…no confidence vote, appointment of GECOM chair matters for oral arguments

THE challenge to the Court of Appeal’s decision to invalidate the Vote of No-Confidence against the David Granger Administration is among high profile cases that would be heard in the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) this week.

“The Court will hear a case concerning the freedom of movement of Caribbean citizens as well as two sets of cases from Guyana concerning last December’s no-confidence motion and the appointment of Guyana’s Elections Commission Chairman,” the CCJ detailed in a statement on Monday.

On Thursday May 9 and Friday May 10, the CCJ will hear oral arguments in three consolidated matters which stemmed from the December 21 No-Confidence Motion in the National Assembly of Guyana. On the night debates on the controversial motion ended, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr. Barton Scotland, declared that the motion was passed by a majority of 33 votes. Thirty-two (32) Government Members of Parliament had objected to the motion. This decision was challenged in the High Court, which upheld the Speaker’s ruling. However, the Court of Appeal by a 2-1 margin ruled that the vote was of no effect on the grounds that the Parliamentary Opposition needed an absolute majority of 34 or more votes to defeat the Government. The Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo; an ex-Government MP, Charrandass Persaud and political activist, Christopher Ram are now challenging the decision of the Court of Appeal at the level of the CCJ. The CCJ, in its final determination, will indicate whether 34 votes were required to carry the motion. Another disputed issue is whether one of the then Members of Parliament, Charrandass Persaud, who voted in favour of the motion, was ineligible to vote because he held dual citizenship.
The three consolidated cases are: Christopher Ram v The Attorney General, the Leader of the Opposition, Joseph Harmon and the Guyana Elections Commission; Bharrat Jagdeo v The Attorney General, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Joseph Harmon and the Guyana Elections Commission; and Charrandass Persaud v Compton Reid, the Speaker of the National Assembly, the Attorney General, Bharrat Jagdeo, Joseph Harmon and the Guyana Elections Commission. The Coalition Government, through the Attorney General, has filed a cross appeal. Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams and a battery of lawyers are representing the Government.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday May 8, at 10:00hrs, the CCJ will hear a constitutional appeal brought by People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Executive Secretary Zulfikar Mustapha who is challenging the circumstances of the appointment of the Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission, Justice (Ret’d) James Patterson. Mustapha is contending that Patterson’s appointment by President David Granger breaches aspects of the Constitution. Mustapha was unsuccessful in both the High Court and Court of Appeal and has appealed to the CCJ.
On Tuesday May 7, the Court will hear the Application of David Bain, a national of Grenada, who alleges that his right to freedom of movement was infringed when he was refused entry into Trinidad and Tobago. Bain is also a citizen of the United States. “On entering Trinidad and Tobago he had presented his US passport to immigration officials at the airport. The issue being probed is whether his presentation of a Grenadian driver’s licence or national identification card was sufficient to establish his Grenadian citizenship and so trigger his right to freedom of movement as a CARICOM national,” the CCJ explained. The hearing will begin at 10:00hrs.