The newly appointed members of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) were sworn in on Friday by President Dr. Irfaan Ali. 

The new Commissioners are: Chancellor (ag) of the Judiciary, Yonette Cummings-Edwards, Former Chancellor, Justice Carl Singh, Retired Appeal Court judge BS Roy, Chief Justice (ag), Roxane George and Public Service Commission (PSC) chairman, Manniram Prashad.

Cummings-Edwards will serve as the chairman, while George and Prashad will serve as ex-officio members of the JSC. 

The JSC, which has a three-year life, is responsible for making recommendations for judicial appointments and removing or exercising disciplinary control over persons holding or acting in judicial offices.

There has been a 20-year impasse on judicial appointments with the last substantive Chancellor being Justice Desiree Bernard. 

The current Chancellor, Yonette Cummings-Edwards and Chief Justice, Roxane George, have both been acting in their respective positions for a number of years.

It’s important to note that the Chairman of the PSC also serves as a member of these commissions.

On Thursday, the PSC commissioners Prashad, Maurice Rudranauth Gajadhar, Melcita Agatha Bovell, Chandrawati Leila Ramson, Mohandatt Goolsarran, and Janice Isabella Bowen were sworn in by President Ali. 

The absence of a functioning PSC since August 2021 has had significant implications for other constitutional bodies, such as the JSC  and the Police Service Commission.

Those constitutional bodies are now fully constituted.