Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo says while there has been agreement between the government and opposition representatives not to disclose publicly the reasons why persons had been rejected for the post of chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission, he still expects President David Granger to “proffer objection reasons for his rejection”.
The two sides are to resume discussions on Thursday following two days of talks earlier this week on a replacement for retired justice James Patterson, whose appointment late last year was deemed to be flawed by the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) the country’s highest court.
In a statement issued here, Jagdeo gave details of the meeting held on Tuesday “when the views of the President’s representatives on the list of 11 names submitted by the Leader of the Opposition on Saturday, July 6, 2019, with regards to their “not unacceptability” were sought.”
The statement said “President Granger’s representatives advised that (1) Two names were under “active consideration” (2) Four names were shortlisted for possible consideration; and (3) Reasons for the rejection of five names were offered.
“However, efforts to ascertain if this meant that these six names were “not unacceptable” to the President were not successful. We were also seeking clarity on what “active consideration” means versus “shortlisted” and none was given,” the statement noted, adding that “the representatives of the Leader of the Opposition indicated that they will be bringing additional names, now that the review of the 11 names was almost completed”.
Jagdeo said “it was emphasized, repeatedly, by the Leader of the Opposition’s representatives at the meeting that the CCJ upheld the remit of the Leader of the Opposition to submit names, “not unacceptable” to the President, and that he did not have to offer reasons for his acceptance or rejection of names suggested informally by the President.
“At this stage of the negotiations, both sides agreed that the names and reasons for rejection would not be made public. However, in keeping with the CCJ ruling, President Granger must proffer objective reasons for his rejection, as stated in Paragraph 27 of the CCJ ruling which states that: “The President should only find a nominee unacceptable for some good reason on objective grounds,” Jagdeo added.
He said however “ the reasons for the rejection of the names may be made public at the appropriate time, if we feel that the reasons are not objective and in keeping with Paragraph 52 of the CCJ ruling, which states that: “In the absence of reasons of the President, the question why a list was rejected by the President would remain a mystery, not only to the Leader of the Opposition, who submitted the list, but generally to the people of Guyana”.
In an address to the nation on Tuesday, President Granger said he is intent on ensuring that “credible” elections are held here “at the earliest possible date,” but maintained that this would also depend on the appointment of a new GECOM chairman in keeping with the decision of the CCJ.
Granger said that the government’s side is adhering to the ruling of the CCJ and to the agreement with Jagdeo.
“The government side remains committed to continuing the dialogue and concluding the selection process within days to enable the Elections Commission to function. Once done, Guyanese can expect credible elections in the shortest possible time.
“The President, acting on the advice of the Elections Commission that it is ready to conduct elections, will proclaim a date for those elections. This necessitates the Chairman of GECOM being in place as early as possible,” Granger said.
Guyana has been forced into holding early regional and general elections after the CCJ ruled that a motion of no confidence passed against the government last December was valid. Under the Guyana Constitution, elections therefore must be held within a 90 day period.
