Constitutional Reform Commission, Secretariat included in 2017 National Budget

Provisions will be made in the 2017 National Budget for a Consultative Constitutional Reform Commission and a Secretariat.

On Friday, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo who was speaking during a press conference at the Alliance For Change’s (AFC) headquarters, said a submission was made to Finance Minister, Winston Jordon r for the allocation of funds to meet the requirement of constitutional reform next year.

Nagamootoo disclosed that the funds are likely not to be below $80M for the setting up of the commission with a secretariat given the lengthy process ahead.

“It’s for the consultation process to take the commission to different parts of the world. We have some specifics that are being worked out, how many visits to how many regions; those are matters of detail but it is also a sum of money that was requested to establish a secretariat. A secretariat will be no less that 2000 persons including logistic officers and everything else. We’re very serious about this so we put all the details” he explained.

The AFC Acting Chair said such a process open up the door for greater consultative democracy and participation by all stakeholders including the opposition political party.

While he does not see the Commission wrapping up its work before two years are over, the United Nations has already handed over a proposal to help Guyana with technical support in the constitutional reform process.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has even expressed interest once changes the constitution involves the protection of children here.