While pointing out that the Government is still committed to ensuring that constitutional reform remains a top priority, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo reminded the public on Monday that draft legislation on the Constitutional Reform Bill was tabled in the National Assembly before the recess.
Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo
Nagamootoo has said that this would pave the way for the establishment of a Constitutional Reform Consultative Commission to guide this long overdue process, noting that the Committee was a bipartisan one that would hopefully push this matter more quickly through Parliament.
“I am trying to remove myself as a politician and a representative of the Executive from the process by putting it at the parliamentary floor,” he said on Monday to the media, while explaining that the process could be fast tracked given that the Committee has a balance of politicians from both sides.
The Prime Minister said too that he would support organisations like Reform, Inform, Sustain Educate (RISE) Guyana, which are interested in educating the citizenry on the importance of constitutional reform and what changes that could bring about for Guyana as a whole.
“You need to have organisations in Guyana that can go down to the grassroots to tell people that your life is linked to the Constitution and it matters very much if there is constitutional reform that will bring some change to your system of governance,” he said.
RISE Guyana, a non-profit organisation, had announced that it would be embarking on a countrywide push for reforming Guyana’s Constitution over the next two years, and said its members were free to engage in active politics with any party of their choice.
Established in June, the group of free-thinkers plans to establish groups across the country and consult with Guyanese to ascertain their basic concerns and the types of constitutional reforms they would like to see to address those concerns.
Meanwhile, Nagamootoo also noted that the Constitution of Guyana was inherited and there were some features of it that could be exploited to build authoritarian structures, and given Guyana’s potential to become a wealthy country, with the emerging oil sector, this should never be encouraged.
The move to have the bill debated at a parliamentary select committee level is seen as a major step to assist with constitutional reform, something that the coalition Government promised during its election campaign to deliver.
According to the draft bill, the Consultative Commission will be made up of 15 members. The establishment of this Commission will allow for some 100 countrywide public consultations.
The bill allows for President David Granger to appoint two constitutional law experts. Eleven of the other members will be nominated each from the parliamentary parties; trade union movement; organisations representing Guyanese youths; the Guyana Bar Association; the Guyana Association of Women Lawyers; Christian, Muslim, and Hindu organisations and the National Toshaos’ Council.
The bill states that if any entity fails to make a nomination, the President shall appoint a member to represent that entity after due consultation.
The six criteria for selecting members of the Commission shall include experience, knowledge of Guyana’s Constitution, commitment, academic expertise, and practical expertise.
Further, the Commission will be tasked with assisting the Standing Committee in the Committee’s review of how effectively Guyana’s Constitution has been working and to ascertain the views of Guyanese through consultations in the 10 Administrative Regions.
The Consultative Commission on Constitutional Reform will be funded from the Consolidated Fund, and donations and contributions from international agencies.
