Dear Editor,
THE appointment of 10 new judges by the Judicial Service Commission was greeted with relief by most Guyanese who understand that the system needs justices to serve an ever-growing case log, Overseas Guyanese Rickford Burke, however, saw it as a racial insult “Guyana’s racist PPP regime appoints mostly East Indians as new High Court Judges” was the headline of his social media post, his sentiments were soon echoed by another American based ‘influencer ‘ Melissa Atwell, who made a case for former Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan “…the former chief magistrate was one of the applicants… she was overlooked” (sic). Since the appointees are mostly Guyanese of Indian descent, the statements do bear inquiry as a matter of principle. Here is what I discovered.
Upon reaching retirement age, Colonel Ann McLennan proceeded on pre-retirement leave from the magistracy in 2023, I wish her well in retirement. The candidates were selected based on merit, taking into account factors like age, work ethic, the caliber of opinions and judgments expressed, and how well they answered interview questions. I am not privy to information of what may or may not have transpired, but suffice to say, it must have been difficult to separate the 26 applicants.
The idea by our foreign-based compatriots that there is an advantage to be gained by the PPP or any other administration by having biased judges is not based in reality; our apex court is the Caribbean Court of Justice and as we saw during the 2018-2020 period of APNU+AFC obstinacy, it is a superbly fair court. Rickford Burke and Melissa Atwell (Melly Mel) are seeking to sow discord with the idea that the race and/or familial affiliation of a judge affects their ability to make unbiased judgments, the reality is that we are a small country with relatives of politicians serving as judges without issue for some time, Justice Fidella Corbin is the daughter of former PNC Leader Robert Corbin, I have never heard a word of complaint about her judgments; Justice Brassington Reynolds fathered children of an APNU Minister, again, no one attacked him for this family connection, as for race… Justice Sandil Kissoon has made many judgments against the current administration and he is Guyanese of Indian descent, so it will go with the new judges, good judgments, bad judgments and, downright bizarre interpretations of laws; we will get the benefit of their wisdom and knowledge of the law, but ultimately the proof of the pudding will be in the CCJ.
On a personal note, a good friend of mine was among the applicants who were denied the opportunity to serve, he is Guyanese of African descent, and we had a conversation about it and the factors that affected him negatively, they were his age (early forties) and his value at his present job to the country; the issue of race was of no consequence and I have no doubt that he will serve as an excellent jurist further down the road should he choose that path.
Sincerely
Robin Singh