AFC throws support behind President
– claims unilateral appointment averted constitutional crisis
The Alliance For Change (AFC) has thrown its support behind President David Granger’s decision to appoint as Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) a person whose name has not been featured in any of the three lists the Leader of the Opposition had submitted.
Following a management committee meeting on Friday, the party issued a statement in which it took care to distance itself from any involvement in the process of selecting the GECOM Chairman. Nevertheless, the party described the President’s move as one that “averted a looming constitutional crisis.”
“It is regrettable that after three protracted rounds of consultation and submission, each of the three lists fell short of the requirements of the Constitution. The party recognises that the necessity had arisen for the President not to further delay the appointment of a Chairman. The appointment, in the President’s own deliberate judgement, has averted a looming constitutional crisis,” the AFC stated.
“Now that GECOM is fully constituted, the party expects that it will commence its work immediately in preparation for Local Government Elections in 2018 and Regional and General Elections in 2020.”
The AFC has said it holds GECOM to the “highest standards of electoral integrity, and will stridently challenge any threats to the preservation of our democracy.”
In wake of President Granger’s unilateral appointment of retired Justice James Patterson to the position of GECOM Chair, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo had described the move as “undemocratic” and done in “bad faith”. At a press conference held on Thursday, the former president also noted that a call would be made throughout the support base of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) to not cooperate with the Government. The AFC, in its statement, took a critical stand to this.
“The AFC strongly condemns the Opposition Leader for his reckless and unpatriotic stance of non-cooperation and civil disobedience, and the party will hold him personally accountable for the consequences of any civil unrest which may ensue.” Retired Justice Patterson, currently a legal advisor in the Ministry of Legal Affairs, was sworn in a few hours after President Granger had briefly met with Opposition Leader Jagdeo. According to the Head of State, his decision to select a GECOM Chairman was done in accordance with Article 161 of the Constitution, which deals with the appointment of a GECOM Chairman.
Granger said he informed Jagdeo during their meeting that he had found unacceptable within the meaning of the Constitution the third list of nominees he had submitted on August 25, 2017, and that he had also paid careful attention to the ruling of acting Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire.
The President said he had decided to hand pick 84-year-old Justice James Patterson for this position because of his extensive experience as a former Chief Justice of Grenada. “He has long judicial service, and we feel that he is a fit and proper person. So it’s important, for the reason I mentioned, that we bring this to an end and continue with the business of Guyana,” he added.
