By Sue-Ann Wayow
FORMER House Speaker Wade Mark is challenging anyone to bring evidence to show that the Opposition is wrong in its stance against the Parliamentary Standing Orders.
On Thursday, Opposition members of the House held a second press conference to speak about the issue that caused them to walk out of Parliament while Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley was speaking.
Mark said at no time, speaking times should be in favour of any one person, and the events that transpired since Tuesday showed lack of communication and management.
On Wednesday, Dr Rowley also called a press conference to defend himself saying, “I plead not guilty.”
Mark said while the Opposition was prepared to debate two bills on the Order Paper in the Senate on Wednesday, the adjournment came as a surprise.
On the Order Paper, there were four Bills to be read: An Act to amend the Mutal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, an Act to amend the Special Reserve Police Act, Act to repeal the Livestock and Livestock products Board Act and an Act to repeal the Foreign Labour Contracts Act.
The first two Acts were supposed to be read by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi.
Reading a message from Leader of Government Business in the Senate Clarence Rambharat he received at 11pm on Tuesday, Mark said “We came to do our work on that day (Wednesday),” Mark said.
Both the Upper House and the Lower House held sittings on Wednesday at around the same time which was very unusual, Mark indicated.
“At the end of the day there was some confusion in the Government’s management. We ought not to be dislocated as we were.”
Mark said he stated that the Opposition was not going to support any adjournment of the Senate till next Monday but being the minority in the House, they had no choice but to accept the notion.
The notion was put forward by Leader of Government Business Clarence Rambharat. The Senate was adjourned to Monday at 10am. The session lasted just over 35 minutes.
In the Senate on Wednesday, Rambharat said, “It is possible for the Houses to sit simultaneously but in this case it is not possible or even practical simply because the Honourable Attorney General is the person who intended to move the two bills that are before us today and the Honourable Attorney General is also required to be in the House for that debate. In those circumstance I have consulted with my colleagues on the other benches and we have no option, Madam President but to ask you that I move in accordance with Section 14.1, Standing Order 17.1 that the Senate be now adjourned to Monday July 5th 2021.”
Jearlean John also spoke at the Opposition’s press conference. Since Tuesday, Opposition members did not attend Wednesday’s House of Representatives sitting. Two major bills are before the House. These are the Constitution (Amendment) Tobago Self-Government Bill) 2020 and the Tobago Island Government Bill 2021. They cannot be passed without the Opposition’s support.
However, the Opposition members continued to maintain that the bills were in favour of Government and not Tobago.
John was part of the Joint Select Committee (JSC) charged with the responsibility of preparing the report to chart the way forward for the island.
“We must express the will of Tobago people and that means going back to the people of Tobago,” John said.
