GECOM staff charged with electoral fraud suing gov’t for summons to testify before Elections CoI

Three employees of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) are each suing the government for more than $50M over summons being issued for them to testify before the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the March 2020 General and Regional Elections.

On Tuesday, Denise Babb-Cummings, Shefern February and Michelle Miller—who are all facing electoral fraud charges—appeared before the CoI in the company of their lawyer, Eusi Anderson, and exercised their constitutional right to remain silent.

Together, the three women contend that summons being issued for them to testify before the CoI set up by President Dr Irfaan Ali is a breach of their constitutional right against self-incrimination as protected by Article 144 of the Constitution of Guyana.

Anderson deposed that his clients are charged with “diverse criminal offences” related to their official duties at GECOM, and remain in jeopardy as the matters are still to be adjudicated by a magistrate. If convicted, he said they face imprisonment for not less than five years.

The lawyer contends that by summoning his clients to testify before the CoI, the State is seeking a conviction in the criminal proceedings before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, while simultaneously seeking a conviction in the court of public opinion and the said CoI.

As such, the lawyer is asking a High Court judge to grant a permanent injunction to prevent the CoI from compelling the attendance of anyone charged with a criminal offence arising from the factual circumstances the CoI is charged with inquiring into.

“The State is criminally prosecuting [Babb-Cummings, February and Miller] and the State is seeking to compel them to give evidence in a tribunal [CoI] which has identical, if not greater powers than a magistrate…”, counsel argues. By doing such, he submitted that the State is breaching his clients’ right to a fair trial in both fora of inquiry.

“The risk of contradictory answers, contrary findings, pollution of public opinion, varying standards of proof, the absolute right to silence in criminal proceedings and the tacit putting of their case through cross-examination in the said criminal proceedings and any adverse findings of the CoI are all red flags which the resourced and all-powerful State should not ignore.”

Further, Anderson averred that he would contend that the trio is entitled to damages for breach of their constitutional right to due process, and a fair trial. The State, he argues, has willfully exposed the women to self-incriminating testimony under risk of compulsion or contempt and has failed to ensure that they receive a fair trial in the criminal proceedings.

When they appeared before the CoI on Tuesday morning, the employees invoked their constitutional right to remain silent and same was respected by the CoI’s Chairman Justice (Ret’d) Stanley John, who disclosed that the women’s application for an interim injunction to prevent them testifying before the Commission was refused by a High Court Judge that very morning.

The lawsuit was filed on Monday at the High Court in Demerara.

Shortly after the results for the March 2020 General and Regional Elections were officially declared by GECOM, Babb-Cummings, February and Miller were charged with conspiracy to commit fraud stemming from the respective roles they played in those elections.

They all have pleaded not guilty to the charges and are out on bail.