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List of speakers of the National Assembly of Guyana

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Speaker of the National Assembly of Guyana
Incumbent
Manzoor Nadir
since 1 September 2020
StyleThe Honourable
Mr. Speaker
Comrade Speaker[1]
AppointerMembers of the National Assembly of Guyana
Term lengthDuring the life of the National Assembly
(usually 5 years)
Constituting instrumentArticle 56 of the Constitution of Guyana
PrecursorLegislature of British Guiana
Inaugural holderAubrey Percival Alleyne (1966–1967)
Formation1966
(as the National Assembly of Guyana)
DeputyDeputy Speaker of the National Assembly
Websiteparliament.gov.gy

The Speaker is the presiding officer of the National Assembly in Guyana. The post was created in 1966 when the National Assembly came into being, although previous legislatures including the Legislative Council, House of Assembly, and the Legislative Assembly also had Speakers.

The position of Speaker was introduced in 1953 following constitutional reforms that created the House of Assembly. The Speaker was initially appointed by the Governor, but following the 1961 constitutional reforms, was elected by members of the legislature. The first elected Speaker, Rahman Baccus Gajraj, was not a member of the Legislative Assembly.[2] The second, Aubrey Percival Alleyne, was a member of the House of Assembly, and after election as Speaker, resigned from his role as an elected member and was replaced by the next person on the party's list.

The Speaker initially wore a full-bottomed wig and ceremonial gown, with the practice ceasing in 1969.[2] The Speaker's Chair was a gift from the Government of India on 15 November 1966 to celebrate Guyanese independence.[2]

List of speakers

[edit]
Name Entered office Left office Notes
House of Assembly
Eustace Gordon Woolford 7 April 1953 21 December 1953 [3]
Interim Legislative Council
Eustace Gordon Woolford 5 January 1954 29 June 1957 [3]
Legislative Council
Donald Edward Jackson 21 August 1957 18 July 1961 [3]
Legislative Assembly
Rahman Baccus Gajraj 5 October 1961 25 September 1964 [3]
House of Assembly
Aubrey Percival Alleyne 31 December 1964 26 May 1966 [3]
National Assembly
Aubrey Percival Alleyne 26 May 1966 4 August 1967 [3]
Rahman Baccus Gajraj 16 February 1968 4 January 1971 [3]
Sase Narain 4 January 1971 10 June 1992 [3]
Derek Chunilall Jagan 17 December 1992 15 October 2000 [3]
Martin Zephyr 23 October 2000 15 February 2001 [3]
Hari Narayen Ramkaran 4 May 2001 12 January 2012 [3]
Raphael Trotman 12 January 2012 10 June 2015 [3]
Barton Scotland 10 June 2015 1 September 2020 [3]
Manzoor Nadir 1 September 2020 Incumbent [4]

Note

[edit]
  • Jagan died in office. Deputy speaker, Clarissa Riehl, served as acting speaker 15–23 October 2000 until a successor was elected.[5]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ https://parliament.gov.gy/Standing%20Orders%20of%20the%20National%20Assembly%20-%202014.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  2. ^ a b c Historical information events and dates on the Parliament of Guyana from 1718 to 2006 Parliament of Guyana
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Staff Reporter (11 June 2015). "Dr Barton Scotland elected as Speaker of National Assembly". Guyana Chronicle.
  4. ^ "Manzoor Nadir declared Speaker of the National Assembly". Stabroek News. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
  5. ^ "Guyana Parliament". www.guide2womenleaders.com.