REGISTRAR of Deeds, Azeena Baksh, will today make another court appearance on a charge of obtaining money by false pretense.
The keenly-watched case was first called in May this year, but it has been delayed due to the prosecution indicating that the file was not ready then to commence the trial.

Baksh was released on $250,000 bail by Chief Magistrate, Ann McLennan. Baksh, 33, of Eccles, East Bank Demerara had denied that while being employed by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) between May 1, 2014 and January 31, 2017 in Georgetown, she caused or procured valuable securities in the sum of $4.5M to be delivered to her Nova Scotia bank account for her own use, pretending she was a contracted employee at the Deeds Registry.

Policeman, Arvin Moore, is prosecuting the case. The Attorney General’s Office had said that Baksh was appointed Acting Registrar of Deeds from July 16, 2012 with a stipulated salary of $326,171 monthly and was entitled to duty, entertainment and house allowances, as well as subsistence allowance when working out-of-district; duty-free concession every three years, leave passage allowance and 42 days annual vacation leave.

Additionally, she was entitled to security at her residence, paid residential and mobile phone charges and monthly internet service charges. There was no mention by the JSC of a bi-annual gratuity as she was employed on the fixed establishment. In May 2014, the Deeds Registry was merged with the Commercial Registry pursuant to the Deeds and Commercial Registries Authority Act No. 4/ 2013.

BACK ON THE JOB
Meanwhile, despite being instructed, Baksh has been reporting for duties and ignoring a directive to proceed on leave. Baksh, who is the daughter of former junior Agriculture Minister, Ali Baksh, of Essequibo, has long been resisting being sent on administrative leave pending the outcome of the court case. At a management meeting hosted by the Attorney General earlier this year, Baksh was asked to proceed on administrative leave to facilitate an investigation into the matter. The AG also instructed that Zanna Frank, Deputy Registrar, perform the functions of Registrar of Deeds. However, in a missive dated April 13, 2017 and addressed to Williams, Baksh made it clear that she was employed by the JSC and as a result will not proceed on administrative leave.

However, in response to a JSC’s letter dated April 26, 2017, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Legal Affairs, Delma Nedd, noted that the Deeds Registry functions under the Deeds and Commercial Registries Authority Act No. 4 of 2013. Additionally, the permanent secretary reminded the JSC that it is the Minister of Legal Affairs who has oversight of the Authority and the Act empowers him to inter alia, appoint an assistant Deeds Registrar and other staff, appoint the Board of Authority and exercise general administrative powers and control over the Authority. “This means that the entire administrative measures on the Registrar of Deeds appointed by the JSC and other Registry staff appointed by the Attorney General vest squarely in the Attorney General,” she stated.

Nedd said she was advised that the instruction by the Attorney General for Baksh to proceed on administrative leave, is “quite valid and legal in the sense that the Attorney General, under the Act, needs to administratively enquire about this complaint before passing his recommendations to the JSC.” She continued: “I am advised that the Judicial Service Commission, once it has appointed a person as Registrar, cannot usurp the powers of the Attorney General under the Act to administratively investigate any allegations against the Registrar. The JSC shall only have to wait until the Attorney General conducts his administrative investigations and makes his recommendations to them. It is then that the JSC will invoke its power under Article 199 (1) of the Constitution.