While it is set for a meeting with President Donald Ramotar, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) is denying that there have been any backdoor talks with the People’s Progressive Party/Civic to trade a vote for the no-confidence motion for the holding of local government elections.
Executive Member of APNU, Dr Rupert Roopnaraine told Stabroek News yesterday that he understood the public perception that was being fed by anti-APNU elements.
He said that “I can tell you categorically that there have been no such APNU/PPP engagements and certainly no deal.”
Roopnaraine said that “the fixing of a date for the local government elections is not a matter for negotiation. It is a constitutional requirement.”
He said that APNU is set to meet with President Donald Ramotar “with an agenda that will include the local government elections, probably the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter the Financing of Terrorism bill and any other urgent matters either side may wish to have considered.”
Roopnaraine said that APNU was still committed to supporting the Alliance For Change’s motion of no-confidence against the government. He said that it would fall to the President to make a case with the AFC, should the government show good faith by setting a date for local government elections, to bring an end to the no-confidence motion.
Vice Chairman of the AFC, Moses Nagamootoo had stated at a press briefing last week that at this stage “they (government) will have to put a couple goodies on the table for any type of engagement to take place.”
Nagamootoo had said that it was optimistic to think that the government would put in place the necessary steps to see the establishment of the Public Procurement Commission and the holding of local government elections, for which the AFC and APNU, respectively have been campaigning, in order to stave off the motion.
Public perception has festered as the government is yet to set a date for the sitting of the National Assembly even though the recess is officially over. Critics have argued that the government is stalling the sitting of Parliament over fears that the no-confidence motion will be taken to a vote and passed which would mean that national elections must be held within three months.
On Wednesday of last week, after a meeting of the Parliamen-tary Management Committee, Raphael Trotman, the Speaker of the House left it up to the both the opposition’s Chief Whip Amna Ally and the government’s Chief Whip Gail Teixeira to iron out the details as to the next sitting.
The AFC had last week formally written Leader of the APNU, David Granger, requesting support in a call to have the Speaker of the House set a date for a sitting of the National Assembly.
Under Standing Order 8 (2), the Speaker has the authority to call for a sitting of the National Assembly if he is of the opinion that the public interest requires it to meet.
Standing Order 8 (2) states: “If, during an adjournment of the Assembly, it is represented to the Speaker by the Government, or the Speaker is of the opinion, that the public interest requires that the Assembly should meet on a day earlier than that to which it stands adjourned, the Speaker may give notice accordingly and the Assembly shall meet at the time stated in such notice.”
Clerk of the National Assembly Sherlock Isaacs told Stabroek News on Wednesday that it was not possible in his view for the Speaker to set a date and that the Speaker only had the authority to adjust a date which was fixed should the public interest arise.
