The APNU+AFC administration is still to decide on the candidates from its National Top Up List who will replace its four dual citizenship parliamentarians who have resigned, according to sources who also confirmed that President David Granger has met with one of the coalition’s partners.
Earlier this week, government announced that People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) members Carl Greenidge, who is the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of State Joseph Harmon; Alliance for Change (AFC) member Dominic Gaskin who is the Minister of Business; and Working People’s Alliance (WPA) member and Public Service Minister Dr Rupert Roopnaraine were resigning from parliament.
The move followed rulings handed down by the High Court and the Guyana Court of Appeal which affirmed that dual citizens are not eligible to sit in parliament in keeping with Article 155 (1) (a) of the Constitution. That provision states, “No person shall be qualified for election as a member of the National Assembly who is, by virtue of his or her own act, under any acknowledgement of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state.” The rulings came subsequent to cases filed in court challenging the passage of a no-confidence motion against the APNU+AFC government.
