A new GECOM chairman should revisit the Vishnu Persaud issue

Jun 22, 2019 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

In his recent article, (KN 6/20/19) Freddie Kissoon summarized the reasons why the current GECOM Chairman, Justice James Patterson should gracefully remove himself or have President Granger relieve him of his chairmanship. Had the situation been reversed, and the PNC had been in the opposition, I suspect that supporters of the PNC would have been picketing and blocking the entrance to GECOM’s office in Kingston to prevent Justice Patterson from entering the building.
In the same piece, Kissoon issued a public apology for not standing up in protest to the “injustice” meted out to Vishnu Persaud, an applicant for the position of Deputy Chief Election Officer. The injustice referred to is the manner in which Mr. Persaud was treated by none other than the GECOM Chairman himself.
From media reports, there were four stated criteria listed in the vacancy advertisement for the position of Deputy CEO, all of which were met by Mr. Persaud: Masters degree, experience in elections management, communication skills and qualifications in elections management.
I want to make it clear that I hold no brief for Ms. Roxanne Myers, who was selected as the Deputy CEO. I assume she too is qualified for the position. However, I am more concerned about the manner in which the Chairperson’s disposition created a biased atmosphere within GECOM.
By not considering the facts on their merit, the Chairperson’s comments, from all appearances, did not lend itself to a serious consideration of Mr. Vishnu Persaud’s qualifications and application for the position. The ERC report stated that “Mr. Persaud was the first candidate in the history of GECOM who had obtained the highest score and had not been appointed.”
The reference to Justice Patterson’s description of the candidate as being “shifty” and his subsequent refusal (or failure) to provide the Ethnic Relations Commission with promised documentation of an alleged “paper trail” he had seen, only serve to cast serious doubts upon his professionalism, and, more importantly, his ability to manage the national electoral process.
I would recommend that the new GECOM chairman revisit the circumstances surrounding the imbroglio involving Vishnu Persaud. Perhaps a position can be created for him, along with Ms. Myers, in GECOM, especially given the microscopic scrutiny being placed on GECOM to ensure free and fair elections. Two heads are better than one. Perhaps correcting a perceived wrong inflicted upon a fellow Guyanese may bring some semblance of sanity to this beleaguered institution.
As a footnote, in a recent town hall meeting on Globespan with Vincent Alexander and Robeson Benn (which I moderated), the GECOM commissioners were in agreement that the cantankerous and partisan positions adopted by the commissioners have made GECOM into a “dysfunctional organization”.
To their credit, both of the commissioners agreed that GECOM’s meetings should be open to the media and public.
Sincerely,
Baytoram Ramharack

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