Alliance For Change (AFC) Leader Nigel Hughes has written to Chairperson of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Ret’d Justice Claudette Singh, expressing serious concern over the Commission’s failure to appoint an independent legal adviser ahead of the 2025 General and Regional Elections.
In a strongly worded letter, Hughes, who is also an attorney-at-law, criticised the absence of a neutral legal counsel following the termination of GECOM’s previous legal adviser and questioned recent indications that Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, is now expected to advise the Commission on legal matters related to the upcoming polls.
This development raises serious issues of conflict of interest, Hughes warned. “The role of legal adviser to GECOM requires not only legal competence but unimpeachable neutrality. It cannot be reconciled with a concurrent role as the chief legal officer of the Executive.”
With the September 1, 2025 election date already declared, Hughes said the electoral process has entered its most critical phase, where “every aspect of the process must reflect the highest standards of transparency, impartiality, and public confidence.”
Hughes also highlighted what he described as the “alarming disarray” during a recent meeting between GECOM and stakeholders, emphasising longstanding concerns over the integrity of the voters list, unimplemented electoral reform recommendations, and the lack of independent voter verification systems.
Against that backdrop, he argued that the involvement of the Attorney General, whom he characterised as politically aligned and publicly partisan, further erodes the Commission’s credibility. “The Attorney General’s visible political activism on behalf of the ruling party, including frequent appearances on Issues in the News where he routinely disparages political opponents, further compounds the problem,” Hughes stated.
He called the Attorney General’s dual role—serving both the Executive and advising the electoral commission—“an unacceptable conflict” that undermines GECOM’s constitutional mandate as an independent body.
Hughes urged the Commission to urgently appoint a new legal adviser whose independence is “beyond question.” The individual, he said, must be “professionally qualified, non-partisan, and committed to upholding the principles of fairness and transparency upon which our democratic process depends.”
The former legal adviser to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Kurt Da Silva—who previously served as Judicial Counsel at the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ)—had his contract terminated in April 2025. The decision followed his submissions in a court matter concerning the verification of addresses during voter registration.
GECOM claimed that his actions “severely eroded” the secretariat’s trust in his judgment and could undermine public confidence in the Commission. However, the basis of GECOM’s claim is highly suspect, raising questions about whether Da Silva’s removal was motivated more by political discomfort with his legal stance than any professional failing.
“The integrity of our electoral system must not be compromised,” Hughes concluded. “It is in GECOM’s own interest, and that of the nation, that this matter be addressed urgently and decisively.” Hughes also assured ret’d Justice Claudette Singh that he remains available to discuss this further if the Commission requires any clarification.
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See AFC’s letter below
The Non-Replacement of an Independent Legal Adviser to GECOM
The Chairperson
Guyana Elections Commission
High Street, Kingston
Georgetown.
Dear Madame Chair,
The Alliance For Change (AFC) notes with growing concern that since the termination of the services of GECOM’s previous legal adviser, there has been no appointment of a suitably independent legal counsel to serve the Commission. We are further disturbed by indications that the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs is now expected to advise GECOM on legal matters concerning the conduct of the 2025 National and Regional Elections.
The formal announcement of September 1, 2025, as the date for General and Regional Elections has triggered the final and most intensive phase of Guyana’s electoral cycle. It is therefore imperative that every aspect of the process reflects the highest standards of transparency, impartiality, and public confidence.
For some time now—well before the election date was announced—stakeholders, including the AFC, have consistently expressed grave concerns about the integrity of the voters list, the failure to implement key recommendations from prior elections, the need for independent verification of voter identity, and the general dysfunction that continues to characterize aspects of GECOM’s operations. Indeed, the disarray we observed during our recent meeting with GECOM was alarming.
Against this backdrop, the insertion of the Attorney General—whose partisan affiliations and public political commentary are well documented—into the advisory framework of GECOM raises serious issues of conflict of interest. The role of legal adviser to GECOM requires not only legal competence but unimpeachable neutrality. It cannot be reconciled with a concurrent role as the chief legal officer of the Executive.
The Attorney General’s visible political activism on behalf of the ruling party, including frequent appearances on “Issues in the News” where he routinely disparages political opponents, further compounds the problem. No credible democracy can expect public trust in its elections if its supposedly independent elections body is seen to be guided—legally or otherwise—by a politically aligned figure.
Furthermore, the dual role of the Attorney General—simultaneously serving the interests of the Executive and now, it appears, advising the Commission—creates an unacceptable conflict that undermines the constitutional mandate of GECOM as an independent institution.
We therefore urge the Commission to immediately reconsider this development and appoint a legal adviser whose independence is beyond question. That individual must be professionally qualified, non-partisan, and committed to upholding the principles of fairness and transparency upon which our democratic process depends.
The integrity of our electoral system must not be compromised. It is in GECOM’s own interest, and that of the nation, that this matter be addressed urgently and decisively. I remain available to discuss this further if the Commission requires any clarification.
Yours sincerely,
C.A. Nigel Hughes
Leader
Alliance For Change
