Dear Editor,
I was reluctant to further enter this public debate on the Speaker of the National Assembly. But I was dragged out from this solitary confinement after observing a comment from President Donald Ramotar who stated in a TV interview that “we live in a parliamentary democracy in the Commonwealth and the tradition is the government should have the Speaker.” Editor, please permit me, with no personal disrespect to the new President whom I hold in high personal regard, to highlight just one small enhancement of this statement. In New Zealand, (a parliamentary democracy in the Commonwealth) the norm is that the Speaker comes from the governing party once they win a majority. The pertinent differentiator today in Guyana is, the PPP is a minority government and may not have the authority to make such a demand.
The precedent set in New Zealand clearly reveals that on three occasions in their history the governing party did not hold the office of Speaker. In 1923, Charles Statham, an Independent MP, was Speaker in a Reform Party government and then under a Liberal Party government; in 1993, Peter Tapsell a Labour Party member was the Speaker in a National Party government and in 1936, Bill Barnard an independent member was Speaker in a Labour Party government.
The historical records described Sir Charles Statham, as “probably the greatest Speaker their house has known” and many of his rulings are now permanently chiselled into that country’s parliamentary Standing Orders. However, my research also revealed one interesting fact: Peter Tapsell was the first Maori Speaker, from the indigenous peoples of that country.
If this special situation continues where there is a so-called Mexican stand-off (Ramkarran / Backer /Nagamootoo) which is clearly revealing itself as an ethno-political battle (the Guyanese people are not fools; they read and they conclude), then to progress, our politicians must think outside of the box, creatively. Can we not seriously consider someone from non-traditional sources such as an Amerindian or Chinese or Portuguese to break this deadlock? One name that comes to mind immediately is that expert jurist Mr Ian Chang, the Chief Justice of Guyana as a nominee for the Speaker of the National Assembly.
Yours faithfully,
Sasenarine Singh
