The Speaker of the National Assembly, Raphael Trotman, has written to the Commonwealth Secretary General expressing his concern about President Ramotar’s prorogation of the parliament and seeking the help of the Commonwealth to address the parliamentary crisis.

“Undoubtedly, Articles 69 and 70 (1) of the Guyana Constitution give the President the authority to Prorogue the Parliament; however the framers of our Constitution could never have intended that such authority would be used arbitrarily, or as a shield by a minority Government, against the majority of the elected Members of Parliament”, Trotman wrote in his letter to the Commonwealth Secretary General.

Trotman said that the no confidence motion was the clear reason the President chose to prorogue the parliament. He pointed out that the decision by the President has neutered the elected House of Representatives. The Speaker expressed more concern about the President not announcing a date by which the prorogation would end.

He told the Commonwealth Secretary General that at present there is a grid  lock as the majority of Members of the National Assembly are indicating that there will be no dialogue with the executive unless or until there is revocation of the prorogation and a resumption of sittings of the National Assembly.

Speaker Trotman called on the Commonwealth Secretary General to use his “good offices,” together with the weight of the entire Commonwealth Parliamentary Association to intervene so that there could be a return to normalcy. He is asking that a delegation be sent to Guyana to engage all sides of the disagreement so that the “unhealthy situation may be brought to a speedy and peaceful end.”

The Organisation of American States has already expressed its concern over the prorogation and has called for an early return to parliamentary democracy in Guyana.

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