Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed has written to A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Leader Aubrey Norton seeking his views on the replacement of the three opposition-nominated members of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).
While stating that he had not made a final decision, Mohamed proposed three attorneys for consideration as commissioners: Senior Counsel Roysdale Forde, attorney-at-law Siand Dhurjon and attorney-at-law Damien Da Silva.
In a June 10 letter seen by Kiskadee Watch, Mohamed said there was an “ever-increasing need” for new commissioners to be appointed under Article 161(3)(b) of the Constitution and argued that the issue had become one of “particular urgency” in light of the national obligation to conduct Local Government Elections at the earliest opportunity.
Mohamed contended that the current opposition-appointed commissioners – Vincent Alexander, Charles Corbin and Desmond Trotman – were nominated by the previous Opposition Leader and “do not reflect the makeup of the opposition’s parliamentary configuration at present.” He said the constitutional purpose of the Opposition Leader’s advisory role is to ensure that the parliamentary opposition enjoys meaningful representation and confidence within the Elections Commission.
“The constitutional purpose would be substantially undermined if the largest parliamentary opposition were indefinitely bound by appointments purportedly made at the instance of the former opposition leadership representing a different political mandate,” Mohamed wrote.
He further argued that the Constitution could not have contemplated a situation in which the Leader of the Opposition or the President would be constrained to work with commissioners appointed at the instance of “an adversary political party or leader representing a different political mandate.”
According to Mohamed, he has been advised that the seats of the three opposition-appointed commissioners have become vacant “by operation of law” because of the changed composition of the National Assembly following last year’s elections.
The Opposition Leader also pointed to changes in government after the 2015 and 2020 elections, saying that previously appointed opposition commissioners did not continue to represent the interests of newly elected opposition parties but instead effectively remained aligned with the government of the day. He argued that the current political landscape is more diverse and requires broader representation of the opposition’s views.
Leading attorney
Meantime, he described Forde as a leading attorney and “an outspoken and upstanding member” of the People’s National Congress Reform, which he said is the major stakeholder in APNU. Dhurjon was described as a prominent practitioner who has distinguished himself in civil and criminal matters, while Da Silva was identified as a highly respected attorney with experience in constitutional, civil and commercial matters.
Mohamed said the three names are only preliminary candidates and indicated that he remains willing to consider alternative nominees.
He invited Norton to submit any recommendations by June 19 and proposed a consultation meeting on June 23 at the WIN headquarters at Serenity Court, East Bank Demerara, to discuss the matter further. He said he intends to submit a finalised list of names to President Irfaan Ali and GECOM by June 26.
Up to yesterday Norton had not responded to the letter, according to the Opposition Leader.
The matter of GECOM’s opposition-nominated commissioners has been a source of contention since Mohamed became Opposition Leader after the September 2025 elections. His We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party holds 16 seats in the National Assembly, compared with APNU’s 12 and the Forward Guyana Movement’s one seat. Mohamed has repeatedly argued that the commission should reflect the current parliamentary balance among opposition parties, while Norton and the three commissioners have maintained that there are no vacancies and that they can only be removed by a change in the law or a court ruling.
In February of this year, Mohamed had invited the current commissioners to a meeting at his party’s headquarters but they declined the invitation.
At the core of the three refusals was what the commissioners described as a hostile public campaign led by Mohamed’s party, WIN. According to the correspondence they sent, they were unwilling to discuss their tenure or positions under the current circumstances.
“We… are cognizant of WIN’s public pronouncements about our status, and your calls for our resignation, in addition to some disparaging remarks,” the letter stated. “In these circumstances, we do not accept that there is any basis for a meeting to discuss our status as commissioners,” the correspondence added.
Earlier, Mohamed had met with GECOM’s Chairperson, retired Justice Claudette Singh to discuss a number of issues including representation on the body.
“We were pleased with the engagement. It was fruitful,” Mohamed had said following the meeting.
The GECOM chairperson has held the view that a new configuration of opposition members is required following the general elections last year.
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