BY: ANTONIO DEY | HGP NIGHTLY NEWS |
Chairman of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Retired Justice Claudette Singh, is facing sharp criticism and calls to step down after two Opposition-appointed Commissioners accused her of “decommissioning the Commission” and failing to declare the 2025 General and Regional Elections results lawfully.
In a strongly worded public letter, Commissioners Vincent Alexander and Desmond Trotman said Justice Singh has acted outside her authority, undermined constitutional procedures, and effectively stripped the Commission of its legal standing.
Failure to Declare Election Results
Alexander and Trotman reiterated that they did not sign off on the 2025 election results, insisting that doing so would have legitimized what they call constitutional breaches in the electoral process. They contend that several categories of citizens were disenfranchised, including:
- Prisoners
- Offshore workers
- Party agents assigned to work outside their divisions
They also highlighted “the conscious retention of thousands of deceased persons” on the voters’ list—both in Guyana and overseas—along with other procedural and substantive violations they argue are “verifiable.”
Despite these concerns, they said GECOM deemed the issues beyond its scope to correct.
Accusation: The Chair Acted Against the Constitution
According to the Commissioners, Justice Singh failed to comply with Sections 96 and 99 of the Representation of the People Act, which require the Chair to:
- Present the regional elections report to the full Commission
- Publicly declare the election results
They insist that she also ignored constitutional requirements governing her role.
Claim: Chair Declared Commission “Not Properly Constituted”
The Commissioners say that after the polls, Justice Singh informed them that GECOM was “no longer properly constituted.” This, they argue, effectively ended their legal status as Commissioners — a position they say she lacked the authority to assume.
They allege that Justice Singh relied on her own interpretation of Article 163 of the Constitution to justify this move, even while continuing to administer the Commission, approve major decisions, and authorize “huge bonuses” for the Chief Elections Officer.
They maintained that the Commission is still required to review:
- The 2025 Elections Report
- The European Union Observer Mission’s final report
The Commissioners say Justice Singh is preventing that process from happening.
Call for Justice Singh to Demit Office
Alexander and Trotman argue that if Justice Singh believes Article 163 invalidates their status, then she too must demit office, rather than unilaterally continuing to preside over GECOM.
They insist the 2025 elections process is not yet complete and that the Chair is acting “unauthorized and unprecedented” in sidelining them.
They maintain that they received a dismissal notice along with the Gazette results—results they say were never publicly declared, as the law demands.
The Commissioners are urging Justice Singh to either abide by the Constitution or resign.
