CCJ sets July 12 for decision on consequential orders
President of the Caribbean Court of Justice, Justice Adrian Saunders
President of the Caribbean Court of Justice, Justice Adrian Saunders

The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) on Monday set aside July 12, 2019 as the date when it would make a decision on the consequential orders regarding its recent ruling on last December’s no confidence motion and accompanying legal processes.

CCJ President , Justice Adrian Saunders , in making the pronouncement , urged both parties involved in the case, mainly the President and the Leader of the Opposition, to meet in order to find common ground for a way forward.

The timeline given by the regional court was based on request from Attorney General , Basil Williams and  the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) attorney in the matter, Senior Counsel Stanley Marcus.

All parties in the matter have been asked to make submissions to the CCJ on or before July 1, 2019.Justice Saunders urged that they not be overly lengthy submissions.

On Monday, Marcus stated during the hearing that the parties be given a week to meet and discuss the way forward. He noted that the likelihood of elections which are not credible could be the outcome if all the parties involved are not given an opportunity to work together.“We are aiming at credible elections,” he said.

The Attorney General told the CCJ that immediately following the CCJ’s ruling recently,  President David Granger immediately wrote the Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo regarding a meeting but he noted that the President’s correspondence has received no response.

The CCJ ruled last week that last December’s no confidence motion was validly passed in the National Assembly. It also ruled in the case regarding the appointment of the Chairman of GECOM, Justice James Patterson, that his appointment was flawed.

Following the ruling last week,the Opposition had proposed the immediate resignation of the government; the holding of elections in three months; and the utilisation of a claims and objections exercise to finalise the voters’ list.

The Government, in its proposal, has acknowledged that the Motion of No-Confidence debated in the National Assembly on December 21, 2018 was validly passed in accordance with Article 106 of the Constitution.

However, it has stated that “The Government, including the President, Prime Minister, Ministers and Cabinet shall remain in office until a President is sworn in after elections have been held.”

 

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