Dear Editor,
The Chief Justice (ag.) has recently ruled on Compton Reid’s petition, disqualifying individuals with dual citizenship from being eligible to be members of the National Assembly of Guyana. She has ruled that by virtue of Article 155(1) of the Constitution such individuals holding seats in Parliament must vacate their seats.
However, the more egregious breach of the Constitution is the appointment of Cabinet Ministers who are ineligible. The Constitution of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana Act at Article 183 (1) states “The office of a Minister who was not an elected member of the Assembly at the time of his or her appointment and has not subsequently become such a member shall become vacant if the holder of the office – (a) cease to be a citizen of Guyana; or (b) he or she becomes disqualified for election as a member of the Assembly by virtue of Article 155 or any law enacted pursuance thereof”.
It has been widely reported that the following Ministers, Joseph Harmon, Carl Greenidge, Rupert Roopnaraine and Dominic Gaskin, have dual citizenships or foreign allegiance or obedience to foreign powers or states. This makes them ineligible to hold office as Members of Parliament and since they were appointed as Ministers by virtue of being Members of Parliament, they are holding office in direct contravention of Article 155 (1) and Article 183 (1) of the Constitution.
It is incumbent upon these individuals and others in similar circumstances to immediately vacate their positions since they are holding their portfolios illegally. It is also important that they understand that there is no curative relief, by way of relinquishing their foreign citizenship and allegiance, for their illegality subsequent to the pronouncement of the Court. These Ministers are illegal by operation of law and fact. It is worth noting that they ought to demit office immediately and Appeal of the Chief Justice’s (ag.) decision does not save their invalid Ministerial positions.
The seriousness of this breach of the Constitution has far-reaching consequences. These Ministers are void of legal authority and therefore all their directives are illegal. They are not allowed to exercise any Ministerial duties, responsibilities or privileges. They must understand that any expenditure emanating from the purview of their office is without legal basis and they will be held personally liable. They will not be afforded Ministerial immunity as they are acting outside of the ambit of lawful authority. Their authority and actions in so far as they are in breach of the Constitution are of no force or effect.
Their actions will have dire repercussions for any contracts, agreements, promotions and other arrangements involving other parties directly or indirectly. The President and Government of Guyana will have to account for this on-going illegality as they are fully aware of the Court’s decision and the requirement of the Constitution. Their pronouncements and actions after the Court’s ruling clearly demonstrate their wanton disregard for the law and the Judiciary. The status quo cannot be demonstrably justified in any free and democratic society. The Rule of Law is at its brink. It is imperative that a citizen of Guyana obtain standing to bring an action for Judicial Review of the validity of these Ministers’ portfolios. This dastardly behaviour must not be allowed to go on unopposed.
Yours faithfully,
Tamesh N Lilmohan
