President Granger asked to review Patrick Yarde’s appointment to PSC Chairmanship

May 23, 2017 News

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By Murtland Haley
Described as a conflict of interest, President David Granger is being asked to review the appointment of Patrick Yarde as acting Chairman of the Public Service Commission.
Yarde’s appointment to the PSC Chair came two days after he was re-elected President of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU). As such, Yarde is in the position where he has to represent the interests of public servants while simultaneously occupying the chair which deals with promotions, dismissals, disciplining and hiring of public servants.
According to Trade Unionist, Jermain Hermanstyne, Yarde’s appointment should be reviewed by the President who would have sworn in Yarde as acting Chairman of the PSC on May 4, 2017.
In an interview, Hermanstyne said that the GPSU is a representative body, which means that the union is tasked with the responsibility of representing workers. He said that it is not proper for Yarde to head the body of representation and at the same time be the person who “hires, fires and dismisses”.
He said that occupation of the two positions creates a conflict of interest.
“It appears to me as if our President is creating persons to be gods in the system; because if at every level there is no way that you can seek redress from this individual, you are creating a situation where you are making this person a god. That is of serious concern to me as well as public servants.”
The Public Service Appellate Tribunal was recently re-activated to hear appeals of decisions made at the level of the PSC. Yarde is not a member of the Appellate Tribunal.
Hermanstyne said that as a strong supporter of A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change government, “I am asking that the President look into this matter in which he has someone in a position of such blatant conflict of interest. It is the same yardstick that was used against Carvil Duncan.”
Hermanstyne dismissed suggestions that having Yarde at the helm of both bodies might augur well for future matters involving public servants.
He said that it is unwise to have the same person who has to represent public servants, occupying the seat that decides if a public servant is wrong or right; in the case of an employee being accused for some infraction.
“It means that he will decide based on his assessment whether he wants to promote or demote this person. For example, there have been the (GPSU) elections; now a lot of people in the public service are against Patrick Yarde and a lot would have voted against him.
“Patrick Yarde can decide that ‘this person doesn’t like me…’”
“I believe it was a blunder by President Granger and I believe it should be addressed and fixed forthwith.”
Commentator, Frederick Kissoon, does not believe the appointment of Yarde was a blunder. “I am saying it is too obvious to be put down as a mistake. I cannot see it being accidental given the fact that he was appointed in the midst of a very torrid controversy that went on for days in all the media.”
He said that the Patrick Yarde’s chairmanship of the PSC and his simultaneous occupancy as President of the GPSU is an egregious conflict of interest that cannot be argued and defended.
“For the simple reason that it vitiates the sacredness of conflict of interest…I am saying theoretically, a Union Leader cannot be the head of a commission that looks into discipline, dismissal and reinstatement of union members.”
Referring to the behaviour of judicial officers, particularly judges, Kissoon said that these personalities have on many occasions recused themselves from hearing court cases in which they have a personal interest.
“A judicial officer cannot preside in a case in which the litigant is related to the judge. We have examples where four years ago, a judge recused herself from hearing a case involving CLICO because she was a CLICO policy holder.
“Then you have another case two weeks ago in which a judge recused herself from hearing a matter that Banks DIH brought against the State because she is Banks DIH shareholder.”
Kissoon said that conflict of interest is a sacred fulcrum of which civilised society rests. He went further to say that it is untenable for Yarde to be a radical trade union leader, fighting for the rights of his members who may come before him at the level of the PSC.
He said that the APNU+AFC government is copying an old, disastrous political culture that is not serving the country well. Kissoon said that Guyana has been practicing bad political culture since the ousting of the People’s Progressive Party Civic from office in 2015.

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