While acknowledging that the crucial parliamentary committee had not met, Norton said that it was “not so long ago” that he was elected chairman of the parliamentary body. Stabroek News was told that it has been at least eight months since Norton was elected chairperson.
Stabroek News had reported yesterday that there has been no move by the Committee of Appointments to begin the process of reconstituting the defunct Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) despite being urged to do so by Speaker of the National Assembly, Raphael Trotman and the PPP. Leader of the Alliance For Change (AFC) Khemraj Ramjattan had told Stabroek News that he too believes that the issue of the appointment of the commissioners for the ERC should be dealt with as a matter of urgency. However, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) leader, David Granger said that the matter is “up in the air”.
When contacted yesterday, Norton said that he is awaiting a visit by a team from the United Nations Development Programme and the United Kingdom who will assess the work of the various parliamentary committees. “They are visiting to assess how the committees have been functioning so far,” he explained and said that the team will be here this week. “And I can tell you they haven’t been functioning well,” he added in relation to the committees.
Norton said that as soon as the team visits, the Committee will meet. He said that they have not met because they were waiting for some of the members of the committee to become available and also because of the impending visit and they do not want to “reinvent the wheel.”
The chairman said that the appointment of ERC commissioners will be one of the issues that will be looked at and he also noted that the lives of the other rights committees are running out.
PPP/C Chief Whip, Gail Teixeira has laid the blame for the inaction on the opposition and had pointed out that almost a year into the 10th Parliament, the Committee of Appointments has not met except to elect the chairperson, Dr Norton.
Article 212A of the Constitution of Guyana provides for an Ethnic Relations Commission and among its various functions is listed, “Provide for equality of opportunity between persons of different ethnic groups and to promote harmony and good relations between such persons; Promote the elimination of all forms of discrimination on the basis of ethnicity; Discourage and prohibit persons, institutions, political parties and associates from indulging in, advocating or promoting discriminatory practices on the ground of ethnicity.”
The composition of the ERC has been enveloped in controversy since 2007 after the term of the ERC commissioners came to an end on August 31 of that year, but was extended by then president Bharrat Jagdeo who on September 6, 2007 announced the reappointment of the commissioners until consensus could be reached in Parliament for consulting on new appointments. The then main opposition PNCR had argued that the extension of the appointments was unconstitutional. Another area of disagreement was the inclusion of the Inter-Religious Organisation among the entities that can nominate persons to the commission via a consensual mechanism determined by the National Assembly.
But since the November 2011 elections, there have been no moves to have the ERC reconstituted even although the opposition has dominated the committees of the House.
Trotman has written to Norton urging him to “fulfil your constitutional duty to ensure that this vitally necessary and constitutionally mandated Commission is constituted as a matter of urgency.”
