Speaker of the National Assembly, Manzoor Nadir
Nicolette Henry resigned as an APNU+AFC Parliamentarian on February 03, 2022, but it took effect on March 31.
Meanwhile, Joseph Harmon first resigned as Opposition leader on January 26, 2022 under immense pressure to do so and later as a Member of Parliament with that resignation taking effect on March 15.
The News Room understands that with the two vacancies to be filled by the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R) – the largest party in the APNU+AFC Coalition – two names have already been sent to Granger as the persons to fill the vacancies.
A usually reliable source said the two persons are PNC/R Leader Aubrey Norton and longstanding member and former Health Minister Volda Lawrence.
With those names decided on by the PNC/R’s Central Executive Committee and sent to Granger, he is expected to submit those names to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).
Speaker Nadir said, “I have seen names proposed in the press, but I can’t work with the press.”
With the Speaker already notifying Granger of the vacancies, once he writes to GECOM, the electoral body is tasked with certifying that the recommendations are persons who can rightly be deemed elected officials and declare them in correspondence to the Leader of the List to be duly elected and can be sworn in.
The Representative of the List is expected to inform the Speaker of GECOM’s declaration after which the persons can be sworn in.
If Norton passes this stage, he is tipped to become the next Leader of the Opposition. Norton is not only Leader of the PNC/R, but he is also the Chairman of the APNU – a position he took up in February after Granger resigned.
The Speaker is also expected to convene a meeting of all Opposition MPs after the vacancies are filled at which time a new Opposition Leader will be selected.
“That can happen minutes after we conclude the sitting where the new MPs are sworn in,” Nadir assured.
Nadir says he now awaits correspondence from Granger.
