Jagdeo accuses Granger of ‘blatant hypocrisy’

GECOM saga

By Samuel Sukhnandan

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has accused President David Granger of blatant hypocrisy and double standards over his admission that he was a member of the People’s National Congress (PNC) for over five decades, but still agreed to be nominated as Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), even though he has made it clear that no nominee should have political connection.
In addressing the media at his Church Street, Georgetown office on Wednesday,

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

the Opposition Leader said he was referring to the President’s speech at the 5th Biennial Conference of the PNCR’s North American Region (NAR) in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Granger used the opportunity there to also speak about the need for the party to return to power in 2020 following its election in 2015.
Jagdeo said, “Just imagine the hypocrisy of our President. God-fearing! He wrote me and said nobody should be a member of a political party; none of the nominees. None were members of the PPP (People’s Progressive Party) and he, himself, was a member of the PNC when his name was submitted twice by Mr (Desmond) Hoyte and he didn’t object to that. Isn’t that not just blatant hypocrisy?”
The Opposition Leader pointed to the unilateral appointment of retired Justice James Patterson by President Granger as GECOM Chairman. Although Patterson has described himself as “apolitical” and said that he has not been in politics or will ever be, the Opposition Leader has repeatedly claimed, and even exposed, that Patterson was part of a group of PNCR inner-circle and was pallbearer for the late President Desmond Hoyte’s body.
Patterson, currently a legal advisor in the Legal Affairs Ministry, was sworn in a few

President David Granger

hours after President Granger met briefly with Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo. According to the Head of State, his decision to select a GECOM Chairman was done in accordance with Article 161 of the Constitution for the appointment of a GECOM Chairman.
Granger said he had informed Jagdeo during their meeting that he found that the third list of nominees submitted on August 25, 2017, was unacceptable within the meaning of the Constitution and that he had also paid careful attention to the ruling of the Chief Justice Acting Roxane George.
The President hand-picked 84-year-old Justice Patterson for this position, later claiming it is because of Patterson’s extensive experience as a former Chief Justice of Grenada. However, this is now highly questionable since Patterson admitted that he was only acting Chief Justice but cannot recall the exact time period.
Following Patterson’s appointment, Jagdeo announced that his party would be withdrawing its support from any form of cooperation with Government and would also mount a legal challenge to the appointment.
In addition to expressing his intention to raise the matter with the diplomatic community, Jagdeo indicted that the PPP/Civic will be calling on its support base countrywide for the national boycott. Several Private Sector organisations and unions have also publicly expressed disappointment with the President’s move and said that they will not support it.
The Opposition later filed an injunction in the High Court to rescind the appointment on the grounds of unconstitutionality. The injunction is seeking a declaration that Justice Patterson is not qualified to be appointed in provision with Article 161-2 of the Constitution of Guyana.
The injunction is also seeking an order to have the appointment of Justice Patterson as Chairman of GECOM quashed and direct the President to choose a person from the 18 names submitted to him.
The matter will be heard before the Chief Justice on November 16.