….Govt, Opposition clash over removal of Patterson as chair
By Svetlana Marshall
A government-sponsored motion intended to remove David Patterson as Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) was left in limbo on Monday when none of the members of the Opposition opted to take up the chairmanship to allow for the motion to be put to a vote.
Amid fierce objection from the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Members of Parliament, Government’s Chief Whip Gail Teixeira tabled a motion at the level of the Committee for Patterson to be removed as Chairman on the grounds that the Government had no confidence in him.
Even as Patterson sat as Chairman, a heated debate ensued with the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and the APNU+AFC Members of Parliament clashing over the admissibility of such a motion. With no consensus, the Clerk of the National Assembly, Sherlock Isaacs, was called in to determine whether the motion could have been put to a vote. However, when it was established that the motion was properly placed before the Committee, Patterson, in response to a request by the Government, recused himself, leaving the Committee without a Chairman and no one to put the motion to a vote.
As a result of the gridlock, the PAC was forced to abort Monday’s meeting, which would have seen members from both sides scrutinizing public accounts dating back to 2016.
On the corridors of the Public Buildings, the APNU+AFC Members of Parliament – Ganesh Mahipaul, Jermaine Figueira and Juretha Fernandes – accused the Government of attempting to usurp the powers of the Opposition at the level of the Committee.
MP Mahipaul said the motion – the first of its kind for a committee such as the PAC – was put before the Committee without notice, and with little to no justification offered by the Government’s Chief Whip.
“Outside of that, the Standing Orders are very clear, the Standing Orders say that a Member of the Opposition must be the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee. The Opposition has full confidence in Mr. David Patterson and we have given him that authority and that privilege to chair the Public Accounts Committee,” MP Mahipaul told reporters.
He said once the necessary guidance was given by the Clerk of the Assembly, Patterson recused himself from the meeting to allow for the motion to be formally put to the Committee, however, none of the three remaining Opposition Parliamentarians opted to take up the chairmanship.
Weighing in on the issue, MP Figueira opined, that though the Clerk had concluded that the motion was a proper one, a No-Confidence Motion cannot be laid at the level of a Committee but only at the level of the National Assembly.
“It is important for us to also understand that it is the Opposition, who scrutinizes the Government’s spending. The Government cannot say to the Opposition, who they prefer and in retrospect this is essentially what the Government is trying to tell the Opposition,” MP Figueira said while iterating that the Opposition has confidence in Patterson to head the PAC.
He reminded that though the former Chairman of the PAC, Irfaan Ali, the now President, had before him 19 fraud charges, the Government, at the time, did not force him out of office, but rather respected the then Opposition’s selection of him as Chairman.
Minister of Public Works, Bishop Juan Edghill, who is among Government MPs on the PAC, explained that the motion was intended to have Patterson recuse himself from the Chairmanship but not as a member of the Committee.
“Every matter was clarified in Committee [by the Clerk] and at that stage they recognized that they cannot save the light of day in this matter – the strategy was – having presided over the debate he [Patterson] recused himself from the vote and no opposition member wanted to take the chair of the presiding officer to go ahead with the vote,” Minister Edghill said.
He said due to the failure by the Opposition Members to take up the chairmanship of the PAC, the committee is now without a presiding officer.
The Government’s Chief told reporters that while it is clear that the Opposition must chair the PAC, the Government lacks confidence in Patterson. However, she felt short in justifying the reason for the motion.
“I don’t have to give a reason for a motion; sorry,” Minister Teixeira said. However, it is believed that the motion is linked to the recent reports, which suggested that Patterson, received more than $1.5M in gifts from the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority, and other agencies during his time in office as Minister of Public Infrastructure.
She said if the Opposition maintains this posture at the level of the PAC, the Committee of Section would have to deliberate once more on the selection of the committee. “The Speaker would probably have to get involved to have another election of the Committee Chair,” she explained. Further, she said the Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon would have to decide whether the Opposition is interested in scrutinizing the work of Government.
“I assume that at the political level Mr. Harmon will have to decide if he is so desirous of playing the role of scrutinizing Government, then I am sure he would be anxious to have a Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee functioning. However, I wish to underline that at this point we are looking at 2016 and we still have 2017, 2018 and 2019 accounts for audited reports to look at, so this behavior of the Opposition, in the Public Accounts Committee, I believe in my view it has to do with the fact that they do not wish us look at the records,” the Government Chief Whip said.
However, the Opposition Members of Parliament said it is the Government, who is running scared because the Committee has agreed to accelerate the process, which would see 2020 accounts being scrutinized in the not so distant future.
