Unprofessional behaviour by GECOM’s Commissioner

Dear Editor,
In recent times Bibi Safora Shadick, one of GECOM’s Commissioners, has taken it upon herself to do a weekly report in the newspapers in the form of Letters, Columns, and other media, on the statutory meetings of GECOM. I consider her actions unethical for a range of reasons, including the disclosure of the names of those who are responsible for the issue on which a report is being made. Given the nature of GECOM’s undertakings and what is chosen to be reported on, such reports may well put Commissioners and staff in harm’s way of overzealous political activists as well as discrete and undermine the work of the organization.
That aside, the most recent report of November 1 clearly revealed the agenda driven, impartial, bias and vicious nature of Shadick’s reporting. She found it news-worthy to indicate that the Chairman came ahead of his Secretary; the CEO was “belligerent”; the DCEO “overwhelmed”; the PRO accepted bias advice from a vendor- and she doubted whether the organization could implement its plans, which she declared to be “good and proper”, among other things. All of which were either irrelevant to the outcome of the meeting and/or opinionated.
What, however, is the most noteworthy was her omission of the issue that was interrogated/ discussed at the meeting, a matter that has serious implications for the conduct of the upcoming polls and the execution of which left much to be desired. Given my own disposition to reporting as she has been doing, I will mention the specifics of the matter, suffice to say that the officer responsible for that matter is kit and kin to her and has been openly and overwhelmingly favoured by her past events.
I can therefore come to no conclusion other than that Ms. Shadick’s reporting is an execution of the PPP/C campaign, to cast aspersions and malign the PPP/C’s proclaimed 90% African Guyanese staff at GECOM, and GECOM itself.
In my 11 years of service at GECOM, I have never seen GECOM reduced to such a crass level of politicking. We now have some Commissioners who are essentially Fifth Columnists, in my view.

Yours truly,
Vincent Alexander
GECOM Commissioner