In a ruling that shook the political landscape of Guyana, High Court Judge Gino Persaud declared that President Irfaan Ali had violated the country’s Constitution by suspending Paul Slowe, the then Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC). The judge stated that there was no mechanism in place to provide Slowe with a fair hearing, making the president’s actions unlawful and arbitrary.
According to the court, President Ali had suspended Slowe on June 16, 2021, on the advice of Prime Minister Mark Phillips. However, there was no Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to appoint a Tribunal to hear allegations against Slowe and fellow PSC member Clifton Conway. While the two had been charged with conspiracy to defraud the Guyana Police Force, Judge Persaud emphasized that the presumption of innocence was crucial.
The Judge stated that due process was a constitutional right that could not be abrogated due to the non-existence of a tribunal. The lack of a tribunal left the applicants perpetually suspended, and the scenario was such that a citizen with a grievance would be unable to come to court for redress because the court was not in existence. The absence of a JSC was a burden for the President to bear, according to the Judge.
The State’s claim that there was political contamination of the PSC was not the Judge’s function to adjudicate, he said. The court has given the State and lawyers for Mr Slowe 20 days to exchange arguments for cost. Attorney-at-Law Selwyn Peters has indicated that his team’s cost would be high given the duration of the case from 2021 to present.
