Ahead of today’s ruling in the court action filed by Christopher Ram asking for declarations that the December 21 no-confidence motion was validly passed and that the President and his Cabinet should immediately resign, Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire, SC, yesterday heard additional arguments on what is meant by the resignation of Cabinet with “immediate effect.”
Justice George-Wiltshire after reviewing Articles 106 (6) and (7) of the Constitution, invited the attorneys in the case to return to court. Ram’s attorney, Kamal Ramkarran, and Anil Nandlall, the attorney for Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo, were adamant that the resignation is immediate and that it applies only to Cabinet and not the government. Attorney General Basil Williams, SC, however, insisted that the use of the word “notwithstanding” in Article 106 (7), ensures a timeframe of at least three months before such a resignation is made.
Article 106 (6) of the Constitution states: “The Cabinet including the President shall resign if the Government is defeated by the vote of a majority of all the elected members of the National Assembly on a vote of confidence.” Article 106 (7) states: “Notwithstanding its defeat, the Government shall remain in office and shall hold an election within three months, or such longer period as the National Assembly shall by resolution supported by not less than two-thirds of the votes of all the elected members of the National Assembly determine, and shall resign after the President takes the oath of office following the election.”