AFC sidelined by President again

GECOM Commissioner post

…decision is an injustice – party leader
…Granger says his selection was “fit and proper”

Leader of the Alliance For Change (AFC), Raphael Trotman, has said that the Party is disappointed that President David Granger had overlooked its nominee for the position of Commissioner on the Guyana Elections Commission and had gone on to appoint Working People’s Alliance member Desmond Trotman for the post. The position became available after APNU nominee Sandra Jones passed away over the weekend.

The AFC Head told reporters that the AFC feels it has been meted out an injustice, since it was promised the post.
“On the other hand, the AFC as a party, I can tell you that we are pretty disturbed and disappointed that it was not chosen again to name the replacement. This is an ongoing saga; it has been ongoing for about 8 years between the Opposition parties,” he said.
“We (the AFC) have been promised the position for some time, and we had really hoped that, having been seen as a worthy partner in the Coalition, we would have been seen worthy to name one of our ranks to (that) position,” Raphael Trotman explained.
AFC Chairman Khemraj Ramjattan had earlier this week revealed that President David Granger had requested the party to present a name to fill this vacant post and Williams had been suggested. He had noted that should the President, for some reason, not find favour with Williams, the party’s alternative nominee would be Beverley Alert, a former AFC spokesperson.
The AFC has always pressed to have representation on the Elections Commission, especially given that the party had representation in Parliament, where it once held five seats, and then seven seats subsequently.

The party’s executive committee has released a statement supporting its leader’s expression of dissatisfaction.
“Further, acknowledging that 65% of the electorate is under the age of 40 years, the AFC believes that the appointment of the GECOM commissioner should have taken this salient point into consideration. In this regard, the rank and file members of the AFC have expressed reservation about the appointment, and were expecting the new commissioner to be a youth or a woman, as was proposed by the party,” the statement read.
The party added that this sidelining and backpedalling by the APNU reinforces the call for review of the Cummingsburg Accord, which is scheduled for review after midnight on February 13, 2018, when the three-year period comes to an end.
“There is a requirement to review the Accord after 3 years, and (those) 3 years will expire on February 13 at midnight. So it is well within the rights of the AFC to request that, and I have no complaints against that,” President David Granger has said.
Responding to that Party’s disappointment, Granger has said it was up to his judgement to make the selection, and he has considered all the nominees, and Desmond Trotman prevailed as the “fit and proper” person.

“The Coalition is a coalition of 6 parties, and every party was asked to make a nomination, and they did. Every party made nominations, even the PNC. It is up to my judgment, and I am empowered under the Constitution to exercise my judgment on this matter, and I believe that when all the nominees are looked at, Mr Trotman is the fittest,” the President told reporters.
Desmond Trotman, who is 72 years old, has been chosen over younger nominees such as Trevor Williams and Chairman of the Georgetown Public Hospital’s Board, Attorney Kesaundra Alves. Just recently, following an appeal by Youth Ambassadors in Parliament, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo stood and told the ambassadors that the coalition Government is one for the youths.
The coalition won the May 2015 general elections on the premise of providing opportunities for the advancement of youths; and two and a half years later, it is yet to deliver.
The Guyana Elections Commission has six Commissioners. The Constitution allows the President to have three nominees on the Commission based on his own judgement; the other three are to be appointed based on the judgement of the Opposition.
Charles Corbin, Desmond Trotman and Vincent Alexander are the Government’s commissioners; while opposition People’s Progressive Party Civic commissioners are Bibi Shaddick, Robeson Benn and Sase Gunraj.