A motion tabled by government Members of Parliament (MPs) to oust the Chairman of the Public Account Committee (PAC) is unprecedented in the Commonwealth and signifies the level to which the government is willing to go to avoid exposure of corruption. At least, this is according to the Leader of the Alliance for Change (AFC), Khemraj Ramjattan.
“There is no precedence anywhere in the Commonwealth for a no-confidence motion against a Chairperson, who is appointed by the Main Opposition. Two-thirds of the Commonwealth have this happening, where the Opposition or main Opposition appoints the Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee,” Ramjattan said during a press conference this morning.
He said that the Constitution nor the Parliamentary Standing Orders provides any provision for the tabling of a no-confidence motion against a PAC Chairman. He was quick to point out that the motion-activated by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) back in December 2018 to oust the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) regime, does not apply to the PAC.
Standing Orders 82 (2) states explicitly that the PAC Chair must come from the Opposition.
Ramjattan said that the government’s campaign to remove David Patterson is a ploy to stall the work of the PAC when it learnt that Opposition Committee Members were going to scrutinise the distribution of the $25,000 COVID-19 relief and the alleged single-sourcing of more than 35 tractors.
The government has maintained that Patterson is not fit to head the committee, citing a series of corrupt practices he allegedly engaged in as the Public Infrastructure Minister from 2015 to 2020. Patterson had benefitted from more than $2M in gifts from agencies that fell under his purview.
