Several government MPs who are members of the two committees appointed to oversee the implementation of the security reform plan and conclude reviewing the Disciplined Forces Commission report were on Wednesday absent from the body’s first substantial meeting since it was formed.
People Progressive Party/Civic MPs, Clement Rohee who is also Home Affairs Minister; Robeson Benn; Bheri Ramsarran; Philomena Sahoye-Shury and Bernard De Santos were absent from a committee meeting to review the DFC report.
Chairman of the committee, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, expressed disappointment at his colleagues’ absence, Alliance For Change representative on the committee, Raphael Trotman said. The DFC committee was set up since last year July following a motion approved in the National Assembly mandating it to conclude reviewing the report, which was submitted to Parliament back in 2004. The committee never met until January 15 this year at which point it appointed a chairman. Wednesday was set to be the committee’s first substantial meeting.
Trotman told Stabroek News in an invited comment that despite the absence of the government MPs, the other committee members got down to serious work. PNCR MPs, Deborah Backer, Basil Williams and Clarissa Riehl are the other members of the committee.
Backer noted that from the time Parliament approved the motion the committee was given six months to conclude reviewing the DFC report. She said that time would have expired since January, but at the level of the committee, they took a decision that the six months would begin on January 15 and end on July 15. Backer said given the timeframe they set themselves and the amount of work to be done it was agreed that the committee needed to double its efforts.
“I expressed the view that I hoped the absence of the PPP members is not a reflection of the seriousness or lack thereof they attached to the work of the committee,” Backer told this newspaper. She said that it was an indictment of Parliament that a report submitted since 2004 was still being reviewed.
The security sector reform plan is being funded by the British government through its Department for International Development (DfID). When the 3M Pounds Sterling action plan was launched in August last year there had been promises of rigid adherence to commitments including the convening of the select committees.
Hinds told this newspaper recently that the committees had not met previously because of the time factor.
Stabroek News was told that Minister of Transport and Hydraulics, Robeson Benn, was out of town and that might be the reason why he was not at the meeting. This newspaper could not ascertain the reasons why the other MPs were absent.
