The sittings of the 6th Annual Youth Parliament end on Wednesday after two days of strong and passionate debates amongst the Youth Parliamentarians in both the junior and senior categories.
The Youth Parliamentarians in the junior category were given the opportunity to debate a total of four motions: The Safe Usage of Guyana’s Roadways, The Re-opening of Traditional Schools, the Allocation of Funds to Sport and the Continued Training of Athletes and the Introduction of Legislation to Address Cyberbullying amongst Juveniles.
On the first day of the junior sittings, the Youth Parliamentarians extensively expressed their approval for the motion of Safe Usage of Guyana’s Roadways. After the debates, the motion which was proposed by the government, was passed. Consequently, the House thereafter called on citizens to exercise extreme care when using the roadways.
The second day of the Junior sittings revealed a more relaxed, yet intense round of debates. Students who hail from various regions strongly debated, particularly, the motion which was crafted to allocate funds to the Sports industry. At the end of the passionate debates, Government member of Parliament Deidre Perreira voted in support of the motion brought to the House by the Opposition, causing the motion to be passed.
Former Member of Parliament Africo Selman, who served as one of the judges for the Junior sittings, congratulated the students for their exemplary speeches and presentations in the debates. Selman encouraged the “potential leaders” to continue to be leaders in their own communities, whilst sharing tips for the students to improve their public speaking.
“You have done extremely well…the knowledge you have gained will enhance your life in a positive way,” she noted.
Chief Judge of the Junior Sittings and Former Member of Parliament John Adams, at the end of the debates, delivered the points given to each side of the house, noting that government won the debates for 1st Sitting and the opposition won the debates for the 2nd Junior sitting.
The Senior category, also hosted in two sittings spanning between Tuesday and Wednesday, debated more complexed motions with the government side coming out as the eventual winners of the debates.
Chief judge of the senior sitting, Former Minister Carl Greenidge also congratulated the senior Youth Parliamentarians for their outstanding work and attention to detail. “I thought that the presentations, especially on the legal side…was particularly impressive…the quality of the presentations allround was formally very very good,” Greenidge elaborated.
The Senior Youth Parliamentarians debated seven motions; The Constitutionality of the Death Penalty; The Benefits of Migration to Guyana; Climate Change and Guyana’s Tourism Industry; Liberalization of the Energy Sector; Covid-19 and Mental Health; Mitigating Flooding in Guyana; and Consideration of a Feasibility Study for the Establishment of an Oil Refinery.