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AG aware of unconstitutionality of Granger’s instructions to PSC
…dealt with similar issue before – Nandlall
Former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall says that his successor, Basil Williams is very much aware that President David Granger has no authority to instruct an independent Commission what to do under any 
circumstance.
Recently, Minister of State Joseph Harmon wrote the Police Service Commission (PSC) instructing the body to halt police promotions.
Nandlall said that this continues to raise disturbing questions about the coalition and “its attack on the Constitution.” The politician said that it also illustrates “the incompetence which seems to permeate the Government.”
He continued, “You would recall, that Minister Simona Broomes wrote a similar letter to the Secretary of the Public Service Commission on the 28th of May, 2015. In that letter, Minister Broomes advised the Commission to forthwith cease all interviews and meetings of the Commission until further instructions from President David Granger.”
Nandlall reminded that he had challenged the constitutionality of the directions contained in that letter. He said that Attorney General Basil Williams was the Respondent in those proceedings. Nandlall said that Williams, on 24th June 2015, consented to two Declarations: “that the Public Service Commission, a Commission established by the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, in the exercise of its functions shall not be subject to the direction or control of any other person or authority”.
And, that a letter dated the 28th of May, 2015, directed to the Secretary of the Public Service Commission, a Commission established by the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, by Ms. Simona Broomes, A Minister and a Member of the Executive, advising that “all interviews and meetings of the Commission are to cease forthwith until further (sic) as instructed by His Excellency, the President, David Arthur Granger’s notice,” is in violation of Article 226 of the Constitution of the Cooperative of Guyana, is unlawful, null, void and of no legal effect.”
Nandlall said that those two declarations were made an Order of Court by the then-Chief Justice Ian Chang.
He said that “it cannot be disputed that the Public Service Commission and the Police Service Commission are on the same constitutional footing (See Article 226(3) of the Constitution). It therefore begs the question, how is it that the Government can consent to the said Declarations and thereby accept that the Public Service Commission is an independent autonomous body, as per Article 226 of the Constitution, and that the President’s directions to it are unconstitutional, but the same does not apply to the Police Service Commission.”
Nandlall concluded, “It is clear, that this Government is in a state of chaos and confusion.”
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