It is now for Parliament to determine the period for the holding of elections -Attorney General tells Chief Justice

Aug 04, 2019 News

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It is clear that date for holding general and regional elections in Guyana after the successful passage of the No-Confidence Motion has already passed.

Since this is the case, it is now strictly within the remit and province of the National Assembly to extend the time for the holding elections based on the language of Article 106 (7) of the Constitution, and not for the court to address such matters.
This is according to Attorney General Basil Williams in his response to an application filed by Attorney-at-law Christopher Ram who is asking the court issue and order compelling the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to hold elections on or before September 18.
Ram also wants the court to order GECOM stop its house-to-house registration process which is in violation of Articles 106 (6) and 106 (7) of the Constitution and the rulings of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).
Given that the CCJ ruled that the No-Confidence Motion was properly carried with a majority of 33 of the 65 seats of the National Assembly on the night of December 21, 2018, the provisions of Articles 106 (7) were triggered for elections to be held by March 21.
That Article reads, “Notwithstanding its defeat, the government shall remain in office and shall hold an election within three months, or such longer period as the National Assembly shall by resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the votes of all the elected members of the National Assembly, and shall resign after the President takes the oath of office following the election.”
Against this backdrop, Williams noted that the CCJ made it clear that article 106 (7) also envisages the constitutional players extending the time for the holding of elections.
Williams, in his affidavit in defence said, “Credible elections could not be held on or before 21st March, 2019 as this was logistically impossible.” Among other things, Williams reminded that since 2014, the Commission had made it known that it would take approximately six months from the time of notification of an election to prepare for and hold credible elections.
Williams further said that, “the Judiciary is not competent to address matters of policy and politics and it is not within the remit of the Court to compel the Constitutional players, in particular GECOM, to fix a date that elections be held on or before September 18, 2019.”
Williams stated, “I am advised my Attorneys-at-law and verily believe that the House to House registration process is not in violation of Articles 106(6) and 106(7) of the Constitution as the final court, the CCJ has pronounced on this matter when it made its consequential orders.”
The CCJ, he said, declared, “Article 106 of the Constitution invests in the President and the National Assembly (and implicitly in GECOM), responsibilities that impact on the precise timing of the elections which must be held. It would not therefore be right for the Court, by the issuance of coercive orders or detailed directives, to presume to instruct these bodies on how they must act and thereby pre-empt the performance by them of their constitutional responsibilities.
It is not, for example, the role of the Court to establish a date on or by which the elections must be held, or to lay down timelines and deadlines that, in principle, are the preserve of political actors guided by constitutional imperatives.”
The Attorney General submitted that even assuming but not admitting that September 18 is the date for election, the timeline is impossible as retired Judge Claudette Singh has just been appointed the Chairman of GECOM and would now be required to meet with all commissioners and thereafter advise the President as to the readiness of the commission to hold elections. He said that it only after GECOM gives advice on its readiness for elections can the President prorogue Parliament.
“I am advised by my Attorneys-at-law and verily believe that the Applicant (Ram) has not established any evidence on the facts to substantiate the assertion that the House to House registration exercise has breached Articles 161(a) and 162 of the Constitution of Guyana and the National Registration Act CAP 19:08. However, the evidence before the Court is to the contrary that the House to House registration process is in accordance with the Constitution and the National Registration Act,” Williams noted.
According to Williams, more than 70,000 people have been registered to date under the house-to-house registration process and it is anticipated that another 70,000 could be added by the end of next week, which bring it to a total of 140,000.
The Attorney General told the court, “A decision was taken by the commission over 10 years ago that house-to-house registration was necessary for ensuring compliance with the commission’s mandate under Article 162 of the Constitution, namely to issue all such instructions and take such action as appears to it necessary or expedient to ensure impartiality, fairness and compliance with the provisions of the Constitution or of any Act of Parliament on the part of persons exercising powers or performing duties connected with or relating to the conduct of registration of electors and the conduct of elections of members of the National Assembly.”
Moreover, he said that Section Nine of the Representation of the People’s Act Chapter 1:03 requires a submission of lists from the Political Parties at least 32 days before the election date.
According to Section 9 of the Act, “Notices must be published in the Official Gazette 32 days before elections whereby a list of candidates may be submitted to the Chief Elections Officer and Section 10 prescribes that the Chief Elections Officer in accordance with Section Nine of the Act shall receive the list of candidates and no list shall be received at any other time and place.”
Having taken into consideration these and other circumstances, the Attorney General is therefore urging the court to refrain from granting the orders being sought by Ram.
The matter comes up for another hearing tomorrow at 09:00hrs before Chief Justice Roxane George at the High Court in Demerara.

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