Latest update April 19th, 2024 12:59 AM
Mar 19, 2010 News
…Govt. secures permanent chairmanship of committee scrutinizing security policies
“Better late than never” and “Oversight now a heartbeat from reality,” were just some of the sentiments permeating the National Assembly as the mandate for the Standing Committee on Oversight of the Security Sector was unanimously approved by the National Assembly.
The motion was successfully piloted by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds following a similar motion that established the committee which was agreed to and mandated by the National Stakeholder Forum following the Lusignan and Bartica massacres.
Hinds told the House that he was just seeking to activate the committee by giving it its remit.
Hinds said research has shown that the measures that they are seeking to put in place were conventional and he called for the House to support the motion.
Shadow Home Affairs Deborah Backer whilst supporting the motion, sought unsuccessfully to make a few amendments. She stressed that the motion was long overdue.
Backer impressed on the House that her party has for the past decade been lobbying for the policies of the security services.
She was critical of the fact that the Prime Minister sought to have the Government take a permanent hold of the Chairmanship of the committee, and one of her amendments was intended to have the chair rotate annually, but this was denied.
Backer said that the committee is meant to be a hybrid body and it might not be in the best interest to have a committee that is intended to scrutinize government policy, be chaired by a government minister who takes his charge from the Cabinet.
She suggested that the Chairperson of the committee should never be a government Minister.
Backer also sought to have the committee expand its scope to include entities such as the Customs Anti Narcotics Unit, but this too was denied.
Backer said that she wanted the committee to not be a reactive body, but rather, it should be able to assess ongoing operations as well as have a proactive stance.
“We want oversight but we want it to be as wide as possible.”
Government Member of Parliament, Anil Nandlall, who gave his support for the motion, told the House that over the past decade Guyanese have witnessed an unprecedented crime wave and it is an accepted fact that conventional methods of crime fighting are not always applicable to the present situation.
He told the House that there is need for a multi-faceted approach to dealing with crime and that is why there is need for Parliamentary oversight of the security services.
Nandlall said that Parliament will act as a check and balance, adding that the government must be applauded for its inclusion of the opposition in the scrutinizing of the policies of the security sector.
In urging his Parliamentary colleagues to support the Bill, Nandlall said that they would, “send a message to the armed forces…we have to send a message to the people of Guyana…we have to send a message to the criminals.”
Raphael Trotman of the Alliance For Change also voiced his support for the Bill, but placed on record his reservations about the fact that the Government will permanently chair the committee.
He said that what the House was doing yesterday was long overdue and should have been put in place ever since the constitution was amended to have the committee set up.
Trotman said that the committee should review as well as evaluate the security policies.
Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee also lent his support to the Motion, and told the House that there was nothing wrong with the committee being permanently chaired by a member of the government, citing instances in other countries where similar bodies are chaired by the executive.
Rohee told the House that at some point in time whilst deliberating in the House, members must stop picking and choosing on “faith and trust” in the government.
He urged the House to put some trust and faith in the government as it relates to the chairmanship of the committee.
Rohee urged that the House “buckle down” and have the committee get to work. Under the motion that was approved, the commission will comprise not less than six and no more than 10, and the representation will be according to the proportionality of the seats held by political parties in the National Assembly.
Due to the nature of the committee’s responsibilities, all Members will be required to take an oath of secrecy, and any member not desirous of doing so will not be entitled to sit on the Committee.
The Standing Committee in the discharge of its functions will examine the policies and administration of the entities in the Security Sector based on the Gazetted ministerial responsibilities for entities in the Security Sector under the purview of the Standing Committee.
Where is the BETTER MANAGEMENT/RENEGOTIATION OF THE OIL CONTRACTS you promised Jagdeo?
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