arguing that it granted similar benefits to a former Prime Minister decades after he left office.
He maintained that the 2026 bill seeks to restore parity among all former Presidents, regardless of political affiliation.
“The 2026 Bill is intended to restore the dignity to the office of a former President and to bring certainty and equity to the entitlements of that office to ensure that all former holders of that office enjoy equal treatment,” Nandlall said.
He rejected claims that the legislation is intended to benefit President Dr Ali, stressing that it would apply equally to all former Presidents, including former President David Granger and future office holders.
“What we have done here is a package that will apply to all former Presidents,” Nandlall added. (Department of Public Information)
