GECOM Chair rubbishes Opposition's claims of bias

Shutting down claims by the Opposition that she often sides with the Government nominated commissioners on crucial electoral matters, Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Justice (Ret’d) Claudette Singh said she makes her own decisions.

“I make my own decisions,” Singh told reporters during a press conference on Friday.

Described as a “partisan political actor” by the Opposition, the Elections Commission Chairman has been accused of voting on every occasion with the Elections Commissioners nominated by the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C). But Singh while not completely denying the claim, said she makes her own decisions on her own judgements.

“The fact is, let me just say, there are three Commissioners, three Commissioners on each side, I have the casting vote, that is what I have from the legislation. So, what do I do when they are tied, I have to cast a vote. I make up my own decisions, it is no that I am voting with the PPP,” Singh said.

The Elections Commission Chairman defended her decision to support the appointments of the Chief Elections Officer, Vishnu Persaud; the Deputy Chief Elections Officer, Aneal Giddings; the Assistant Chief Elections Officer, Beverly Critchlow; and Melanie Marshall, the Voter Registration Manager, telling reporters that they were best suited for the positions.

“Vishnu Persaud – the CEO – I chose him over the other candidate, it was himself and another candidate, because of his proven experience garnered from his previous employment with GECOM, which was emphasized by former Chairman, Dr. Steve Surujbally. He gave him a recommendation, which I read, and which on the basis of that recommendation, Mr. Persaud, I felt was the better of the two candidates. I found him to be suitable to fill that position. The other candidate had no experience whatever in the conduct of elections based on proportional representation system. The second was Aneal Giddings. I would say this, he was the only person I found to have the necessary experience for the position, and who could have hit the ground running. And that was my decision, and if the PPP supported him, well, that is how it is,” the GECOM Chair explained.

Turning her attention to the Assistant Chief Elections Officer, Singh said Critchlow served in the Elections Secretariat for well over 25 years. Critchlow was suitably qualified for the job, bringing her wealth of experience, the Elections Commission Chairman said.

Melanie Marshall was also said to be best suited for the position of Voter Registration Manager, bring years of experience.

“Ms. Melanie Marshall was the very person in 2015, whom the PPP said they could not locate when they were applying for a recount. Yet, do you know what, when her application came up they made no objection about her appointment, and accepted that nomination because she was the best person there on the list,” Singh pointed out.

Singh also went on to justify other appointments made, as she sought to put to rest the allegations of bias in favor of the Government.

But the Opposition has said that it wants Singh to be gone for consistently aligning herself with decisions of the PPP/C nominated Commissioners. It said there can be no free and fair elections with Singh at the helm of GECOM. The GECOM Chair has rubbished the calls for her resignation.

Vice President and General Secretary of the PPP/C, Bharrat Jagdeo recently came out in defense of the GECOM Chair, praising her for her commitment to upholding the rule of law and maintaining the integrity of the Guyana’s electoral processes.

He said claims that Singh is colluding with Government are baseless, and part of a deliberate strategy to undermine the trust in electoral institutions.