…parties urged to hammer out consensus to guide process

The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), having upheld the No-Confidence vote against Government and simultaneously quashing the appointment of Justice (Ret’d) James Patterson as Chairman of the Guyana Elections, will make a number of consequential orders on Monday.

However, it has given the parties in the two cases an opportunity to meet and hammer out a consensus before the court gives those orders. “We propose that between now and the 24th, the parties engage with each other, and on the 24th we will hear submissions from the parties or we would hear from the parties on that issue of the consequential relief,” President of the Caribbean Court of Justice, Justice Adrian Saunders said moments after handing down the judgments on Tuesday

“We would afford counsel an opportunity to address the court in particular on the consequential orders that the courts should make in relation to the conclusion of the court on the Zulfikar Matter.

Maintaining that the findings of the CCJ are final, Justice Saunders expressed the hope that the parties in the two cases would arrive at a consensus. “If between now and the 24th (June) there is no concurrence on that issue, then we will have to find a way,” Justice Saunders told the Legal Counsel.

During the presentation of the oral arguments in May, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), signaled to the CCJ its willingness to have Justice (Ret’d) Patterson remain in office to facilitate early elections if it was found that his appointment was unconstitutional.

“What I would ask the court to do if the court does come to that conclusion is to hear the parties again on what further consequential orders ought to be made. I am saying that because the orders that you make in this case if you are minded to set aside the appointment may be impacted by the results of the appeal which you are going to hear,” Senior Counsel Douglas Mendes had told the Trinidad-based CCJ.

Douglas, the Attorney representing the Leader of the Opposition Bharrat Jagdeo, told the court that his client would be willing to strike a compromise.

“In other words if the court were to conclude in that appeal that elections must be held and it must be held in a short period of time, then we would want to address the court on whether, you ought to consider suspending quashing the appointment of the appointment of the chairman in order that the election would not be disrupted,” Attorney Mendes had explained.

But on Tuesday, after the CCJ handed down its decision, Anil Nandlall, who is also representing the Opposition, backpedaled on this position. With the Patterson’s appointment being deemed “unlawful,” Nandlall said there is now need for a new chairman to govern the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

“The court has declared an act to be unlawful, you can’t ask the court to deem the act lawful in all fairness, it is against the law,” Nandlall told reporters outside the Court of Appeal.