GUYANA-POLITICS-Opposition Leader nominates new candidates for GECOM top post

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, May 3, CMC – Opposition Leader Bharat Jagdeo says he has nominated six people, including two retired judges, for the position of chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).
Jagdeo said he had submitted the names to President David Granger in keeping with the Guyana constitution in finding a replacement for Dr. Steve Surujbally, who stepped down last November.
He said the names submitted are that of retired Justice of Appeal B.S Roy, retired Justice William Ramlall and attorneys Oneidge Walrond-Allicock, Kashir Khan and Nadia Saga. The other nominee is Gerald Gouveia.
“Having regard to the antecedents in relation to this matter, arriving at these six names was not an easy task.
“I embarked upon an elaborate and protracted public and private consultative process which lasted several weeks, during which I solicited the views of, and sought nominations from, many nationally renowned persons and various important stakeholders’ and representative organizations, in my efforts to ensure that I present six names to the President who satisfy the requirements contemplated by Article 161(2) of the Constitution,” Jagdeo, a former head of state, noted.
He said he wanted to also thank other stakeholders “with whom I consulted but who indicated that their current commitments do not permit them to serve in the office of Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission, at this point of time”.
Jagdeo said his nominees range from persons in the legal profession to the army as well as the busi9ness community.
The Opposition Leader’s first list of nominees was rejected by President Granger, who noted that in keeping with the Constitution, the nominees should be persons who would have served as Judges, qualified to be a Judge or persons who are “fit and proper”.
Granger has already has stated that he will not make any decision on his own, and whoever is chosen would be someone who enjoys the support of both the President and Opposition for the job.