…as President, Opposition Leader find consensus on List of Nominees
…first woman to head elections body; to be sworn in on Monday

RENOWNED legal luminary, Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh, SC, CCH was selected by President David Granger to be Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) following a breakthrough in negotiations, on Friday, between the President and the Opposition Leader.

The historic selection of Justice Singh, the first woman to be heading the electoral body, has brought to a close, weeks of deliberations between President Granger and Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, on nominees for the post. It also ended months of turmoil over the selection of chairman of the elections body following the resignation of Dr Steve Surujbally. On Friday, the Opposition Leader officially submitted a list of six nominees not unacceptable to the President, and from that list, Justice Singh was selected in accordance with the Constitution and the June 18 landmark decision of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).

In detailing the events that led to Justice Singh’s nomination, the Ministry of the Presidency explained that President Granger and the Opposition Leader, on Friday, met at the Ministry of the Presidency and continued a series of meetings aimed at ‘hammering out’ a list of nominees “not unacceptable” to the President. The Opposition Leader agreed to submit such a list.

It was not long after that the President received and reviewed the list of nominees in an effort to bring the selection process to a speedy and favourable conclusion. “This was aimed at ensuring that the Elections Commission could resume its normal functions with the aim of conducting General and Regional Elections in the shortest possible time,” the ministry explained.

The list submitted by the Opposition Leader comprised six distinguished Guyanese – Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh; Retired Judge B.S Roy; Attorney-at-Law Kashir Khan; Professor Lawrence Latchmansingh; Attorney-at-Law Ronald Burch-Smith; and Retired Judge, William Ramlall.

Justice Roy, Attorney Khan; Professor Latchmansingh and Justice Ramlall were initially shortlisted during a hammering out mechanism between the two sides while Burch-Smith was shortlisted on Friday from a list of four that was submitted on July 17 by the Opposition. Justice Singh was added as the sixth nominee on Friday after the two leaders arrived at a consensus.
The President, according to the release swiftly made a selection from the list of nominees and approved Justice Singh. “Justice Singh satisfies the criteria for the appointment, and also satisfies the ruling of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) for a consensual appointment supported by both the President and the Leader of the Opposition,” the ministry’s statement read.

Last June, the Chairmanship of the Elections Commission became vacant after the CCJ ruled that the process that led to the October 2017 appointment of Justice (Ret’d) James Patterson was flawed and inconsistent with the Constitution of Guyana. CCJ, in handing down the landmark ruling, had said that the two leaders must consult on the nominees for the position before a formal list is submitted, to allow for consensus. President Granger, in keeping with the orders of the court, informed the Opposition Leader that he was free to resubmit names which he had previously submitted. The President also had the option of proposing names as well.

With the exception of Attorney-at-Law Ronald Burch-Smith and Justice Singh, the other nominees were drawn from three lists of 18 names that were submitted by the Opposition Leader in 2017 but did not find favour with the President because, at the time, they were reportedly ‘lumped’ with persons deemed not to be “fit and proper” for the position.
Justice Singh’s nomination came one day after President Granger told members of the diplomatic corps, private sector, civil society, and religious community that the CCJ, in interpreting the Constitution, clearly outlined a role for the President in the identification of persons for the position. “The President is not a passive bystander in the process,” he affirmed while adding, ‘he is an active participant in ‘hammering out’ the list of persons not unacceptable to him.”

Hours after he met with the President, and agreed to the list, the Opposition Leader told the press that Justice Singh’s nomination for the post is an extremely positive development for the country. He said both sides – Government and Opposition – demonstrated good faith in arriving at the decision. “We are happy with this development…the names enjoy the confidence of both me and the President…the people would be happy that we have resolved the issue of a new chairperson for GECOM…there was no question of a unilateral appointment being done,” said Jagdeo to reporters during a press conference at his Church Street Office.

He said getting a chairperson was a critical starting point and now that the issue has been resolved, it is a positive development for the country.
“This brings us one stage closer to an elections date which must be announced with urgency,” said the Opposition Leader, adding that he hopes to meet with the President to discuss other issues of national interest.

Going forward, he reiterated that the appointment is a great development for Guyana because Justice Singh will be able to deliver fair elections. Initially, when approached a few weeks ago to be on the list of nominees, Justice Singh did not accede but, Jagdeo said he met with her on Friday and she agreed to have her name resubmitted on the final list. With some 40 years of experience, Justice Singh is one of the only three women to be appointed Senior Counsel in history of Independent Guyana.

She was called to the Bar in London in 1973 and admitted to the Bar in Guyana in 1976. Justice Singh served as the Deputy Solicitor General and as a Puisne Judge and a Justice of Appeal. During her tenure at the Chamber of the Attorney General (AG), she spearheaded the Modernisation of the Justice Reform Project and is currently serving as the Guyana Police Force’s Legal Advisor. It is expected that she would be sworn in as Chairperson of the Elections Commission on Monday. Her appointment comes at a time when the country is preparing for early elections in light of a No-Confidence Motion brought against Government last December.