Attorney General Anil Nandlall SC says he abandoned a proposed amendment to the law governing the Constitution Reform Commission (CRC) after “mature reflection” persuaded him that the body was properly constituted, even though its membership does not reflect the parties now represented in Parliament.
His explanation comes after chartered accountant and attorney Christopher Ram pointed to the apparent reversal while calling for the Carl Singh-led commission to be terminated and its work transferred to Parliament.
In October 2025, Nandlall had told Stabroek News that the Constitution Reform Commission Act would have to be amended to reflect the parliamentary configuration produced by the general elections. He said adjustments had already been made to a draft bill.
Asked by Kiskadee Watch last Thursday what had caused the change in his position and what had become of the proposed amendment, Nandlall said he subsequently concluded that it was unnecessary.
“Upon mature reflection, I made the decision that there was no need to do the amendments; that the commission was constituted at the time when it was constituted in accordance with its governing legislation, and I persuaded myself thereafter that there is no need to modify or alter the legislation,” he said.
Nandlall spoke on the sidelines of a sod-turning ceremony for a new law school at the University of Guyana’s Turkeyen Campus.
Last October, Nandlall acknowledged that the existing legislation specifically named parties represented in the previous Parliament.
“At that time, we named the political party and now we have a different configuration,” he said then, adding that the law was intended to provide for five government and five opposition representatives.
He noted that the Alliance For Change was no longer represented in Parliament and said “adjustments have already been made to a draft Bill”.
However, when Kiskadee Watch questioned him on July 1 about the absence of We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) from the CRC, Nandlall maintained that the body had been established before the new parliamentary configuration and was legally constituted.
“The commission is properly constituted and as such is moving ahead with its work,” he said at the time.
WIN won 16 seats at the September 2025 elections and is now the main opposition party but has no representative on the commission. The body continues to include a representative nominated under the former list joinder of A New and United Guyana, the Liberty and Justice Party and The New Movement, none of which returned to Parliament.
Attorney Nigel Hughes resigned from the CRC after the AFC failed to secure a parliamentary seat.
The Carter Center has recommended that the commission’s composition be reviewed to reflect the post-election political landscape and ensure the participation of all parties represented in Parliament.
In a letter published by Kiskadee Watch, Ram argued that the unresolved question of representation undermined the legitimacy of the reform process.
He also criticised the pace of the commission’s work, saying that more than two years after its members were sworn in, it had only recently arrived at the first stage of public consultation.
A notice published on August 15 and signed by CRC Secretary Javed Shadick invited written submissions until December 31, with public consultations expected afterwards.
Ram said the subjects identified for submissions largely reproduced the mandate set out in the Constitution Reform Commission Act of 2022.
“This means that nearly four years after the Act and more than two years after the Commission was sworn in, it has arrived at the starting point Parliament prescribed for it,” he wrote.
He contrasted its performance with that of the 1999 Constitution Reform Commission, which was sworn in in January of that year and delivered its report in July after considering approximately 4,600 proposals and making 171 recommendations.
Ram called on the current commission to publish a full account of its expenditure, meetings, attendance, research and work completed since its members were sworn in during April and May 2024.
The commission suspended its work during the 2025 election campaign. Its members had previously cited difficulty securing quorums, delays in accessing resources and the need for constitutional education.
The Guyana Human Rights Association subsequently described the body as “non-performing” and called for it to be closed.
Ram similarly proposed that constitutional reform be returned to the Parliamentary Standing Committee established under Article 119A of the Constitution. He said that committee could co-opt local and international experts, conduct consultations and submit recommendations directly to the National Assembly.
“The proper course is to terminate the current exercise and return constitutional reform to the Parliamentary Standing Committee,” Ram said.
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