Granger to meet Jagdeo soon on 3rd list

GECOM chairmanship

President David Granger said he hopes to meet with Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo sometime next week to relate his decision regarding the third list of nominees for the position of Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission

(GECOM).
The Opposition Leader submitted the third list of nominees to the President on August 25, 2017, and now some five weeks later, the President is yet to make a pronouncement.
The six nominees are Major General (rtd) Joseph Singh; Attorney Teni Housty; Attorney Sanjeev Datadin; Conservationist and businesswoman, Annette Arjune-Martins; Pastor Onesi La Fleur and former Magistrate Krishnadatt Persaud.
When asked about the delay in the selection of a Chairman for GECOM, the President said he was awaiting the written ruling of the acting Chief Justice, Roxane George.
“The Honourable Chief Justice has published an opinion and I have been studying

that opinion and looking at the decisions that I have to make. It was quite clear that among everything she has written, she has not interfered with the President’s right guaranteed by the Constitution to select a person fit and proper. I think that in that regard, I will continue to do what the Constitution guarantees me to do which is to select someone fit and proper,” Granger said.
According to the Chief Justice, President Granger should provide reasons for rejecting nominees presented by Opposition Leader Jagdeo for the position of the GECOM Chairman in accordance with Article 161 (2) of the Constitution, which refers to the need for communication and negotiation. However, the President is not obligated to provide reasons.
The case was called before the Chief Justice on June 27, 2017, with submissions from a representative of the State; the plaintiff, businessman Marcel Gaskin’s attorney; Glenn Hanoman and the Guyana Bar Association representative, Attorney Teni Housty.
Gaskin, a businessman and engineer, had moved to the High Court in March of this year to challenge the constitutionality of President Granger’s reasoning behind his rejection of Jagdeo’s list of six nominees.
Granger has maintained that the list of nominees must include a Judge, a retired Judge or a person qualified to be a Judge. On the other hand, Jagdeo has argued that the nominees do not have to be Judge-type as the Constitution makes provision for another group of persons under the category of “fit and proper”.
The most recent GECOM Chairman, Dr Steve Surujbally, was not a Judge or qualified to be a Judge and neither were most of the past chairpersons. Granger had also accepted the nomination to serve as GECOM Chairman several years ago.
“Now that I have it (written ruling) in hand and I have read it much more carefully… I look forward to have a meeting with Jagdeo. I have not set a timeline because I do not know about Jagdeo’s availability. I hope (to have the meeting) next week if he is available,” Granger said.
Guyana is expected to have Local Government Elections next year and the Opposition has accused the President of deliberately frustrating the selection process so that he could appoint someone in his favour.