With questions still lingering about the academic bona fides of PPP/C presidential candidate Irfaan Ali, two citizens have moved to the High Court for disclosure, while arguing that they are entitled to know the qualifications of the presidential hopeful as with any other, before deciding to vote for a particular candidate.
In a fixed date application, plaintiffs Dianna Deravinne Rajcumar and Phillip Marcus want the High Court to make a declaration to this effect, and order that Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo make available to them all the academic certificates Ali claims he has.
Jagdeo, in his capacity of representative of the list for the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), and the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), are listed as the defendants/respondents in the matter.
Ali, who is seeking to win enough votes at the March 2nd general and regional elections and become leader of the country, has been dogged by questions about the authenticity of his academic qualifications. He is also currently facing 19 fraud charges over the allocation of house lots to fellow Cabinet members and other persons in the Pradoville 2 Housing Scheme during his tenure as Housing Minister. The basis of the charges is that the lands were sold far below market value.
Early last year, the former Minister of Housing under the PPP/C government faced questions over his academic credentials as there was no evidence forthcoming that the school which provided him with a transcript for entry into an Indian university on a Government of Guyana scholarship was ever accredited here.
Pressed repeatedly for answers on the issue, Ali eventually took to his Facebook page, declaring that he had made all his transcripts and certificates public there, and stating that he would be making no further comments on the matter.
Former president Jagdeo, too, when questioned at a press conference for answers regarding Ali’s qualifications, had shut down questions on the issue, stating that Ali would be answering no further questions relating to his qualifications.
“If you go on my Facebook page, I don’t know if it is still there, I shared, as I said, all my certificates. There are many, many certificates …they all have credits for them. What is out there, I stand by and this is all I have to say on the matter,” Ali had told his first press conference since his election as his party’s presidential candidate.
On his Facebook page, however, no photographs or any other material related to his credentials were ever found by this newspaper.
Through their attorney, Stephen Lewis, Rajcumar and Marcus want Jagdeo to produce for their perusal, Ali’s first degree certificate and transcripts for any first degree conferred on him (Ali) within seven days of the date of the order of court.
Within that same seven-day span, the plaintiffs are also demanding to be given information on the name of the university, or institution from which Ali is said to have been awarded that first degree and the nature of the study completed therein.
They also want information setting out whether the presidential candidate was ever issued with a certificate of graduation, which states that it was issued by the Business College, West Demerara Chamber of Commerce; whether any such studies did lead to a Degree in Planning and for a transcript supporting same.
Added to this, they want Jagdeo to provide information on whether Ali ever obtained any degree from the University of Sunderland along with proof of certification in the form of transcripts.
Alternatively, the plaintiffs/applicants are asking the court to order the GECOM to produce these various pieces of documents for their perusal.
Rajcumar and Marcus are described in their application, seen by this newspaper, as citizens of Guyana qualified to and who will be exercising their right to vote in the upcoming March 2nd general and regional elections.
They said that they have been keenly following the information on the various list and presidential candidates contesting the upcoming elections and have noted that information concerning Ali’s qualification as a presidential candidate has been in some instances withheld and otherwise alleged to be false.
The duo said that Ali’s prevarication on providing clarification of his qualifications has led to them seeking clarification through the courts.
Rajcumar said that on January 29th, she wrote Jagdeo seeking information on what she has now applied to the courts for and on whether Ali was the holder of a first degree at the time of commencing study for a master’s degree from the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi, India.
According to the court documents, Rajcumar said that Jagdeo never responded to her letter.
Rajcumar and Marcus are contending that consequent on their constitutional right to vote, they have a right to information on the candidates for the election and are entitled to know their educational background in deciding who to vote for.
The applicants argue that GECOM is empowered with the responsibility to exercise general direction and supervision over the registration of the electors and the administrative conduct of elections of member of the National Assembly, and to take such action as appear to it necessary or expedient to ensure impartiality, fairness and compliance with the provision of the Constitution or of any Act of Parliament and, therefore, has the authority to require information from and in relation to candidates.
They advance, too, that the list of candidates submitted for elections to the Chief Election Officer shall be accompanied by a statutory declaration by each person named on that list of his qualifications and consent made before a Justice of the Peace or other person authorised to administer the oaths.
The applicants said, however, that as far as they are aware, no such declaration was made by Ali, while noting that consequently their right to vote and to freedom of expression are likely to be breached if the respondents fail and/or neglect to provide information on Ali’s educational background.
Last April, Stabroek News was shown four certificates by Ali following several requests for an interview and had made efforts to independently verify their authenticity.
However, still not clear is how Ali gained entry into a master’s degree programme in 2002. There have been allegations that a transcript issued by a school, identified as the Chamber Business School on the West Bank of Demerara, was used for his entry.
That transcript was provided by businessman Joshua Safeek.
Checks by this newspaper at the National Accreditation Council found no records at that body of the school’s existence.
Stabroek News also visited the West Coast of Demerara but after hours of searches and enquiries could find no evidence of the Chamber Business School. None of the persons in the homes or business places visited from Vreed-en-Hoop to Tuschen had heard of the school and some older residents laughed when asked about it.
