– requests Nandlall, Attorney General submit written submissions

ATTEMPTS by People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Executive and Attorney-at-Law, Anil Nandlall to counteract an application by the government to strike out the PPP’s application which seeks to block the holding of Local Government Elections in several districts has failed.

The government’s application filed by the Attorney General Chambers would be heard at 9:00hrs on Wednesday, October 10, 2018 in the High Court before Justice Gino Persaud.

The government is seeking a declaration that the court, pursuant to Part 9.01 (1) of the Civil Procedure Rules 2016, lacks jurisdiction to hear and determine the fixed date application filed on September 10, 2018 by Nandlall on behalf of GECOM Commissioner for the Opposition, Bibi Shadick. The PPP sponsored application raises the allegations of irregularities and illegalities questioning the validity of the Local Government Elections to be held on November 12, 2018 until after the Local Government Elections are held the election process having begun on July 18, 2018 and then by way of an election petition.
When the case was called on Thursday at the High Court before Justice Persaud, Nandlall made two submissions, one, that the court does not have the jurisdiction to entertain the application by the government which seeks to question its jurisdiction to hear the substantive matter, and two, the application by the government lacks merit.

Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Basil Williams, who was accompanied by Solicitor General, Kim Kyte and a battery of lawyers, argued that Nandlall was attempting to make a very strange application.

Noting that government came prepared to make its submissions, the attorney general said that the court must first hear the submissions of the applicant – in this case – the government – after which the respondent is allowed to give his response. Essentially, Nandlall told the court that he would not be submitting an affidavit in response.
It was subsequently agreed in the court, that the applicant must first put its case before the court. Justice Persaud asked the government to make written submissions on October 5, 2018 and for Nandlall to submit his response on October 8, 2018. The matter will be called again on October 10.

Outside the court room, Nandlall clarified that while he will not be filing an Affidavit in Response, he will be submitting “written submissions of law.”

“I will be arguing by way of legal submissions that this application filed by the attorney general is a colossal waste of judicial time, has no merit, is frivolous, vexatious, and outrageous,” he said.

Nandlall is contending too that the solicitor general has already submitted to the jurisdiction of the court. “The last time the matter was heard, the solicitor general appeared, took a date, and participated in a hearing, and not once did she indicate that the court does not have jurisdiction,” he said.

The attorney general told the Guyana Chronicle that government never accepted the jurisdiction of the court. “Mr. Nandlall, obviously didn’t read the rule. The rule tells you that you could make the application before the defence is filed, so even though the solicitor general asked to file a defence is doesn’t preclude us from coming with an application,” Minister Williams explained.

In his application filed to strike out the Fixed Date Application filed by Nandlall on behalf of the PPP GECOM Commissioner, he argued that elections statutes created by the Parliament of Guyana and as set out in the Municipal and District Councils Act Cap 28:01, the Local Government Act Cap 28:02, the Local Authorities (Elections) Act Cap 28:03 and the Local Democratic Organs Act Cap 28:09 of the Laws of Guyana do not give the High Court any jurisdiction to settle or determine any matter pertaining to the validity of the LGE 2018 until after the elections are held.

“The procedure set out in Part IV and Section 146, section 147 and 148 of the Local Authorities (Elections) Act of Chapter 28:03 of the Laws of Guyana provides that the only proper procedure to dispute the validity of the election or the election of a councillor is by way of election petition to the High Court, which shall be presented within 28 days of the publication of the results of the election, under section 101 of the Local Authorities (Elections Act) Cap 28:03.”

The PPP is alleging that Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan had failed to issue an order for the holding of Local Government Elections under the Local Democratic Organs Act Cap. 28.09, as well as against the chief elections officer for inter alia demarcating and redemarcating constituencies’ boundaries without consultations with electors, stakeholders and political parties.