Skip to playerSkip to main content
CCNTV6
  • 6 months ago
President Christine Kangaloo has presented her 5-item wish list at the opening of the 13th Parliament.

She expresses hope that kindness would be more heavily factored into leadership in the country, with three women now sitting at the helm.

Alicia Boucher has the details.
Transcript
00:00President Christine Kangaloo congratulates the government for the resounding majority they managed to secure in the 2025 general election,
00:08calling on them to use it well for the benefit of the country.
00:11She believes the fact that three women, namely Prime Minister Kamala Passat-Bissessa,
00:16opposition leader Penelope Beckles-Robinson and herself,
00:19historically sitting in the top leadership positions in the parliament,
00:22might be a sign of what the public is looking forward to.
00:25Might well be speaking to a deeper national union for all of us to show greater kindness and grace to one another
00:33and to the hope that female leadership at this time might well be an important impetus in getting us there.
00:42With female leadership manifesting itself in this way in the parliament,
00:47the country's hopes are understandably high for a parliament and for a system of government
00:53that functions more collaboratively and embracingly and with less of the bitterness and hostility
00:59than we have sometimes seen in the past.
01:03I think we should be careful not to disappoint that hope.
01:07And as such, she calls for the inclusivity that has been stated by both the Prime Minister and opposition leader
01:13to be more than an aspiration and instead a reality.
01:17During the previous parliamentary opening, President Kangaloo spoke on the issue of crime
01:21and called for it to be addressed through collaboration and the putting aside of political rivalry in this area.
01:27I renew that call today with even greater urgency,
01:32but with greater hope in light of the initial signals from the leadership of both the government
01:37and the opposition, that we might well be at the start of a parliament
01:42in which there is the chance of more meaningful collaboration than before.
01:47She states that this is also vital in getting the economy to blossom.
01:52President Kangaloo has also put forward her wish list.
01:55At the top of that, the hope that this country can lead the way for the region in artificial intelligence regulation
02:01as she makes mention of the serious risks attached to not doing so.
02:05AI can pose a variety of social and economic risks.
02:10These include displacing large segments of the workforce,
02:14concentrating economic power in the hands of a few dominant players,
02:18and exacerbating inequality.
02:21Second on her wish list is for legislation to implement enduring powers of attorney.
02:26She explains that when people begin to exhibit symptoms of illnesses such as Alzheimer's,
02:30the power of attorney ceases, forcing relatives to go through a tedious and expensive process
02:36to be able to act on behalf of the family member.
02:39Enduring powers of attorney will continue to be valid in those cases once implemented.
02:44The president also calls for what she says is badly needed legislation
02:47to better the lives of people with disabilities.
02:50President Kangaloo also lends her voice to discourse on the government's intention
02:55to dismantle the demerit point system.
02:57The demerit point systems in general have the goal of safeguarding road users.
03:06Road accidents cause death and disabilities.
03:09They also cause unbearable mental anguish and long-lasting trauma.
03:14Kangaloo shares that her only sister was killed in a road traffic accident in 1993.
03:20And then in 2012, her brother, acting Chief Justice Wendell Kangaloo,
03:24was in a road traffic accident where he was critically injured.
03:28He succumbed to his injuries in 2013.
03:30It can happen to any of us.
03:33I therefore plead with Parliament that whatever is done in this area,
03:38Parliament commits to ensuring enhanced safety on our nation's roads
03:42and to reducing road fatalities and related injuries.
03:46And finally, President Kangaloo calls on the government
03:49to consider amending the legislation that governs the operations of the service commissions.
03:55As the 13th Parliament opened,
03:57Attorney at Law Jagdao Singh was sworn in as the new Speaker of the House of Representatives,
04:02while Dr. Aina Ali is the new Deputy Speaker of the House.
04:06Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
Be the first to comment
Add your comment