Former Voter Registration Manager at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Beverly Critchlow was today appointed Assistant Chief Election Officer (ACEO). However, the decision did not gain the support of Opposition-nominated Election Commissioners.

Commissioner Vincent Alexander described the recruitment process as “contrived.”

The decision to appointment Ms. Critchlow to the Office of the Assistant Chief Election Officer was made during today’s meeting of the Elections Commission.

Distancing himself from the decision, Mr Alexander explained that GECOM received a number of applications after it advertised the position.

He said a total of five persons were shortlisted based on the stipulated qualifications.

However, the Commissioners were later advised of the need to re-advertise the positioon on the grounds that the applicants did not meet the requirements.

“At the insistence of some Commissioners, it was decided to include in the re-advertisement that previous applicants need not reapply. Of the new applicants only one person was shortlisted,” Mr Alexander said in a statement.

That person turned out to be Ms. Critchlow who had retired from her previous position at GECOM.

The Election Commissioner told News Source that initially Critchlow had not applied for the position and it was only after the vacancy was advertised for a second time, that an application was submitted.

Alexander said although the five applicants from the initial list were deemed ineligible, they too were shortlisted for a second time.

“The one other applicant who was shortlisted turned out to be the preferred applicant for the job by a majority vote of the PPP/C nominated Commissioners and the Chair.” Mr Alexander said.

He is of the view that the move to readvertise the post was a waste of time.

“The re-advertisement was baseless and unnecessary, since five original applicants were eminently qualified for the job,” Mr Alexander said while contending that the “inclusion of new applicants corrupted the process.”

He is of the opinion that the emergence of the new applicant, in the person of Critchlow as the preferred applicant was contrived. He said for that reason he cannot be associated with the decision of the Commission.

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