“I can submit list in 1 hour for new GECOM Chair” – Jagdeo to Granger

In light of a recent ruling by the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) that the unilateral appointment of Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chairman, Retired Justice James Patterson is unconstitutional, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo says that he can present a new list of nominees within an hour for President David Granger to make a new appointment.

According to the Constitution, the President is required to appoint a Chairperson for GECOM from a list of names submitted by the Opposition Leader. Back in 2017, Jagdeo had submitted three separate lists, but the Head of State rejected all 18 nominees and went ahead in October of that year to unilaterally appoint Justice Patterson as Chairman of the elections body.
However, CCJ President, Justice Adrian Saunders on Tuesday ruled that Justice Patterson’s appointment was unconstitutional and that the process was “fatally flawed”.
Against this backdrop, Jagdeo posited that he was ready to submit a fourth list to President Granger for the current Chairman of the elections body to be replaced. Insisting that the Head of State must comply with the Court’s ruling, the Opposition Leader noted that there could not be a unilateral appointment when he was still willing to engage.

“I am willing to engage and I can have a list ready in a matter of hours consistent with the judgement of the CCJ: that this is the way it should move forward. This is vital for us and I hope in the consequential orders, the Court will look at this because the President can use this as an excuse – you know, delay the appointment of the new Chairman of GECOM as an excuse to delay the elections further, because that is precisely what they want – as everyone can see,” Jagdeo insisted on Thursday at his weekly press conference.
Only on Wednesday, President Granger maintained that he had selected a “fit and proper” person as Chairman of GECOM in accordance with the definition laid out in the Constitution. In defiance of the court’s ruling, the Head of State told reporters that the CCJ must show where the flaw was.
“I’ve never gone outside the Constitution. If (the Court) tell that the process is flawed, they must let me know what the flaw is! So let us wait until the 24th of June when they make some consequential rulings. There is no way I can see that decisions I’ve taken are flawed,” he posited.
However, in its ruling, the CCJ did give its reason, referencing historical facts pertaining to the previous appointments of GECOM Chairmen. Justice Saunders also cited the recommendations made by the Constitutional Reform Commission in 1999 that the Chairman should be appointed through consultations.
“To determine the meaning, the Court looked at the drafting history of Article 161 (2), observing that changes had been made to it to promote consensus and inclusiveness by involving the Leader of the Opposition in the selection process,” he stated.
Further, the Judge noted that the President relied on the provisions that gave him discretionary powers and insulated him from providing an explanation for excluding the Opposition Leader from his final decision.
However, Justice Saunders pointed out that giving the President the power to reject candidates without giving reasons would frustrate what the Constitution contemplates. In fact, the Court decided that the President has a duty to give reasons for rejecting names in the interest of transparency.
“The Court, therefore, found that the process was flawed and in breach of the Constitution. In a concurring judgment, Mme Justice Rajnauth-Lee stated that by giving reasons why nominees are rejected, the President will engender greater public trust and confidence in the Elections Commission,” Justice Saunders said.
To this end, the Court concluded that the most sensible approach to the process of appointing the Chairman of GECOM is for the Leader of the Opposition and the President to communicate with each other in good faith and, perhaps, even meet to discuss eligible candidates for the position of Chairman before a list is submitted formally.
The Court also recommended that moving forward, all parties work together as the Constitution envisions to select a Chairman.
Justice Saunders also declared in the ruling that before President Granger rejected persons nominated by the Opposition Leader, reasons should have been given for the rejections in the interest of transparency.
With the Trinidad-based regional court having delivered the landmark rulings, all eyes are on Guyana’s leaders now and their actions going forward. While President Granger on Wednesday committed to meet with the Opposition Leader to discuss the way forward, this meeting is not likely to happen before Monday’s hearing for consequential orders.
On June 24, the CCJ is expected to hand down a series of consequential orders to follow its rulings on Tuesday that the no-confidence motion was validly passed on December 21, 2018 and that the appointment of the GECOM Chairman was unconstitutional.
However, Justice Saunders had encouraged that the parties come together and agree on the consequences to follow instead of having the court do so.
But Government’s spokesperson, Joseph Harmon told reporters on Thursday that that meeting would happen at a convenient time for both political leaders.
“Monday’s orders do not set a timeframe for the leaders of our country to meet. Our leaders will meet at their convenience, when it is convenient for them to meet. But at all times, what we had said as a government is that the door is open for our leaders to meet. If, in fact, there is a request from the Leader of the Opposition for a meeting, we will accept that and we will meet. But in this case, we have made this clear that we are prepared to meet and we will invite the Leader of the Opposition to a meeting,” he posited.
Harmon, who is the Director General at the Ministry of the Presidency, went on to note that Government was cognisant about the invitation to the Opposition Leader since it needed to first have an agenda before going into that engagement.
Jagdeo, on the other hand, told reporters at his weekly press conference on Thursday that his lawyers were working on their submissions to come to a consensus ahead of Monday’s ruling.
The Opposition Leader said that he was willing to meet the Head of State to discuss the way forward, giving effect to the court’s ruling. This, according to Jagdeo, means elections in three months and a new GECOM Chairman in place as soon as possible.