Opposition Member of Parliament, Shurwayne Holder speaking at a press conference yesterday, accused the government of stymying the operations of the Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Economic Services to avoid scrutiny.
He noted that the Opposition-led committee has been making efforts to hold the government accountable for its governance and management of Guyana. Holder was keen to note the importance of the Economic Services Committee’s work, noting that it is the only active sectoral committee in Parliament, having conducted only 14 meetings over the past year.
Holder also lamented that the committee’s efforts have been hindered by both the government and the Speaker of the National Assembly, Manzoor Nadir. Despite the committee’s clear work programme, which included field visits to economic projects such as the Rose Hall and Skeldon Sugar Estates, he said government members rejected funding approval for the programme.
“This work programme was first rejected by government members of the committee and has since been denied approval for funding by the Speaker of the National Assembly over the last six months or more,” he revealed.
Moreover, the Member of Parliament noted that a meeting was held on April 10 where concerns were raised.
During the meeting, Holder said the Minister of Public Works, Juan Egdhill and senior members of the ministry of Public Works were summoned to address pressing issues. Key concerns raised included the unconscionable fare increase in public transportation and the ongoing blackout crisis. The committee urged immediate action to alleviate the burden on the public and address the urgent blackout situation.
“The committee agreed and advised the Minister of Public Works to immediately meet with various associations including the Speed Boat Association at Parika, Bartica and Supenaam to bring this untenable situation to an end so as to ease the burden on the public,” he stated.
Additionally, he said opposition members pressed for answers regarding stalled major construction projects, expenditure on infrastructure projects such as the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) Expansion Project and river transportation, as well as the status of contract monitoring units.
