The National Assembly of Guyana has elected chairs for eight parliamentary committees, a procedural step that formally activates the legislature's oversight functions under the 13th Parliament. Speaker Manzoor Nadir convened the elections, constituting four Standing Committees and four Sectoral Committees. The move brings the parliament into full operational readiness, equipping it to audit government accounts, review state appointments, and examine policy delivery across key sectors.

The Public Accounts Committee, which holds responsibility for auditing public accounts and overseeing the work of the Auditor General, will be chaired by Vishnu Panday of the opposition-aligned WIN grouping. Panday's selection aligns with the standard practice in Westminster-style governance, where an opposition representative leads the PAC to ensure autonomous oversight of state finances.

Attorney General Anil Nandlall will chair the Constitutional Reform Committee, the body tasked with reviewing and proposing amendments to Guyana's constitution. Nandlall, as the government's senior law officer, will lead deliberations on the country's founding legal framework, though the committee's composition will include members across party lines. The Appointments Committee, which handles nominations to constitutional commissions, will be led by Minister Gail Teixeira. Prime Minister Mark Phillips has been appointed chair of the Security Sector Oversight Committee, giving the head of government direct stewardship over parliamentary review of the country's security apparatus.

The four Sectoral Committees, which are charged with ensuring government programmes serve the national interest, reflect a more evenly divided arrangement between the ruling party and opposition. The Economic Services Committee will be chaired by Duarte Hetsberger of WIN, and the Foreign Relations Committee by fellow opposition member Odessa Primus, also of WIN. On the government side, Minister Dr Vindhya Persaud will lead the Social Services Committee, while Minister Vickram Bharrat takes the chair of the Natural Resources Committee. The sector Bharrat oversees is of particular weight given Guyana's expanding offshore oil production, which has substantially altered the country's fiscal position in recent years.

The Parliament Office has confirmed that the formal constitution of these committees marks the transition of the National Assembly from a body primarily focused on passing legislation into one actively engaged in ongoing oversight. The committees are now legally empowered to compel the production of documents, examine the administration of state entities, and call ministry officials for questioning on policy implementation. That function had been suspended pending the committee elections, meaning a range of scrutiny work was on hold since the parliament's opening.

The committees are expected to begin scheduling hearings in the coming weeks. For opposition members holding chairs, the positions carry procedural authority to set agendas and call witnesses, representing one of the more consequential levers available to them within the current parliamentary configuration. Whether those powers translate into substantive accountability will depend on how aggressively committee members pursue their mandates and how readily the government responds to requests for information.