The Alliance for Change (AFC) remains firmly committed to the parliamentary vote of no-confidence in Clement Rohee as Minister of Home Affairs.

Whilst Speaker Trotman ruled that he cannot prevent Rohee from speaking, we reserve our right not to hear him.

We are dismayed that the minister continues to give a stiff back to the majority of Members of the Parliament, who have lost confidence in him as Minister of Home Affairs.

The AFC would not sit mutely in Parliament and allow Rohee to arrogantly look us in the face and say that the people’s votes don’t count, and that he could flout the decision of the majority.

Like the rest of the Opposition, the AFC believes that Rohee has failed as Minister of Home Affairs to exercise general supervision and control over the security forces which, over many years, resulted in loss of lives, both at the hands of bandits and by bullets from trigger-happy cops. Rohee has to take responsibility, and resign.

We applaud Speaker Trotman for observing how poorly our fledgling democracy is served by a Minister who refuses to resign in defiance of a convention to do so.

We are revolted that the President has rejected the decision of the parliamentary majority. He has not only refused to sack Rohee but has taken Parliament before the Judiciary to derail the motion of no-confidence.

This is a mockery of Parliament, and it is obvious that the President and his Government have set the stage of collision with Parliament, and are simulating a constitutional crisis.

As far as the AFC is concerned, the people of Guyana have had good reason to deny the PPP/C a majority in Parliament. The people had become sick and tired of their rubber-stamped decisions, levels of corruption, lack of accountability and good governance. But even with their wings clipped, the PPP/C still want to control Parliament. They insisted that they were in the driver’s seat on the basis of a warped concept of “proportionality”, which foolishness was over-ruled by our Courts.

The AFC accepts that Parliament cannot fire Rohee, But we have faith that a majority of votes in Parliament should be enough to persuade the President to act. The President’s rejection of our majority is really an issue for grave concern. In our view, if the President cannot hear us, we will make sure that his disgraced minister does, as we intend to drown out his voice every time he essays to speak with us.

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