GECOM vacancies: Texan, Jamaican, Kittitian among foreign applicants for Guyana’s Chief Elections Officer post

…17 locals, including former CEO, DCEO, also apply

The Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM’s) advertisement for the post of Chief Elections Officer (CEO) has generated significant interest, attracting local and international applications, some from as far as Texas, United States of America (USA).

According to a list seen by this publication, Dr Kurt Clarke from Texas, Leslie Oliver Harrow from Jamaica, and Eugene Godfrey Petty from St. Kitts are the foreign applicants. Of the three, this publication was able to ascertain from news reports in Jamaica that Harrow was up until May employed as head of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM).

Meanwhile, the local applicants include Gocool Boodoo, who was previously employed as CEO for several years. Vishnu Persaud, the former Deputy CEO, whose non-appointment for the role in 2018 triggered controversy of its own, has also applied.
Another applicant for the post is Attorney-at-Law Saphier Hussain, who was the Presidential Candidate for his National Independent Party (NIP) in the May 2015 General and Regional Elections. Former Permanent Secretary at the Office of the President, Omar Shariff, is also among the applicants.

The other applicants, meanwhile, are Deodat Persaud, Christopher Chan, Dr. Stanley Paul, Dr. Hubert Maloney, Colin Thompson, Abushameer Khan, Simone Beckles, former head of the Guyana Revenue Authority’s (GRA’s) Container Scanner Unit, Jainarine Singh; Ronald Singh, Aneal Azhar Giddings, Amar Panday, Dr. Breysha Saskia Solomon and Nyall Jodhan of The Citizenship Initiative (TCI).
The persons who are eventually hired will fill the vacancies caused by the removals of former Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield; his former deputy, Roxanne Myers; and former Returning Officer Clairmont Mingo.
After several delays and legal proceedings, Lowenfield, Myers, and Mingo were on August 12 dismissed from their respective posts at the GECOM following a vote by the seven-member Commission.
In a statement announcing the terminations, which she said came after weeks of deliberation on the motions, the GECOM Chair had indicated that the services of Lowenfield, Myers and Mingo would be terminated effective August 18, 2021, and they would be compensated in accordance with provisions in their contracts.
To this end, Justice Singh disclosed that CEO Lowenfield was dismissed via Clause 9 of his contract, which stipulates that his services can be terminated by giving him three months’ notice, or payment in lieu thereof.
Regarding the DCEO and the RO, their contracts similarly state that the Commission may, at any time, terminate their employment by giving them three months’ notice or payment in lieu thereof.
Gunraj and his fellow Government-nominated Commissioners, Bibi Shadick and Manoj Narayan, on June 1, 2021 had brought motions calling for the dismissal of Lowenfield, Myers and Mingo from GECOM.
The trio are before the courts for a number of electoral charges for their alleged attempts to sway the results of the March 2020 General and Regional Elections in favour of the then ruling A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government.