THE High Court in a recent ruling has dismissed an appeal by the APNU relative to Election Petition 88 of 2020 in yet another humiliating defeat suffered by the main political opposition which continued to peddle a false narrative of being ‘cheated’ out of power in the March 2020 General and Regional elections.

It will be recalled that the High Court had two years ago rejected this very petition which had cited ‘serious non-compliance with the Constitution of Guyana’ and relevant electoral laws.

According to the High Court ruling, there was no breach of the Constitution by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to make the elections a ‘sham’ or a ‘travesty’ as claimed by the petitioners.

The decision of the High Court was unanimous. As noted by the Court, a crucial pillar of any democratic society is one in which supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them, directly or indirectly through a system of representation, usually including periodically held free and fair elections.

These are indeed foundational principles governing the behaviour of modern rules-based societies where sovereignty rests with the people through free and fair elections. Any departure from this democratic principle is not only a breach of the Constitution but an aberration of the norms and values of law-governed and rule-based societies.

Whatever infractions of the democratic processes took place during the March 2020 elections resulted from the actions of some ‘rogue’ elements within GECOM which thankfully was remedied by the decisions of the Courts, including the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). It is to the credit of the judiciary that democracy prevailed in Guyana.

This recent ruling by the High Court can be seen as yet another victory for democracy in Guyana. There was a time in our past history when the justice system was subverted under the doctrine of party paramountcy.

The PNC was able to perpetuate its political life for over two decades through a combination of force and fraud.

Thankfully, we have gone past that sordid period of our history and constitutional rule has become much more entrenched and institutionalized. However, the ‘ghosts’ of our undemocratic past continue to linger on.

This is why it is so important to ensure an independent judiciary free from the influence of partisan politics.
Guyana has certainly evolved in terms of judicial independence and the rule of law. This is good for the country especially at this conjunction in time when the country is making rapid economic and social progress. The rule of law is indispensable in this regard.

One can only hope that with this most recent High Court ruling, the false narrative by the APNU of being ‘manipulated’ out of power will be put to rest. The political opposition has a duty and obligation to its supporters and for that matter the whole of Guyana to respect the ruling of the High Court on this matter.