Chief Justice throws out APNU’s case challenging compilation of voters’ list 

The case filed by APNU’s Chief Scrutineer, Carol Smith-Joseph challenging the method used by GECOM to compile the voters’ list for the initially scheduled March 13 Local Government Elections (LGE) which have now been rescheduled for June 12, was on Tuesday, dismissed by acting Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire, SC.

In the case filed late last year on her behalf by Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, Smith-Joseph, among other things, contended that “The process employed by [GECOM] to prepare a Register of Voters for use at the next Local Government Elections has deprived the Electors and or voters of the opportunity to object to persons on the Register of Voters in the manner provided for in and contemplated by Local Authorities (Elections) Act Cap. 28:03.”

As such, she had asked the court to direct GECOM, to comply with Article 162 of the Constitution, in compiling a Register of Voters which imposes and/or implies a duty to compile a reasonably accurate and credible Register of Voters. She also wanted the court to determine that the Register of Voters extracted for use at LGE is not reasonably accurate or credible thereby making the same unconstitutional, unlawful, null, void and of no legal effect.

However, in a ruling delivered on Tuesday at the High Court in Demerara, the Chief Justice said that several of the declarations sought by Smith-Joseph were vague, and as such, said that the court cannot grant them under those circumstances.

Justice George held that Smith-Joseph adduced no evidence to support her contention that the Official List of Electors (OLE) is so flawed that it is of no use. 

Chief Justice- Roxane George

“The applicant’s [Smith-Joseph] exhibited documents do not support her assertions.  There is no evidence that the process of the compilation of the OLE was flawed. There is no credible evidence before this court of ineligible persons being listed on the Register of Voters.”

In the end, the Chief Justice dismissed Smith-Joseph’s application, calling it “unmeritorious”. According to her, the application took up a lot of judicial time mainly because of the various pieces of legislation that  had to be cross-referenced.

The “only plus” coming out from the case is that it allows the court to urge that Parliament must endeavour to harmonise elections laws, said the Chief Justice, who repeatedly emphasised the importance of elections to any democratic society.

APNU’s Smith-Joseph was ordered to pay $250,000 in cost to GECOM, the first-named respondent. The other respondents in the matter were Chief Election Officer/the Commissioner of Registration, Vishnu Persaud and the Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC.

She was represented by Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde while GECOM, and Persaud were represented by GECOM’s in-house lawyer Kurt Da Silva. The Attorney General appeared in person along with lawyers from his chambers.

Local Government Elections were last held in 2018.

GECOM was allocated $5.2 billion in the 2023 National Budget to carry out its functions. Local Government Elections are scheduled to be held on Monday, June 12, however, members of the Joint Services will cast their ballots on June 2.