Opposition Leader open to nominating foreigner for GECOM Chair

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

…still no date from Granger for meeting

Ahead of the much anticipated meeting with President David Granger on the appointment of a new Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo had stated that in addition to the 18 previous nominees that were identified for the post, he is also looking at some new names, including foreign nominees.
“We’re hoping that he would’ve had the 18 names and that he’s prepared to say if any of the 18 names are acceptable. (But) we’ve started the process of soliciting new names, just in case, and we’re prepared to explore bringing names from outside of Guyana. Because as far as we look, you can submit names of people from the Commonwealth. So, we’re prepared to engage on a one-on-one and continuously until we resolve this matter,” Jagdeo said during his weekly press conference on Thursday.
Former GECOM Chairman retired Justice James Patterson was forced to step down after the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) ruled last week that his unilateral appointment by President David Granger was flawed and unconstitutional. The Court had urged that the two sides meet and come up with a consensus mechanism on the new appointment.
As such, President David Granger last Friday extended an invitation to the Opposition Leader to meet, and Jagdeo has since accepted the invite. However, a date is yet to be announced for that meeting, although the Opposition Leader indicated that he was willing to meet on a daily basis.
“I have not, up to the time of this press conference, received a response from the President to my letter and that letter indicated that I was prepared to meet continuously and on a daily basis if necessary, to resolve the issue of the (appointment of a new) Chairman of GECOM. As you know, the Court said that that appointment has to be on a consensual basis and so I would hope that the President would’ve addressed this matter with the urgency that it requires,” Jagdeo posited.
According to the Opposition Leader, he needs to meet with the Head of State to first determine how they will proceed with the new appointment, that is, whether they will select someone from the previous lists or come up with an entirely new list.
“First of all, I need to talk to the President about them. If the President finds someone on the list then I can put them on a list, get their consent and then move it back to him,” Jagdeo said.
Back in 2017, the Opposition Leader had submitted three separate lists of six nominees for the GECOM Chairman, but President Granger had rejected all 18 names.
These included: Christopher Ram, Lawrence Lachmansingh, retired Major General Norman McLean, Ramesh Dookhoo, Rhyaan Shah, James Rose, retired Justice of Appeal B.S Roy, retired Justice William Ramlall, former Magistrate Oneidge Walrond-Allicock, Attorney Kashir Khan, Attorney Nadia Sagar, Gerald Gouveia, Joseph Singh, Attorney Teni Housty, Attorney Sanjeev Datadin, Annette Arjoon-Martins, Pastor Onesi La Fleur, and former Magistrate Mr Krishnadatt Persaud.
Asked by the Guyana Times during Thursday’s press conference whether these 18 persons are willing to accept another nomination after being rejected, Jagdeo said, “I’ve spoken to some of them and some are willing to. I haven’t spoken to all of them as yet.”
In its June 18 ruling, the Trinidad-based regional Court ruled that Justice Patterson’s unilateral appointment was unconstitutional and the process used by the Guyanese President was “fatally flawed”. CCJ President, Justice Adrian Saunders, said that President Granger gave no specific reason for refusing to appoint a Chairman from the lists submitted by the Opposition Leader, adding that giving the President the power to reject candidates without given reasons would frustrate what the Constitution contemplates.
In fact, the Court decided that the President had a duty to give reasons for rejecting names in the interest of transparency.
To this end, the CCJ 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.
This case, which was heard by the CCJ on May 8, was brought by People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Executive Secretary Zulfikar Mustapha. Mustapha challenged the appointment of Patterson who was appointed to the position of Chairman of GECOM in October 2017.

President David Granger