…President says the electoral body’s independence must be maintained
…credits earlier groundwork for swift appointment of new chair

PRESIDENT David Granger, on Monday, swore in Justice Claudette Singh S.C, CCH as Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), bringing an end to weeks of tussle between the opposition and the government.

The distinguished legal luminary represents the first woman to be appointed to that high office. Ahead of her first meeting with the commission President wants the nation to know that the Elections Commission is no “plaything,” and its independence must be respected.
Moments after Justice Singh took the Oath of Office in the Rupununi Room of the Ministry of the Presidency, the Head of State, in his address, said Article 62 of the Constitution of Guyana, has mandated the independence of the Elections Commission and clearly outlines its responsibility, that is, to independently supervise elections in accordance with the provisions of Article 162. According to Article 162 (1), GECOM shall exercise general direction and supervision over the registration of electors and the administrative conduct of all elections of members of the National Assembly; and shall issue such instructions and take such action as appear to it necessary or expedient to ensure impartiality, fairness and compliance with the provisions of this Constitution or of any Act of Parliament on the part of persons exercising powers or performing duties connected with or relating to the matters aforesaid.

“These are exacting duties and responsibilities. Free, fair, credible and timely elections are essential elements of a democratic state. The Elections Commission is not a plaything. Its independence is a condition for engendering confidence and ensuring public trust in the electoral system and for the efficient execution of elections,” President Granger said.
Justice Singh’s appointment comes less than two months after the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) invalidated the appointment of Justice (Ret’d) James Patterson on the basis that the process was flawed. In the eyes of the CCJ, the Chairman of the Elections Commission ought not to be appointed unilaterally, and it therefore challenged the President and the Opposition Leader to arrive at a consensual list of nominees before an appointment is made.

President Granger said he initiated that process with the Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution and the interpretation of the CCJ. After more than a month of extensive deliberations and compromise which ended with the generation of a list of six nominees “not unacceptable” to the President, the Opposition Leader officially submitted his list on July 26, 2019, from which, Justice Singh was chosen.
“The appointment of Justice Claudette Singh means that the Elections Commission has a Chairman again after a hiatus of a bit more than a month. It is now properly constituted and can continue to prepare for the conduct of free, fair, timely and credible elections. It fulfills the Caribbean Court of Justice’s ruling, in relation to Article 161(2),” the President said.

He was keen on pointing out that Justice Singh satisfies the criteria prescribed in the Constitution for the appointment of a Chairman of the Elections Commission. According to Article 161 (2) of the Constitution, “…the Chairman of the Elections Commission shall be a person who holds or who has held the office as a judge of a court having unlimited jurisdiction in civil and criminal matters in some part of the Commonwealth or a court having jurisdiction in appeals from any such court or who is qualified to be appointed as any such judge…”

“Justice Singh is such a person. She was called to the Bar in London in 1973 and admitted to the Bar in Guyana in 1976. She served as the Deputy Solicitor General and as a Puisne Judge and a Justice of Appeal. She led the way for the Modernisation of the Justice Reform Project during her tenure at the Attorney General’s Chambers,” President Granger said while adding that the newly appointed Chair brings years of legal experience as a jurist and as a practitioner of the law to her appointment.

“She is respected widely for her integrity, impartiality and independence,” he added, and at the same time, thanked her for accepting the appointment. The Head of State is confident that Justice Singh will discharge her duties in accordance with her oath of office, the Constitution and election laws. “I wish her every success during her tenure as Chairman of the Elections Commission. I thank the Leader of the Opposition for swiftly coming to a successful conclusion of the process for the selection of a Chairman of the Elections Commission in accordance with the Constitution and the ruling of the Caribbean Court of Justice,” President Granger said.

Renewing his commitment, the President said the State stands ready to provide necessary assistance to the Commission to enable it to conduct elections in the shortest time possible.

At the time, he was not only addressing Justice Singh but representatives of Government, the Opposition, the Judiciary, the Elections Commission, and the Diplomatic Community. Those officials included: Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo; Vice President and Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan; Vice President and Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock; Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams; Director General of the Ministry of the Presidency, Joseph Harmon; Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo; Chief Justice, Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire; Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield; Dean of the Corps in Guyana, His Excellency Lineu Pupo De Paula; the Chief-of-Staff, Brigadier Patrick West; and Commissioner of Police, Leslie James; and Justice (Ret’d) Cecil Kennard. The six Commissioners of the Elections Commission – Vincent Alexander, Desmond Trotman, Charles Corbin, Bibi Shadick, Robeson Benn and Sase Gunraj – were also present.

Earlier groundwork
On the sideline of the swearing ceremony, President Granger, while ruling out that there was an impasse on the appointment of the GECOM Chair, said what Guyanese, and world at large witnessed was the execution of a deliberate process. During that process, the two sides, he said, worked assiduously to achieve the desired outcome. “What you saw on the 26th July was only possible because of the groundwork that had been put in by the working groups. So I would say that it was a logical outcome from all of the work that both sides have been doing….,” the Head of State told reporters. The President said he looks forward to widening the areas of cooperation in coming weeks and months with the Leader of the Opposition.

The Opposition Leader, in the presence of President Granger, said “it is a happy day for all of Guyana not just for one side or the other. He too expressed optimism about future engagements with the Head of State. “The President and I spoke about this, and we hope that we can take the same spirit we had, the spirit of collaboration on this appointment, to other matters,” Jagdeo said.