September 30,2023
Alliance For Change
From Washington D.C
For immediate release to all media houses.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APNU+AFC delegation of MP’s hold successful meeting with members of the US Congressional Black Caucus.
A delegation of Members of the Parliamentary opposition held a highly successful meeting with members of the US Congressional Black Caucus (CBC)on Thursday September 28, 2023 on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.
At a difficult time for the US Congress as they voted to stave off a nationwide US shut down it was remarkable that amidst critical voting, the members of CBC found it of vital importance to meet with the Guyana delegation of legislators.
The Guyana delegation was led by Leader of the Opposition Aubrey Norton and Chairman of the Alliance for Change Catherine Hughes, and included Members of Parliament Roysdale Forde, Amanza Walton-Desir, Dawn Hastings-Williams, Deonarine “Ricky” Ramsaroop, Sherod Duncan and Ganesh Mahipaul. David Patterson, MP was unable to attend, as he was prevented from leaving the country by a vindictive and illegal act carried out by the PPP government.
Discussions centered on governance issues, elections in Guyana, developments in the local oil and gas sector and the opposition’s position on recent pronouncements from Venezuela.
High on the agenda was the delegations’ request for support from the CBC with regards to articulating the necessity for the compilation of a new voters list prior to the next General Elections in Guyana, a call supported by the Commonwealth, OAS and Caricom observer groups and even by the PPP prior to 2020. The legislators recognized that amendments to the current law could easily be facilitated, provided that government had the necessary political will. Biometrics at the place of poll to reduce the occurrence of fraud which existed in the 2020 elections results was also discussed as an important way of engendering greater confidence in election results and to enhance the work of GECOM.
Governance issues were discussed in the context of Article 13 of the Constitution of Guyana and its admonishment for the creation of an “inclusive democracy”. The destruction of the guardrails of democracy that is currently taking place in Guyana by the PPP government was highlighted. At the parliamentary level the now regular absenteeism of the government side which has resulted in the cancellation of 15 PAC meetings, the infrequent meetings of parliament, and the overall lack of transparency and accountability and exclusion of the opposition in the decision making of the State have cemented fears that Guyana is fast moving to a one-party autocratic State.
In articulating the parliamentary opposition’s vision for Guyana, it was stated that more of the current US billions of dollars in oil revenues being allocated to mega infrastructure projects should be directed into the pockets of ordinary Guyanese, the majority of whom still live below the poverty line. The recent IHS Markit audit in which US$214 million was claimed as cost recoverable expenses, which was subsequently reduced to US$3 million was highlighted as evidence of gross incompetence in the management of the sector and just a snapshot of the massive corruption in this sector.
On the Venezuela issue, the delegation articulated its strong support for Government’s position on the border controversy which is currently engaging the International Court of Justice.
The CBC informed the team that they were “acutely aware” of the situation in which Guyana currently exists and were eager to hear the oppositions’ plans for a better Guyana.
The delegation took the opportunity to highlight their plans for constitutional, social and infrastructure advancement. At no stage in this meeting was proof of racial discrimination in Guyana raised or requested.
The APNU+AFC parliamentary delegation presented the Congressional Black Caucus with a comprehensive dossier with several appendices related to the all the matters raised during the discussions. Both sides agreed to keep the channels of communication open.
The members of the Congressional Black Caucus who graciously received and met with the team included Chairman of the CBC Congressman Steven Horsford, First Vice Chairman of the CBC Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, Democratic Leader in Congress, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Congresswoman Stacy Plaskett and Congressman Gregory Meeks.
END
Comments are closed