The chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of the four-constitutionally mandated Sectoral Standing Committees of the National Assembly were elected on Thursday, almost a year since the members had been nominated.
In a statement, the Parliament Office said yesterday that with the elections, the National Assembly has moved closer to fulfilling it oversight role and function.
The members of these committees had been nominated since March 7, 2012 by the Committee of Selection. The constitution mandated that the chair and vice chair come from opposite sides of the National Assembly. Technically they should have been elected at the first meeting of the committees with the Speaker of the National Assembly.
The Sectoral Committees and their chairs and vice chairs are:
Economic Services committee: Chair – Manzoor Nadir; Vice-Chair – Carl Greenidge
Foreign Relations committee: Chair – Deborah Backer, Vice-Chair – Bibi Shadick
Natural Resources committee: Chair – Rupert Roopnaraine; Vice-Chair – Odinga Lumumba
Social Services committee: Chair – Indranie Chandarpal; Vice-Chair – Volda Lawrence
The Sectoral Committees have the responsibility for the scrutiny of all areas of government policy and administration. They have the power to examine all policies and administration for each sector to determine whether the execution of government policy is in consonance with the principle of good governance and in the best interest of the nation.
According to the Parliament Office statement, following the elections Speaker Raphael Trotman congratulated and charged those elected to carry out their tasks of scrutiny of government’s policy and administration fearlessly and uncompromisingly. He also urged that they should not stay cloistered within the committee rooms of the National Assembly but should get out and visit communities nationwide.
