Local News

‘It’s not comfortable for us’ – PNC defends closure of Opposition Leader’s Office despite $32.5M funding from Govt

03 February 2025
This content originally appeared on INews Guyana.
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Shurwayne Holder, Chairman of the Peoples National Congress (PNC) – the largest party in the parliamentary opposition – has defended the constant closure of the Leader of the Opposition’s Office on Regent Street, Georgetown.

During the consideration of the budget estimates on Monday, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Gail Teixeira raised concerns over the constant closure of the building.

It was disclosed that the government is paying some $400,000 every month to rent the space for the Leader of the Opposition Aubrey Norton and his team to operate from.

In fact, it was disclosed that a total of $32.5 million was given to the Leader of the Opposition’s Office last year to execute its duties. This sum was again approved for 2025.

Asked about the situation, Holder admitted to this publication that “the office is opened from time to time.”

“But the problem with the office is that it is very small for what we want to do and the allocation is just about $400,000…$400,000 in Georgetown just gets you a small space and so, it is not suitable, it is not convenient, it is not comfortable for us,” he explained.

In this regard, Holder contended that, “if you see it closed or we are not using it for certain purposes, understand the reason why.”

Shurwayne Holder

The PNC Chair said if elected into government, his party would increase the allocation to the Leader of the Opposition, a constitutional position.