Cabinet was taken aback by Speaker Ralph Ramkarran’s decision to permit the moving of a controversial debt ceiling motion by PNCR-1G MP Winston Murray and had therefore ruled that Finance Minister Ashni Singh’s statement on it be made public.
This was revealed yesterday by Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon at his post-Cabinet briefing, according to a release from the Government Information Agency (GINA).
Dr Luncheon said that government’s exercise of its executive prerogative in bringing matters of a financial nature to the attention of the parliament for its consideration or enactment would not be stayed or shared.
Dr Luncheon made the remarks in reference to Wednesday’s debate on the motion put forward by PNCR-1G frontbencher Murray to place a $10M limit on the aggregate amount of debt obligations that may be forgiven, postponed or reduced without the approval of the National Assembly.
The government eventually voted against the motion but not before a showdown between Ramkarran and Singh. Singh while contending that the motion violated the parliamentary standing orders was asked by the Speaker to indicate how the Standing Orders were violated or failing this he should withdraw his statement. After Singh did not withdraw his statement a ten-minute suspension was taken. Singh then recanted his statement about the Speaker violating the Standing Orders but continued by stating that he also contravened Article 171 of the Constitution. The Speaker, who had earlier cautioned him about moving a motion to challenge his ruling, again told him that he was not going to be allowed to continue. Singh then declined to continue with his presentation.
According to GINA, Dr Luncheon said that the Speaker defended his act of denial of Singh’s right to reply by insisting that the minister was challenging his ruling or authority.
Stating that Cabinet was taken aback by the Speaker’s “fundamentally flawed” position in permitting the motion, he said it had decided that Singh should make a statement. The full text of Singh’s intended statement was carried in yesterday’s edition of the state-owned Chronicle newspaper.
“Cabinet examined the matter and reiterated its resolute commitment to the principle of executive prerogative in presenting legislation on financial matters to parliament and fully supported the argument of the Minister of Finance.”
He said that Cabinet in its earlier deliberations had concluded that the PNCR-1G motion should be rejected since it should be a government minister, in recognition of executive prerogative, who should be exclusively responsible for bringing matters of a financial nature to parliament for its resolution.
In a statement he issued to the National Assembly on Thursday on Singh’s argument that he violated the standing orders and the constitution, Ramkarran said that one of the best known rules of parliamentary procedures, familiar to parliamentarians worldwide, is that the conduct of certain officials, including Speakers, cannot be questioned except by way of a motion tabled for that purpose. This ought to be known by every parliamentarian, he said. Singh did not challenge Ramkarran’s ruling by way of a motion.
Murray has argued that the motion in no way sought to take away the powers of the minister to postpone, forgive or consolidate debts but was simply going to give effect to a provision under section 81 (3) of the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act which enables parliament to set a limit.
“This is no way interferes with the minister’s authority,” Murray told Stabroek News yesterday adding that Dr Luncheon and Cabinet were flawed in their understanding of the provisions of the act which was passed by parliament in 2003.
Murray and AFC MP Khemraj Ramjattan, who had argued in favour of the motion had said it was meant to assure accountability and transparency given the fact that government was lending taxpayers’ money to businesses including hoteliers over the Cricket World Cup 2007 period, and that the monies were properly accounted for, in a system left to executive discretion.
