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Oneidge Walrond

October 29 ,2020

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Clerk of the National Assembly Sherlock Isaacs last evening said he is seeking legal advice on the documentation submitted by Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce Oneidge Walrond related to the renunciation of her US Citizenship.

“I received some documentation, I have looked at it and it is not as straightforward. And since I am not legally trained I am seeking legal advice before making any statement,” Isaacs told Stabroek News last evening when contacted.

Isaacs said that by way of letter he has since informed Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon that the matter is being looked at. He said the Opposition Chief Whip, Christopher Jones had written him on the matter on behalf of Harmon.

“I have to be very careful on these matters,” Isaacs said.

The Minister had submitted the documentation after Isaacs had reached out to her on the issue.

“I reached out to the Minister and she made a submission to me which is on my desk,” Isaacs had told Stabroek News on Tuesday. He had stated then that he had not yet read the documents presented.

Questions about the Minister’s eligibility to sit in the National Assembly were first raised last Friday when opposition members claimed that she had not renounced her American citizenship before becoming a Member of Parliament (MP).

The APNU+AFC in a statement on Saturday went so far as to demand that she either produce a certificate dated before her swearing in or resign her position.

On that same day, Walrond said that two weeks after she was invited to join the cabinet she wrote to the US Consular office renouncing her US citizenship with immediate effect.

She said she was then informed of the administrative procedure she was required to comply with in order to obtain a Certificate of Loss of Nationality.

“I complied with that process by August 27. I have since received the Certificate of Loss of Nationality,” Walrond had said via a public statement.

She did not provide the date of this certificate. If the date was after her swearing in as a parliamentarian it would mean that she was illegally sworn.

On Monday when he was approached on the issue President Irfaan Ali had this to say: …I am very comfortable that Minister Oneidge did what she had to do. Minister Oneidge is an honourable woman and before she was sworn in she came and advised the president of her dual citizenship…”

Since Article 155 of the Constitution prohibits dual citizens from becoming MPs it has been argued that the President should have withdrawn the offer on learning of her status. He however did not and has said  that his minister has nothing to hide as she is not in a category of persons who went to the elections on a slate and did not renounce their citizenship.

Walrond has been sworn in as a technocrat Minister under the provisions of Article 123 of the Constitution which states that she must comply with the requirement under Article 155.

The constitutional injunction against MPs holding dual citizenship was upheld in the case brought last year against Charrandass Persaud and which ended up at the Caribbean Court of Justice. Since then, political parties and Parliament Office have reiterated that dual citizens cannot sit in Parliament.

Isaacs had previously written to all members of the 12th Parliament asking that they submit documented proof that they were eligible to sit in the House before their swearing in. This information had been provided by Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Gail Teixeira, Leader of the Opposition Joseph Harmon and Lenox Shuman.

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@Ramakant-P posted:

It was GECOM's responsibility to check for dual citizenship when the various parties submitted their electoral lists

Walrond wasn't on the list.  She was drafted as a technocrat.  She is a lawyer and even sought legal advice and yet proceeded to break the law with the approval of the crooked president.  She has to go. 

T

Clerk of National Assembly is correctly seeking legal advice

October 30 ,2020

Source

Dear Editor,

I have read with much interest the steps that Minister Walrond stated she took to renounce U. S. citizenship. I am certain that she had the intent, but the reality is that renunciation is a serious (generally irrevocable) step and cannot be completed by evincing a mere intent or by executing an affidavit.

There is a formal process as described in Section 349(a)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. One has to make a “formal renunciation of nationality before a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States in a foreign state, in such form as may be prescribed by the Secre-tary of State.” After the oath of renunciation is signed before the officer, a Certificate of Loss of Nationality is then issued. That and only that completes the process.  

The issue then is this: what date does Ms. Walrond’s Certificate of Loss of Nationality bear?  Is it after she actually took the oath to sit in parliament in Guyana? If so, then is that flaw cured by her current status?

Mr. Sherlock Isaacs, Clerk of the National Assembly, is correctly seeking legal advice.  The rulings on this issue need to be revisited for clarity.  Ms. Walrond should do the same as to how to proceed expeditiously and not let this matter play out in the media.

Yours faithfully,

Dolly Hassan, Ph.D., Esq.

Django

The Clerk is the chief permanent officer of the Legislative Assembly. An expert in parliamentary rules and procedures, the Clerk advises the Speaker and Members of Provincial Parliament on questions of procedure and interpretation of the rules and practices of the House.

If he is the expert why is he seeking legal advice?

R

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