PPP issues more threats to GECOM
Opposition-nominated Commissioners Sase Gunraj, Bibi Shadick and Robeson Benn
Opposition-nominated Commissioners Sase Gunraj, Bibi Shadick and Robeson Benn

…commissioners condemn action as ‘cockeyed intimidation’

REPRESENTATIVES of the Opposition have been called out for a “cockeyed attempt” to intimidate the Chief Elections Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Keith Lowenfield, into commencing unauthorised election preparation activities.

This is even as President David Granger and Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo are still in the process of finalising a list of six eligible individuals from which the President will choose a new GECOM Chairman.

Even with these matters being common knowledge, Attorney-at-Law and Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Anil Nandlall, in a letter dated July 16, 2019, wrote to Lowenfield on behalf of Jagdeo demanding that the CEO commence elections preparations. “In compliance with the extraordinarily clear language of the CCJ, I hereby request that you immediately commence preparations for the holding of General and Regional Elections on a date no later than 18th day of September 2019,” Nandlall stated.

President David Granger and Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo during a previous engagement

“You must be aware that GECOM was made a party to the aforementioned legal proceedings by the CCJ so as to make the Orders of the Court directly binding on GECOM and, as the Chief Elections Officer, you are inextricably so bound. Therefore, any actions or omissions on your part which may be interpreted to be in violation or frustration of the letter and spirit of the Orders and judgements of the CCJ may expose you to contempt of Court proceedings.”

Nandlall made reference to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) June 18 decisions and its July 12 orders, the latter which indicated that while Cabinet must resign, the Government and President remain in place until new elections are held. Utilising the CCJ’s observance that a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly has not yet resolved to extend the stipulated three-month period for the holding of new elections in such cases, Nandlall pressed that elections ought to be held by September 18, 2019. That is exactly 63 days from today [June 17, 2019].

Nandlall’s letter mirrors a previous missive sent out by the three Opposition-nominated Commissioners on the Commission which called for Lowenfield to take the same action. Commissioners Sase Gunraj, Bibi Shadick and Robeson Benn, in a letter dated July 13, 2019, called on GECOM and Lowenfield to “immediately start preparations for elections” stating that non-adherence to this would “attract appropriate sanctions”.

Cockeyed threats
However, in response on July 16, Government-nominated Commissioners Vincent Alexander, Charles Corbin and Desmond Trotman referred to the demands sent out by the Opposition representatives as a “cockeyed attempt to intimidate the Chief Elections Officer”.

The Commissioners pointed out that, apart from preparation works already undertaken, it is only the Commission’s Chairman who can direct the GECOM Secretariat on further actions to be taken.

They stated that the “self- proclaimed partisan” Commissioners are well aware that the GECOM Secretariat has long now been given the directive to do “all in its powers” to acquire materials and undertake “non-statutory activities” in preparation for elections.

This, they noted, is following the December 21 no-confidence vote; prior to the last gathering at the CCJ and while a date for the new elections are yet to be named. The Commissioners stated that Gunraj, Shadick and Benn are well aware that statutory activities can only be undertaken if an election date has been determined and/or the relevant directive given to the CEO.

“They also know that GECOM requested supplementary funding for the early conduct of elections and that the National Assembly acquiesced to that request although the PPP/C absented itself from that sitting of the Assembly. So what are they calling for, apart from attempting to intimidate the Secretariat into action for which it has not been given a directive?” the Government-nominated Commissioners questioned.

Indeed, $3.4B was approved in the National Assembly in May 2019 for GECOM to conduct General and Regional elections, in keeping with a commitment from President David Granger to make provision for the same even while the no-confidence case was before the courts.

“Irrespective of the ruling of the CCJ, these monies will be made available to the Elections Commission for them to start the process of elections preparation,” Finance Minister, Winston Jordan had stated.

He noted that when the supplementary provision is added to the approximately $5.3B already received by GECOM, it shows that, for 2019, it was given approximately $8.8B in total, to facilitate General and Regional Elections which were constitutionally due in 2020.
The Commissioners stated that what ought to be given preference at this time is not the pretense ignorance of the law but adherence to it.

“What should be of concern is the need for a Chairman of the Commission to be appointed, for it is then and only then that the Secretariat can be given the relevant directives, some of which will be determined by the date on which the elections are proclaimed to be held. All that has been pointed out above is in keeping with the Rule of Law, rather than the cockeyed attempt to intimidate the Chief Elections Officer into action without the requisite basis or authority,” they stated.

Furthermore, Alexander said that the threat of the Opposition-nominated Commissioners of “appropriate sanctions” is baseless as a previous attempt to lay the same against Government-nominated Commissioners was thrown out the court.

On March 15, 2019, private criminal charges filed against the Commissioners by Attorney Sanjiv Datadin on behalf of Marcel Gaskin were dismissed by Chief Magistrate Ann Mc Lennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.

In the present situation, Alexander stated that the CCJ did not speak directly to Lowenfield but to the Commission which cannot fully function without a Chairman.

“The CEO, who they’re targeting, has to get instructions from the Commission. The last instruction he had was to do house-to-house [registration]; the Commission has not given him new instructions. The court didn’t speak directly to him so he cannot, because the court said ‘follow the Constitution’ change what he is doing on his own. He has to wait for the Commission to give him the necessary guidance; no Chairman, no Commission,” Alexander said.

Government-nominated Commissioners Vincent Alexander, Charles Corbin and Desmond Trotman

The post of GECOM Chair became vacant when the CCJ ruled on June 18, 2019 that the process used to appoint the former Chairman was “flawed”.

The President then accepted the former Chair’s resignation and has since met with the Opposition Leader to discuss the new selection and has instructed his representatives to engage representatives of the Opposition Leader in the same regard.

However, the urgings of the CCJ for the involved parties to act in “good faith” during the process, according to Director General at the Ministry of the Presidency, Joseph Harmon, seems to have meant little to the Opposition Leader.
Harmon is one of the President’s representatives in the matter and, last Friday, during a press briefing, stated that at the recent meeting of the representatives the “greatest displays of bad faith” were displayed.

He stated that while the President has given his commitment to engaging in these meetings and has entrusted his representatives with the powers to make decisions on behalf of him, the Opposition appears to be motivated by an obstructive agenda.
Thus far, while the President has shortlisted four names presented by Jagdeo for the post his representatives came with no intentions to discuss the eight names submitted by the President.

They remained obstinate on this position at the last meeting and, guided by the Opposition Leader, put forward that that matter be left up to Jagdeo and the President.
In an address to the nation on July 12, 2019, President Granger stated: “Representatives of both the Government and the Opposition have met three times this week. However, that good faith has not been reciprocated by the Leader of the Opposition.”

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