The opposition A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), which holds 12 of the Opposition’s 29 seats in Guyana’s 13th Parliament, on Friday said the governing People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has systematically weakened one of Parliament’s most important oversight bodies, arguing that changes to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) have effectively insulated the government from scrutiny of billions of dollars in public spending.

The position was outlined in a statement read by APNU Member of Parliament Juretha Fernandes at a press conference, where she described the government’s handling of the PAC as “an assault on democracy” and urged citizens to defend parliamentary accountability, warning that the committee has been rendered ineffective by rules that allow government members to prevent meetings simply by staying away.

“The A Partnership for National Unity Coalition calls on all right-thinking Guyanese to recognize and resist one of the most serious attacks on parliamentary accountability in our country today: the deliberate weakening and stymying of the Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly,” Fernandes read from the coalition’s statement.