Opposition Parliamentarian Ganesh Mahipaul has moved for full disclosure of the remuneration packages of the Chair, Commissioners and other members of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the March 2020 general and regional information.
Mahipaul submitted the request to the Commissioner of Information, retired Justice Charles Ramson Sr on Monday.
On September 13, Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan administered the oath of office to retired Trinidad Justice of Appeal Stanley John; former Attorney General, High Court Judge and Acting Justice of Appeal in the Eastern Caribbean, Godfrey P. Smith SC; and former Chancellor (Ag), of the Guyana Judiciary, Carl Singh. Justice John will serve as chair while Dr Nasim Zaidi, former Chief Election Commissioner of India; and Dr Kwadwo Afari-Gyan, former Chairman of the Ghana Elections Commission will serve as resource personnel. Both of these men had been present as advisors during the elections under the auspices of the Commonwealth.
In his request for information, Mahipaul submitted “…their remuneration packages (salaries and other benefits) were not announced. Therefore, I write to you in your capacity as Commissioner of Information to provide me with the salaries and other benefits of the commissioners and resource personnel. Additionally, if there are other persons attached to this commission that shall be receiving salaries and other benefits, please provide.”
Mahipaul told Stabroek News that he made the request for information because he feels that the Guyanese people should know how their monies are being spent by the government.
“I believe that the country must know what is it we are spending on this Commission, especially against the backdrop that there are two pending elections petition in the court and one would expect that the court’s pronouncements should not be prejudiced or interfered with in any cynical way be it directly or indirectly,” he said.
Mahipaul added, “I personally view the Commission of Inquiry as a direct way of government trying to prejudice the outcome of the elections petition cases and the people of Guyana must know how much taxpayers’ money is being diverted to this whimsical, farcical commission of inquiry.”
He said that the government has a history of spending large chunks of monies on commissions of inquiry that achieve nothing.
“A lot of money belonging to the people of Guyana is going to be spent in a way that is going to be considered unnecessary given the elections petitions in the court. The primary reason [for the request] is because I want to know really how much taxpayers’ money will be spent here.
“…this government should utilize the money they are going to expend here to benefit the ordinary Guyanese citizens. There are a number of persons living in poverty basically punishing because the cost of living is sky high and this administration doesn’t seem to care about that. What they care more about is cheap political points, utilizing the state and the state’s resources to gain cheap political mileage in their attempt to stay in power by all ways or means,” he related.
The CoI is a result of a promise by President Irfaan Ali to investigate the attempt to rig the March 2020 polls. Five months after the March 2nd 2020 polls and after a series of legal battles, Ali was finally declared the winner of the presidential elections and subsequently sworn in as the country’s ninth executive president on August 2, 2020.
After taking office, he promised the probe into the elections by an international team. He had also committed his government to pursue the necessary reforms to strengthen democracy and make the electoral process more transparent.
The CoI will pay particular attention to District Four which was the epicentre of attempts to rig the polls. This information was contained in the terms of reference (TORs) released for the CoI.
The Commission will initially have seven months to complete its work and hand over the report to President Ali.
The Commissioners under the said Act are to inquire into the matters set out by President Ali and include an inquiry into and report upon the relevant circumstances and events leading up to, and the procedures following, the Regional and General Elections held in Guyana on the 2nd day of March 2020. The investigation is not limited to, but includes the counting, ascertainment and tabulation of votes polled and the public declaration of those results by the Returning Officer of Electoral District No. 4 and other election officers, as prescribed by sections 84 to 89 of the Representation of the People Act, Chap. 1.03.
The three Commissioners will also examine what attempts, if any, were made to obstruct, frustrate, subvert and prevent the counting, ascertainment and tabulation of votes polled and a declaration of the true results of Electoral District No. 4 as prescribed by sections 84 to 89 of the Representation of the People Act, Chap. 1:03, and by whom.
