THE People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has objected to the position that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) cannot direct the Chief Elections Officer (CEO) on what he should put in his Elections Report and simultaneously accused Attorney General (AG) and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams SC of misinterpreting and misapplying the law on the matter.

In a release on Friday, the PPP/C stated that the AG was attempting to “incite and invite the Chief Elections Officer to violate the law” and had “misunderstood and misinterpreted the legal relationship between the CEO and GECOM”.

The letter comes as, on Thursday, Chairperson of GECOM, Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh ordered the CEO, Keith Lowenfield to prepare and submit a fresh Elections Report in accordance with the Certificates of Recount generated during the 33-day National Recount.

Her instruction came one day after the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) set aside the order of the Court of Appeal and invalidated the Elections Report which was submitted by Lowenfield on June 23.

Approximately 115, 000 votes had been excluded from that report on the basis that they were compromised due to a string of irregularities and cases of voter impersonation.

The Court of Appeal had ordered that a President ought to be elected on the basis of “valid votes,” and it was on that basis the Chief Elections Officer compiled and submitted his initial report. But the CCJ ruled that the Court of Appeal’s decision was flawed, and had resulted in the unlawful invalidation of votes by the Chief Elections Officer.

He was ordered by the Chair to prepare his report “using the valid votes counted in the National Recount as per Certificates of Recount generated therefrom.”

However, the Attorney General challenged the GECOM Chair’s authority to dictate the compilation of the CEO’s report. He said that the said action of the Chair of GECOM amounts to a constitutional breach, noting that neither the Chair nor the Elections Commission could direct the CEO on what to include in his report under Article 177(2) (b) of the Constitution and Section 96 of the Representation of the People Act (ROPA) Cap 1:03.

In its response on Friday, the PPP/C stated that the CCJ had already stated that by acting on the Court of Appeal’s ruling to record only valid votes, Lowenfield invalidated a number of votes which action was in violation of the provisions of the ROPA.

“Williams’ conduct amounts to a clear defiance of and contempt for the many pronouncements that the Caribbean Court of Justice made only yesterday on identical issues. Needless to say, Williams’ conduct will be drawn to the Court’s attention for its action. Even at this late hour, Williams is still to comprehend that GECOM is an autonomous constitutional institution insulated from political directions and influences of any type. His untutored advice is therefore constitutionally prohibited,” the party stated.

Regarding the CEO’s relation to GECOM, the PPP/C pointed to Article 162 (1)(b) of the Constitution which states that the Elections Commission: “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.”

The party also cited Section 18 of the Elections Law (Amendment) Act 2000 which states: “The Chief Election Officer and the Commission of Registration shall notwithstanding anything in any written law be subject to the direction and control of the Commission.”

It called on the public to reject the position of the AG and to accept that the CEO is bound to prepare his report based on the declarations of the ten returning officers which it said have been “replaced by the certificates of recount under Order 60/2020”