Removal of residency requirement makes law consistent with Constitution – Jagdeo

Dec 18, 2022 News

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…dismisses AFC’s concerns as ‘pure clown show’

Kaieteur News – Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has refuted the Alliance For Change’s (AFC) argument that the removal of the residency requirement from the Representation of the People Act (ROPA) and the National Registration Act (NRA), is a major blow to democracy.

According to the Department of Public Information (DPI), the Vice President described the AFC Leader Khemraj Ramjattan’s assertions as ‘pure clown show’.

“This has been in the public domain for almost eight months …the explanation is when the Constitution removed that in 2001, the law is inconsistent with the Constitution of Guyana so now that we have a ruling from the Chief Justice, the law has to be consistent, an ordinary law with the supreme law of the country – the Constitution of Guyana,” DPI quoted Ramjattan as saying.

Jagdeo said that the events which followed the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections prompted the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) administration to amend the ROPA. He said that the amendments seek to enhance, modernise and reform the democratic quality of the country and make the electoral machinery and the registration process more transparent, accountable and effective.

Amendments were made to the National Registration Act, Cap. 19:08, which seek to strengthen and clarify the concept of a continuous registration system which is provided for by law, DPI reported.

Fixed periods for voter registration, regular removal of deceased persons from the official list of electors, and cyclic issuance of national identification cards are among the significant amendments the Act.

The amendments to the NRA go hand-in-hand with amendments to the ROPA and complete the cycle of amendments being made to the electoral system.

However, Ramjattan at a press conference held on Friday said that the removal of the residency requirements for eligible voting at elections is a major blow to democracy and free and fair elections.

Ramjattan said “The has effectively subtracted out of section 6(2)(a) of the National Registration Act the express requirement which stipulated that on the qualifying date, people who are registered must be people “(a): who are resident in Guyana.”

“Further, it substituted for this mandatory residency qualification, which is the duty of GECOM to find and file, an alternative arrangement under a new Section 6(4) which stipulates “… at which registration officers shall receive: (a) the application of registration of every person eligible therefore, with and address at the date of his application in the registration division in that district or any part thereof…,” Ramjattan said.

The AFC Leader who is also an Attorney further added that as it relates to the amendment to the Representation of the People Act, the Government has by substitution of Section 2 of the Amendment Act 24 of 2022, knocked off the word ‘resident’ and replaced same with ‘with registered address’; and, for the words ‘an elector’s residence within Guyana’ substituted this with the words ‘an elector’.

Displaying a high degree of alarm and apprehension, Ramjattan continued by saying, “Further and more alarmingly, the Government has installed a new part into the Representation of the People Act in a new section 33 A (6), which now stipulates : ‘’If the Commission so directs by order, the list  of Electors to choose the members of any local democratic organ (other than a regional democratic council) or Local Government Authority shall consist of names extracted from the Official List of Electors prepared under this section and registered with an address in the area of that Local Democratic Organ or Local Government Authority”

“The previous position by Section 2 (3) was that the official list of electors for any division ‘shall be the preliminary list of the electors’ resident in that division. From all appearances, the PPP missed the amendment needed for the Local Government Elections Act to complete the circle. It obviously overlooked this residency qualification therein. One has to be ordinarily resident to be a voter in the Local Government Elections, and, ‘ordinarily resident’ is given a meaning therein,” Ramjattan added.

The AFC Leader continued by saying that there is only one deduction to be made based on the actions of the Government, and that is “to have a voters list which will increasingly be bloated each year to come, and which will be abused via impersonations.”

Additionally, the Party’s Leader said that after noticing the Government’s intention, it sought to have the matter deferred to a Special Select Committee for deliberations. However, that request was denied.

 

 

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