Meeting on GECOM nominees postponed

The meeting scheduled for yesterday between teams representing President David Granger and Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo was postponed, reportedly because Granger is still considering the four new names submitted on Wednesday for consideration for Chair of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

Stabroek News was informed by the Deputy Director of Press and Publicity at the Ministry of the Presidency, Ariana Gordon that the meeting had been postponed and would be rescheduled.

Gordon, at the time could not indicate when the meeting was likely to be held.

On Wednesday, Jagdeo rejected Granger’s suggestion of retired Justice Claudette La Bennett and GPHC Chairperson Kesaundra Alves for addition to the list of four persons already deemed “not unacceptable” and submitted four additional names.

Following that meeting Director General of the Ministry of the Presidency Joseph Harmon said that the president would once again begin consideration of the four names, with another round of the “hammering out” process scheduled to continue yesterday.

Two more names are needed from the four submitted yesterday to round off a list of six for submission to the President.

The president’s representatives at the meeting were Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence and Harmon while Jagdeo was represented by PPP/C Presidential Candidate Irfaan Ali and former Attorney General Anil Nandlall.

Following the meeting, which was held at the Ministry of the Presidency and which lasted for about one hour, representatives from both sides gave brief updates to the press but said that it was agreed to by both sides that none of the four names would be disclosed until the president had deliberated on them.

Harmon would only say that all of the names submitted are of Guyanese persons but did not answer if they were overseas based.

Nandlall added that he wanted to make clear that the leader of the opposition’s rejection of the president’s nominees was in keeping with his role as per the Constitution where the names he submits are selected by him.

The meeting was a follow up on the shortlisting process held on Tuesday with President Granger and Jagdeo and a oneweek informal process between representatives of the two leaders.

After that meeting, they had jointly announced that four candidates had been found “not unacceptable” for the appointment.

Granger told a press briefing immediately after, that the two sides were able to come to a “broad agreement.”

Both sides have committed to the selection of a chairperson as early as possible since GECOM’s preparation for elections is dependent on a chair.