UNC-A MPs end boycott of Parliament, back to work Friday

The opposition United National Congress Alliance (UNC-A) is ending its boycott of Parliament and retuning to work on Friday. The party announced the end of the short-lived boycott at a news conference Wednesday and noted that it has more than two dozens questions for the government.

MPs refused to attend last Friday's sitting of the House of Representatives after a senior police officer prevented Opposition leader Basdeo Panday from entering the precincts of Parliament on instructions from Speaker Barendra Sinanan.

Sinanan gave the instructions based on his decision the week before to suspend Panday from the House for the remainder of the current session, which ends in December.

The Speaker ordered Panday suspended for disrespecting the chair with regard to the use of his laptop computer.

Panday has insisted that the Speaker's actions were politically motivated and an attempt to silence the opposition.The UNC-A is considering taking legal action against the Speaker.

UNC-A supporters have been lining up to offer support for Panday and MPs have roundly criticized both the Speaker and members of the governing People's national Movement (PNM) over the 'laptop affair'.

In the most recent condemnation, Panday's daughter, Mickela, who is the parliamentary representative for Oropouche West has denounced Sinanan's actions as "tyrannical.

A statement from the constituency executive called the suspension "ultra vires and illegal"

The statement said: "We are of the view that the Speaker's actions revealed his biased and politically motivated intentions against Mr Panday and the Opposition, and that his decision to suspend Mr Panday until the end of the year proves that his sole purpose was to attempt to weaken the Opposition by eliminating its leadership in the Parliament."