Dear Editor,
As a sure sign and certainty, the handwriting is on the wall for Guyana; that is: the death knell for democracy in this country. President Granger, by his installation of an almost 85-year-old retired judge to the post of GECOM Chairman, has finally put another nail in the proverbial coffin of this fair country. He has highhandedly, and in a flagrant disregard for the Constitution, installed a puppet in the position of GECOM Chairman.
With the selection of Mr Patterson, the President has violated the tenets of the Carter Formula in its entirety. And here’s my point: though Mr Patterson has fulfilled the requirement of the law in being a judge who has practised in another jurisdiction within the Commonwealth, he is still unfit by a preponderance of evidence to the contrary.
In the first place, he is very close to the party in power; too close for my liking. Having been an ‘old PNC boy’, there is nothing left to imagine where we are going with this appointment.
In other circumstances, this man is in failing health, coupled with the fact that he is at present an employee of the Government (Advisor to the Attorney General).
These and other yet-to-be-unearthed facts make Mr Patterson not a fit and proper person. You cannot convince me that this man’s judgment would not be compromised. That is a definite certainty! It behooves us to believe also that the upcoming general elections would see massive rigging if he is at the helm of the electoral body. But I shall return to that statement a little later.
In all the flurry of discussion on the “most suitable” candidate for the job, most writers have forgotten one key factor: Would that person be fair in all their handling of the business of the Commission? That’s the million-dollar question that the Opposition is fearful of, and to which most writers are not facing up to.
Would he be fair? Absolutely not! And no amount of rhetoric coming from the Government side can erase that from our thoughts. Common sense dictates that Granger’s rejection of 18 names only to handpick a known party loyal erodes every doubt that Patterson would be fair. Having rejected 18 names in favour of an almost 85-year-old man, Granger is solidifying his position that this man would be there to seek out his interests and ensure that things turn out the way he wants them to be. The President wants someone in whom he can trust.
And this brings me back to the point I raised earlier, an election is looming on the horizon. Sure enough, that is his next move. With the hasty putting together of a Chairman, there is every indication that Mr Granger is planning a snap election, to catch the Opposition off guard. So Guyana, prepare for another bombshell in a snap election.
But I must tell you this, Mr President: Guyanese are not stupid, we are watching and judging your every move.
Respectfully,
Neil Adams
