Dear Editor,
The approach of August 2 is an inevitable reminder of the political debacle of 2020 and the urgency of effecting electoral reform. Reflecting on this, I thought it fitting to formally recognize the heroic efforts of so many people who played active roles in settling the matter. We have so many people to thank: the election workers across the country who were involved in counting and recounting votes, the people who held vigil over the process for months, the local and international election observers, the Prime Ministers and election officials of neighbouring CARICOM countries who displayed regional solidarity and commitment to Guyanese rule-of-law in multiple visits, the justices of the Caribbean Court of Justice and the local judiciary, and possibly others.
Among this host of deserving persons, I would single out acting Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire for special praise. I applaud her display of competence, courage and composure during the politically uncertain period following the March 2020 elections, and the careful clarity with which she delivered her judgments. In the midst of political turmoil, we have to be thankful that the judiciary maintained its integrity and provided a needed national pillar of order. While officers of the national and regional judiciary all contributed, I believe that as the face of the system at critical points in the process, Justice George-Wiltshire’s role in establishing the necessary credibility and integrity was of inestimable value.
Given the importance of political stability in the national interest, to attack the judiciary at this critical juncture was to relinquish all claims to putting the national interest first. At the height of the crisis, I saw a social media post by someone claiming to be an instructor at the Cyril Potter College of Education who berated the Acting Chief Justice for ruling consistently against the Government. Evidently, she was of the view that the judiciary worked for the Government and was therefore obligated to favour the Government in its findings. When someone – not a teacher, but a teacher of teachers – could show such an appalling lack of understanding of the importance of judiciary independence, this is an indication of the depth of trauma under which persons in this country operate, and the lengths to which we need to go to for institutional strengthening across the board. Another year has passed with the promise of electoral reform but no concrete action. I hope the country will have more to show by this time next year.
Sincerely,
Dr. Desmond Thomas
