GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Less than a week after he resigned as a Member of Parliament and minister of state, Joseph Harmon has been appointed Director General in Ministry of Presidency.
A government statement said that Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo made the announcement of the new position during the government’s outreach programme in the mining town of Linden on Tuesday.
Harmon, who held dual citizen, was one of four government ministers who tendered their resignations after the High Court and the Court of Appeal ruled that persons with dual citizenship could not serve as a legislator.
The statement said that Harmon attended Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting that was chaired by President David Granger, where his new portfolio was formally announced to Cabinet.
He later told a function that he did not choose to resign to avoid renunciation.
Harmon said that as a result of the court proceedings following the December 21, 2018 vote of no confidence in the government, it was found that the Constitution provides that “no person who has sworn allegiance to another state can be in the National Assembly.
“This meant several persons who were in government and held dual citizenship, had to renounce,” he said, adding that the process of renouncing requires a certain number of applications and is done over a period of time.
Harmon said he had written to President Granger indicating that his renunciation process had strated.
“I wrote to him and said I have commenced the process of renunciation of US citizenship and therefore by the time we come around to the next elections, I will go back into the Parliament,” he added. – CMC
