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— outlines expectations as new Parliament convenes As Guyana’s 13th Parliament convened on Monday, President Dr. Irfaan Ali congratulated all Members of Parliament (MPs), both returning and newly elected, while reaffirming the National Assembly’s critical role in shaping the nation’s democratic and developmental trajectory. Speaking ahead of the sitting at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre, the President described Parliament as “an important part of our governance structure” and “an important representation of a democratic society.” “Parliament, for me, plays that integral role in any democratic society. It is where policies are tested. It is where debate on national development takes place. It is where the representation of the people is given full meaning,” President Ali said. The Head of State congratulated all parliamentarians and expressed optimism for a new era of productive and fact-based deliberations. “I want to congratulate all the parliamentarians. I want to congratulate the new sitting, to say that I welcome this new sitting. I wish them well. I wish the Parliament every success. I wish to see robust debate — debate that is based on facts, debate that enriches what we do in Guyana, enriches our democracy,” the Head of State said. A TRANSFORMATIVE FIVE YEARS AHEAD President Ali said the next five years will be among the most transformative in Guyana’s history, describing them as “enormous years ahead of us” that will be “very transformative” and “very aggressive.” “Massive infrastructure, but infrastructure leading to growth and expansion of our economy, infrastructure leading to the opening up of new opportunities, new lands, expanded social programmes. Of course, defining a path in the next five years that will lead to resilience and sustainable development,” he outlined. He reemphasized that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has already “demonstrated and outlined clearly” its priorities through its manifesto, and that government ministers will now translate those commitments into an actionable legislative and policy framework. “What you will see is the action plan, the actionable agenda, the framework that will be presented and, of course, debated on how we’re going to achieve these targets. “What are the programmes and the policies we’re going to pursue to increase disposable income, empower people, build prosperity, expand housing, improve water supply, give world-class health care and education services, create new employment, generate new industries, expand the economy, diversify our economic platform, build financial capability, deal with issues of migration, ensure that we have a secure country, internal security and the security of our borders, ”the President said. President Ali pointed out that the government’s legislative agenda will be guided by creativity, innovation and boldness, all aimed at national wealth creation and sustainable prosperity. “All of these things will be driven, of course, by our drive to create a country that is competitive, one that is moving ahead on a technological footing, because digitisation, AI and all of these things are important in building this new country,” he explained. “We want to position our country as an eco-tourism hub, leading in food energy, and climate.” He described the coming parliamentary term as one that will be “driven by policies and programmes that are creative, innovative, visionary and a government that is pursuing a development path that is bold, that is aggressive and that would lead to national wealth creation and prosperity.” While it is customary for the President to address the opening of a new Parliament, Dr. Ali said he deliberately chose to allow the MPs to have their moment before making a formal address. “I wanted the Parliament to have its day today, to have the MPs sworn in and then subsequently, at some point, to have all of the administrative issues completed, which includes the election of an Opposition Leader and so on. “And after all of that is completed, I definitely will be addressing Parliament in a substantive way, outlining the vision, outlining the strategy and outlining where we want to position Guyana for all of that by 2030 — building a strong, resilient, sustainable country,” he explained.
