Three months after the Constitutional Reform Commission was constituted by President Irfaan Ali, the Commission is still to meet. However, Attorney General, Anil Nandlall, who is a member of the Commisson has explained that now that the “seat of the commission” is in place, a meeting will likely be convened soon.

 “I was a delegate of the President tasked with a responsibility by his excellency to constitute the commission, to make the seat of the commission available, to furnish and equip the seat of the commission so that it can conduct its affairs, and to ensure that the members of the commission were appointed and took their oath of office. I have discharged those functions,” the Attorney General said on his weekly television talk show.

However, longstanding Elections Commissioner, Vincent Alexander, who is also a member of the Constitutional Reform Commission, believes time is of the essence.

Mr. Alexander told News Source that since he was sworn in by the President on the 3rd April, there has been no communication about the work of the Commission. 

He suspects that the delay might have been linked to a need for other members of the Commission to be sworn in, and to cater for the move by the Government to amend the Constitution Reform Commission Act to increase its size to 21 and to allow for the Chairman to have voting rights. 

“When we were sworn in, there were some commissioners who were not present. They have since been sworn-in. But there is another issue, when we were sworn-in, a chairperson was sworn-in, who is not one of the 20 commissioners, and therefore, there is a big question as to whether that chairperson would be someone appointed by the president, as the law provided for, but who is not a member of the commission, and therefore could not vote. I think they have since gone to parliament to change that to extend the commission to 21, to include retired Chancellor of the Judiciary Carl Singh, as a voting member of the commission. But though those things have been rectified, I must say I still have not heard a word from anyone relating to the commission,” Alexander said. 

He said there are critical Constitutional matters to be addressed, including matters related to the country’s electoral system.

“This is a critical matter. Everybody has recognized that there is work to be done in that regard. Suffice to say that in 1997,1999,2001, when the former commission retired, it was with the understanding that we were doing so to facilitate the 2001 elections, and that we would have reconvened to address the question of the electoral system and more particularly, the question of constituencies, that has never happened. So, we really have outstanding work in terms of constitutional reform dating back to 2001 and so, it is more than urgent,” Alexander explained. 

Mr. Alexander also pointed out that there are also issues relating to the composition of the Guyana Elections Commission, the Voters’ List and the country’s Governance system. 

“That apart that one may argue is that there have been a lot of debate about the adequacy of a winner take all system in Guyana, and in that context, again, it is constitutional reform that we have to turn to. There is also a burning issue about how do we get a clean list. Based on a ruling of the Chief Justice, there is nothing much that can be done administratively, and again, this is a matter that requires constitutional attention. So, there are critical matters, there are urgent matters, there are outstanding matters, all of which have to be resolved at the level of constitutional reform,” Alexander said. 

He warned that further delay can hamper the work of Commission, adding that the Commission’s ability to complete its work before the 2025 Elections would depend heavily on whether it decides to rely on existing materials or engage in widespread consultation. 

Retired Acting Chancellor, Justice Carl Singh will serve as the Chairman of the Commission. He has denied interview requests.

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