Public hearings for the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the March 2020 Regional and General elections have been suspended until February 6.
Chairman of the Commission of Inquiry, retired Justice Stanley John, at the end of yesterday’s session directed that during the break every effort be made to have witnesses appear when the hearing resumes. It is the commission’s intention to wrap up hearings by February 10.
He added that when the inquiry resumes, the attorney for the former Deputy Chief Election Officer Roxanne Myers can cross-examine witnesses. He said that the cross-examination should occur in the February 6 to 10 timeframe.
“Our intention is to resume on Monday, 6th of February… and we [will] make every effort to complete the hearings by the 10th of February… if the attorney for Ms Myers wishes to cross-examine, that too shall take place…” he said to Counsel for the Commission, Sophia Chote SC.
When the hearings resume, it is expected that Attorney General Anil Nandlall SC along with other government ministers will take the stand and testify in the CoI.
Myers had written to the Commission seeking to have her attorney cross-examine witnesses who previously implicated her in a series of events during the tallying of votes.
In a letter, dated November 21, 2022, and which was seen by Stabroek News, the Hughes, Fields and Stoby law firm wrote to Secretary of the Commission Javed Shadick making the request.
“We act on behalf of Ms Roxanne Myers, former Deputy Chief Executive Officer of GECOM… We have noted that during the course of the testimonies of some of the witnesses who have appeared before the Commission, statements have been made which refer to our client conducting various activities in relation to the conduct of the elections in 2020,” the letter stated.
“In the light of the specific references to our client and her alleged participation in various activities, we are instructed to request that our client be permitted, through counsel, to cross-examine the witnesses on any testimony which purports to refer our client,” it added.
The letter reminded that Myers is currently before the court on various criminal charges relating to the conduct of the 2020 General and Regional elections.
The CoI is a result of a promise by President Irfaan Ali to investigate the attempt to rig the March 2020 polls in favour of the former APNU+AFC government. 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.
The CoI is mandated to 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.
