SENIOR Counse,l Mr. Ashton Chase yesterday agreed with observations by the Attorney General that, in Guyana, the electoral system is based on proportionality. Mr. Chase, along with the Deputy Solicitor General, Mr. Rameshwar Harnanan, is appearing with Attorney General, Anil Nandlall in the constitutional Motion he brought against Opposition Leaders regarding the composition of the Committee of Selection in Guyana’s 65 seat legislature.
Mr. Chase, unlike some Opposition members, is contending that the court has jurisdiction, not only to enquire, but to hear the entire motion.
He noted that in his motion, the Attorney General is seeking several orders in the matter of Articles, 8. 60, 119A, 19B and 160 of the Constitution of Guyana; the Standing Orders of the National Assembly of Guyana; and the Manual of the Rules, Procedures and Operations of Committees of the Parliament of Guyana.
Among them is a “declaration that all standing Committees and special select committees of the National Assembly of the 10th Parliament of Guyana are to be constituted in proportion to the number of seats which each particular party was allocated in the said National Assembly, based upon the results of the national and general elections held on November 28, 2011,and in accordance  with the provisions of Articles 60 and 160 of the Constitution of Guyana and the Provisions of the Election Laws (Amendment) Act Number 15 of 2000”.
The motion is also asking for an order to have the vote revoked, cancelled or annulled, since it violates the Constitution and election laws acts. The move to the court is one step by the government in confronting what it calls the “wrongdoings” of the opposition parliamentary parties.

At the next session of the court on Thursday, the Attorney General will further discuss the motion.