Lawyers ask GECOM Chair to instruct Lowenfield to withdraw his report

Jun 26, 2020 News

The People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) through its lawyers have asked the Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Justice (ret’d), Claudette Singh to instruct Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield to withdraw his recently submitted report in which he invalidated over 115,000 votes.
In their letter dated at June 24, Attorneys-at-Law Devindra Kissoon and Anil Nandlall wrote to the GECOM Chair that “… we would be grateful if the Chief Elections Officer can be directed to withdraw the report he submitted dated June 23, 2020 and be redirected to act in the accordance with the instructions previously given on June 16, 2020 “using the results of the recount” as the basis for his report.”
Kissoon and Nandlall also said in the letter that while they are mindful of the admonitions of the CCJ which stated on June 23 that GECOM and its agents must take no step to prejudice the fair hearing of the ongoing case “the clear language of the CCJ Order does not prevent compliance with our request.”

Attorney at Law Devindra Kissoon

Attorney at Law Anil Nandlall

In the letter the lawyers had asked the Chair to respond to their request by yesterday afternoon, but it is unclear whether such was completed.
Meanwhile, Justice Adrian Saunders and Justice Winston Anderson, both of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), denied the same request made by those lawyers of the PPP/C.
During the CCJ’s case management proceedings yesterday afternoon, PPP/C, Senior Counsel Douglas Mendes who is representing the party pointed out that Lowenfield acted in contempt of the stay order by the Appeal Court when he submitted his report to GECOM Chair. However, Attorney General Basil Williams rebutted Douglas’ points, as he argued that it is in his opinion that the order did not prevent Lowenfield from submitting his report.
It is at this point that Justice Anderson interjected and told Douglas that if he had any concerns with Lowenfield’s actions, then they should be raised in Guyana’s Court of Appeal, since the CCJ was not the court that handed out the order.
Justice Saunders, who is also the President of the CCJ also shared his perspective. He stated that, “…we cannot undo what was done by the Chief Elections Officer. If Counsel wishes to include it in his submissions, whether what was done was lawfully done or whether there is to be no consequence or whether there is consequence to what was done, you are free to do so, but certainly did not intend in these proceedings to embark upon the substantive issues.”
Nonetheless, the CCJ has scheduled next Wednesday for the hearing of the appeal, in which it will decide whether it holds jurisdiction to determine the case.