Opposition Member of Parliament Amanza Walton- Desir, who overlooks foreign affairs matter, took the government to task over its handling of the country’s foreign policy.
Though she criticized the budget as being anti-poor and anti-working class, she said the country also cannot ignore the clear and present danger that it is faced with regarding the government’s current foreign policy that she described as transactional.
“We have departed from longstanding positions and it seems as though we are blowing with every wind of doctrine, but Mr. Speaker the trouble is that this government is unable to discern between its private interest of the state and so the state’s interests are subjected to their private interests and their deals and their kickbacks, that is what the problem is,” the Opposition MP said.
Walton Desir said it was clear from since the end of 2020, that the country did not have a clear foreign policy.
She recalled the opening of the Taiwan trade office in Guyana which was shut within hours after the Chinese government urged the Guyana government to get it right.
Guyana follows the one-China policy and China sees Taiwan as a runaway province.
But of even more serious consequence Walton-Desir said, the government is not taking the issue of migration seriously, making specific reference to the large influx of Venezuelans in many of the bordering regions.
She said the government must get it right in order to avoid a catastrophic situation.
MP Walton-Desir also zeroed in on Guyana’s foreign policy position on various issues and the need for a professional foreign service.
“Professional diplomats were the hallmark of our diplomacy, we were able to punch above our weight in the diplomatic arena and now we are saddled with the likes of Charandass Persaud” the Opposition MP stated.
The Opposition MP said the direction in which the country is heading, its foreign service must be able to withstand scrutiny and Guyana must ensure that it is properly represented in major states.
To this end, she decry the non-appointment of several ambassadors since 2020.
“Mr. Speaker, years on we are still yet to appoint ambassadors to Venezuela and to Brazil, two of our most consequential interactions. It appears that this government is only able or concern to put people in positions who they consider as loyalists and so they would prefer to go for years without appointing an ambassador rather than give it to a deserving professional diplomat,” Walton-Desir explained.
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