…citizens move to High Court to get answers

By Clestine Juan

AS the controversy over the qualification antecedents of the People’s Progressive Party /Civic presidential candidate Mohamed Irfaan Ali continues, two citizens have moved to the High Court seeking clarification on his qualifications, which they allege might be false.
The application was filed by attorney-at-law Stephen Lewis on behalf of his clients Dianna Deravinee Rajcumar and Phillip Marcus, who are citizens of Guyana and registered voters.
The respondents in the matter are PPP/C General-Secretary, Bharrat Jagdeo and the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM.)

The applicants are seeking a declaration that they are entitled to know the qualification antecedents of candidate Mohamed Irfaan Ali.

Another order is that Jagdeo produce Ali’s first degree certificate and transcripts for any first degree; information pertaining to the name of the university or institution from which he obtained his first degree; information concerning the nature of study completed in relation to any first degree; information setting out whether the candidate Mohamed Irfaan Ali was issued with a certificate of graduation, which states that it was issued by the Business College, West Demerara Chamber of Commence within seven(7) days of the date of the Order.

Additionally, Jagdeo must also produce within seven days, a copy of any transcript issued by the said Business College, the West Demerara Chamber in respect of a BA Degree in Planning; information on whether any degree was obtained by Irfaan Ali from the University of Sunderland; a copy of the certificate along with a transcript from the university.

The applicants are also seeking an order against GECOM to confer the above documents, which was conferred on the candidate Mohamed Irfaan Ali, which will be examined by them.

The applicants have listed 11 grounds for their application to the High Court.
One of the grounds states that the applicants have noted that information concerning the qualifications of one such presidential candidate Mohamed Irfaan Ali has been in some instances withheld and otherwise are alleged to be false.
The applicants observed that there were several articles in the daily newspapers wherein Irfaan refused to be forthright in his answer to questions and the provision of information surrounding his qualifications. Thus, they are now requesting clarification on his qualifications.

On January 29, 2020, the applicant Dianna Deravinee Rajcumar wrote to Jagdeo seeking clarification about Irfaan’s qualification antecedents and requested a transcript.

The applicants are seeking the Order on the grounds that consequent upon their constitutional right to vote, they have a right to information on the candidates for the elections.

Additionally, consequent upon their constitutional right to vote, they are entitled to know the education antecedents of the candidates to assess, process and interpret along with others with information, before deciding to vote for a candidate.
The applicants, as persons intending to exercise their right to vote are entitled to be privy to facts giving insight in the candidate’s capacity and suitability for acting as a President, parliamentarian or a legislator, including details of his/her life, including academic qualifications.

They are entitled to a constitutional right to the Freedom of Expression, in particular, to receive ideas and information without interference.

The application is also contending that GECOM is empowered with the responsibility to exercise general direction and supervision over the registration of the electors and the administrative conduct of elections of members of the National Assembly, and to take such action as appears to it necessary or expedient to ensure impartiality, fairness, and compliance with the provision of the constitution of Guyana or any Act of Parliament, and therefore has the authority to require information from and in relation to candidates.

Additionally, the List of Candidates shall be accompanied by a Statutory Declaration by each person named on that list of his qualifications and consent made before a Justice of the Peace or other person authorized to administer the Oaths

To this background, the applicants claimed that no such Declaration was made by Mohamed Irfaan Ali, who appears in the List of Candidates submitted by the PPP/C by the representative of the List, Jagdeo.

Rajcumar is the holder of a Degree in International Relations-University of Guyana 2008). Graduate Diploma in Public Administration- Australia National University(2014), Masters of Public Policy – Australia National University 2015 and Masters of Diplomacy – Australia National University 2016.

“I fear that my right to vote and to freedom of expression, in particular, to receive information without interference will be breached if the orders sought herein are not granted,” the applicant said in their court documents.
PPP/C presidential candidate is allegedly being accused of academic fraud. It is alleged that he used a fake transcript to pursue a master’s degree programme at an Indian University and the University of Sunderland.

But this is just the tip of the iceberg – Ali has been accused of defrauding the State of some $174M for his role in the notorious Pradoville land-sale scandal. The case is before the court.

The ex-minister was slapped with 19 counts of fraud last November and the charges were laid indictable. The charges read that between 2010 and 2015, Ali conspired with persons unknown to defraud the Government of Guyana when he acted recklessly in presenting the value of 19 plots of state land situated at Plantation Sparendaam and Goedverwagting, East Coast Demerara, and sold the said lands at a grossly undervalued price without first obtaining a valuation to determine their true value.