President Dr Irfaan Ali on Friday instructed that the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) Bill that was tabled in the National Assembly earlier this week be sent to a parliamentary Special Select Committee in order to get feedback from stakeholders.
This announcement was made by the Head of State in a post on his Facebook page.
He explained that this instruction was passed onto Parliamentary Affairs and Governance Minster, Gail Teixeira, who serves as Government’s Chief Whip in the National Assembly as well as to Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall, SC, who tabled the NISA Bill on Monday.
The President said he wants the views and ideas of all stakeholders on this proposed legislation to be examined.
“I am aware of the importance of this Bill, but equally committed to ensuring the fulsome nature of the Bill is understood and that interested stakeholders be given the opportunity to contribute to it,” the Guyanese Leader posited.
In recent days, there has been controversy over the establishment of NISA. However, President Ali had explained on Wednesday that the agency had been in existence for over a decade.
At the time of its establishment in 2010, under the Bharrat Jagdeo Administration, the agency was named the Central Intelligence Unit (CIU), and there were calls then for there to be legislation to govern this body. However, in 2015, under the David Granger presidency, this unit was integrated into the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) established by the then A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, again, without the relevant laws to govern the functioning of this body.
This, according to AG Nandlall, is something that the Ali-led Administration is now trying to change.
“For 13 years, this agency has been functioning; performing largely the same functions which are outlined in the Bill but it had no governance structure, it had no statutory framework and apparently people didn’t know about it. Now, this Bill seeks to remove that clock of apparent secrecy and to bring a transparent legal structure into being and to establish an accountable framework in respect of the agency itself and those who will man and comprise the agency,” the Attorney General stated.
Nandlall pointed out that over the years and under different Governments, NISA had been headed by various persons with members such as former Police Commissioner Leslie James and Assistant Commissioner of Police, Royston Andres Junor.
“It continued during the APNU/AFC Government. Bruce Lovell, a senior officer from the Guyana Defence Force, was heading [NISA] at that time during the APNU/AFC years in Government… It has been funded by public-funding since then. So, 13 years or more this agency has been getting monies from the Parliament and in the Committee of Supply, the allocations of these funds have been explained,” the Minister stated.
Up to recently, NISA was headed by Colonel Omar Khan of the Guyana Defence Force. He took over the helm of the agency from Lovell, who resigned shortly after the change of Government in 2020.
However, President Ali on Wednesday hinted that the agency will soon get a new Head since Colonel Khan will now be heading the GDF as the current Chief-of-Staff, Brigadier Godfrey Bess, proceeds on pre-retirement leave.
“You don’t have to worry about [Mr Khan heading two agencies at the same time]. When Mr Khan assumes his new responsibility [as Chief-of-Staff of the GDF], of course, we will have other persons taking up that responsibility [at NISA],” the Head of State told reporters.
The NISA Is currently operating out of the Castellani House in Georgetown.
Since the tabling of the Bill in the National Assembly, Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton has heavily criticised the proposed legislation.
“From our standpoint, it is retrogressive, it is dictatorial and it’s not going to promote security. It is going to result in political harassment; harassment to citizens and violation of their rights,” Norton had stated.
But Nandlall contended that said these controversies surrounding the NISA Bill are rooted in “ignorance” and some level of “paranoia”. In fact, he posited that the only criticism on this topic should have been the length of time it took to bring the legislative framework in place to govern the operations of the agency.
The NISA Bill provides for the creation of an Intelligence Agency that will, among other things, protect Guyana against espionage, terrorism, and sabotage.
The agency will also protect against agents within or outside of Guyana, as well as against foreign powers seeking to undermine the State. There is also scope for the agency to collaborate with other foreign agencies in the interest of national security.
The Bill spells out the agency’s functions, which include to “collect information of national intelligence and security interest that provides a basis for decision making and preventative actions; gather, store, process, analyse and disseminate information that is relevant to national intelligence and security; conduct analysis of information of national interest and security interest.”
Additionally, the agency’s functions are to “maintain a national database of information of national intelligence and security; conduct relevant research to enhance efficiency in information management and all matters relating to national intelligence and security; provide national intelligence estimates and intelligence and security advice to the President… provide support to investigations of matters pertaining to threats to national intelligence and security.”
Additionally, the proposed legislations also provide for the President to appoint the head of NISA. It also caters to the establishment of an Intelligence and Security Committee, which will have oversight over the conduct of NISA.
This committee will have three members appointed by the President. These include a nominee from the President, a nominee from the Opposition Leader after consulting with other Opposition parties in the National Assembly, and a nominee from civil society.
