With the State denied both leave to appeal as well as its application for a stay, the way is now clear for Justice Gino Persaud to move ahead to hear the substantive challenge brought by the former Police Service Commission (PSC) to the suspension of its Commissioners and non-promotion of ranks.
Finding no merit in the Attorney General’s (AG) application for leave to appeal its earlier ruling upholding Justice Persaud’s decision to proceed with Commission’s fixed date application (FDA)—the Full Court—constituting Justices Priya Sewnarine-Beharry and Fidela Corbin-Lincoln yesterday denied the State’s request for leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal.
Further, the Full Court Judges also denied the State’s request for a stay, thereby clearing the way for Justice Persaud to proceed with conducting a full trial of the FDA in which retired Assistant Commissioner of Police, and immediate former Chairman of the PSC, Paul Slowe, has been added as a party.
Justice Corbin-Lincoln who read the decision yesterday, said that contrary to the arguments advanced on behalf of the State, the Court is empowered with the right to add to a proceeding, a party who has an interest therein.
In their initial ruling, Justices Sewnarine-Beharry and Corbin-Lincoln varied Justice Persaud’s order so that Slowe was added as a party to the proceedings rather than being substituted for the PSC.
The Full Court in that ruling had said that notwithstanding the expiration of the three-year term of the members appointed to the Commission, it did not affect the body itself, save that it would be unable to carry out its functions without its appointed members.
The Court had noted that the PSC remained an existing constitutional body, even if the term of its members had expired and therefore that there was no issue of the Commission ceasing to be an existing body or having no capacity upon the expiration of the term of its appointed members.
Against that background, the Full Court had agreed with Justice Persaud’s finding that the expiration of the term of the members was no basis to strike out the claim, as the State was seeking.
Having added Slowe as an interested party and therefore an applicant to the proceedings, Justice Corbin-Lincoln said it was the view of the Court that it has both a right and discretion to add any interested party to a proceeding, whether by an application or by its own motion.
Contrary to advancements made by Solicitor General Nigel Hawke on behalf of the State, the Judge said that the addition was not an issue which raises any serious issue of law, not an area of law in dispute, nor does it raise any issue of public importance “in terms of the adding of Mr. Slowe as a party.”
She said that having regard to the entirety of its initial ruling, the Full Court was not of the view that the grounds of the AG’s application for leave to appeal had any merit and so refused that application, as well as that for a stay.
In the circumstances, the State has incurred costs in the sum of $75,000 to be paid to Slowe, which the Court ordered must be done no later than July 29th.
Given the State’s leave-to-appeal application on which the Full Court had to rule, Justice Persaud, when the matter was called before him on Monday, stayed any further action to July 22nd, to first await the ruling. Slowe had applied for an urgent hearing before Justice Persaud for an injunction to halt any promotion of members of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) by the new PSC headed by Patrick Findlay.
Slowe filed his urgent-hearing application on June 28th.
Less than a week later, however, on July 3rd, the Force via a press release, announced the promotion of Senior Officers.
The dozens of promotions were the latest move in an epic battle between government and the former PSC over police appointments.
Slowe’s contention has been that no promotion could be allowed in light of the initial challenge which is still pending before Justice Persaud, to last year’s suspension by President Irfaan Ali, of the PSC.
It was in those circumstances that Slowe was seeking the injunction restraining the Commission, the Prime Minister and the Attorney General who are listed as Respondents, from promoting or publishing a promotions list for members of the GPF, until the FDA has been fully dispensed with.
The PSC’s initial FDA in which Slowe was added an applicant, seeks a number of declarations—among them— for the Commission’s Secretary to be directed to prepare formal letters to the ranks named on the official list of promotions compiled and signed by the Commission on June 28th, 2021 informing those ranks of the Commission’s decision to promote them and for the court to nullify President Ali’s suspension of the Chairman and members of the Commission.
Back in September of last year, Slowe wrote then acting Police Commissioner Nigel Hoppie directing that he honour the promotions list published by the constitutional body on June 28th, of last year or risk legal action. Hoppie had acknowledged receipt of Slowe’s ultimatum but there was no compliance.
The promotions list was made public just one hour after Chief Justice (ag) Roxane George-Wiltshire had dismissed a challenge which had delayed the promotions for more than six months.
Days before the Chief Justice (CJ) handed down her ruling, however, President Ali by letters dated 15th, June, 2021 issued orders purporting to suspend the five-member Commission which included Slowe, retired Assistant Commissioner of Police Clinton Conway, Claire Jarvis, Michael Somersall and Vesta Adams.
Stemming from the CJ’s June 28th, 2021 ruling, however, Slowe called on the Top Cop to effect the promotions.
In his letter, Slowe upbraided Hoppie for failing to prepare the promotion order so that the promoted ranks and other members of the Force could be informed of the promotions.
Slowe is being represented by a battery of attorneys including Selwyn Pieters, Dexter Todd and Dexter Smartt.
