APNU Member of Parliament, Sherod Duncan, has submitted a motion to the National Assembly calling for the accredited press to be given unfettered access to parliamentary proceedings that are open to the public, in the interest of democracy and public oversight.

MP Duncan submitted the motion last Friday after he was challenged to do so by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Manzoor Nadir.

The Opposition MP, during his budget presentation, had raised the issue of the limitations and restrictions that have been placed on media operatives with regards to their access to the parliamentary proceedings, but before he could have completed his line of argument, the Speaker interjected and suggested that a motion be submitted.

In the Motion, MP Duncan called on the National Assembly to direct that “full, reasonable and non-discriminatory access be guaranteed to all duly accredited media houses, and their representatives to observe, record, and report from sittings of the National Assembly”.

He is also calling on the Parliament to rescind any administrative arrangements, practices or directives that impose caps on the number of accredited media representatives permitted in the chamber, except where objectively required by demonstrable space or security constraints.

The Opposition MP is also calling for independent audiovisual media houses to be granted access in circumstances where such coverage can be safely and orderly accommodated.

The Motion also highlights the need for the Parliament Office to provide “reliable, high-quality, uninterrupted, and publicly accessible live audiovisual broadcast of all sittings of the National Assembly.”

MP Duncan said it is imperative for the National Assembly to operate in a manner that guarantees openness, transparency, accountability and public confidence.

He said for decades, accredited media houses have been granted reasonable and direct access to sittings of the National Assembly in accordance with democratic norms, parliamentary practice, and the public’s constitutional right to information.

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