Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Aubrey Norton, has filed an appeal through his lawyer, Roysdale Forde S.C, challenging the decision of acting Chief Justice (CJ) Roxane George-Wiltshire that President Irfaan Ali did not violate the Constitution when he appointed Mr. Clifton Hicken to act as Commissioner of Police, did not constitute consultation as outlined in the Constitution of Guyana.
On August 23, the acting CJ ruled President Irfaan Ali properly consulted with Norton on the appointment of the Police Service Commission and the Integrity Commission.
The appeal filed on Monday, asked that with the exception of the CJ’s findings that the Police Service Commission was not properly constituted, the Appeal allowed, and the decision of the CJ be set aside and reversed.
The document outlining the grounds of appeal maintains that:
(a) “The Learned Chief Justice (ag) has misinterpreted, misconstrued, and misapplied the important Constitutional value and objective of Meaningful Consultation in such a manner that the decision of the Learned Chief Justice (ag.) has resulted in a grave miscarriage of justice.
(b) “The Learned Chief Justice (ag) erred and misdirected herself in law when she found that The President of Guyana engaged in meaningful consultation with the Opposition Leader when appointing the Chairman of the Police Service Commission, and the Chairperson and the members of the Integrity Commission….
(c) The Learned Chief Justice (ag) erred in law when she held that Minister Teixeira’s May 12, 2022, Letter describing the prospective appointees as “people of good standing in our society” and that the applicant may have been familiar with their names amounted to the provision of reasons.
(d) The Decision of the Learned Chief Justice (ag) is misconceived, and erroneous in law.
(e) The Decision of the Learned Chief Justice (ag.) violates the doctrine of separation of powers.
(f) The Decision of the Learned Chief Justice (ag.) is unlawful, unconstitutional, and is not supported by established legal principles and doctrines.
(g) The Learned Chief Justice (ag.) erred in law when Her Honour arbitrarily applied inapplicable case law…
(h) The Learned Chief Justice (ag.) gave weight to irrelevant factors and erred in law when she found that reasons were in fact given in this case for the appointment of the Chairman of the Police Service Commission and Chairman and members of the Integrity Commission.
(i) The decision of the Learned Chief Justice found that in the absence of the Chairman of the Public Service Commission, the Police Service Commission was not a properly constituted, Body established by Article 226 of the Constitution of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, yet the allowed the Chairman and members in the absence of the Chairman of the Public Service Commission to usurp, interfere with, compromise, undermine, and assume the functions of the Police Service Commission, in breach of the said Constitution.
(j) The Learned Chief Justice (ag.) erred in law and made palpable and overriding errors of fact in finding that any decisions taken by the Police Service Commission not properly constituted was protected de facto doctrine in this case.
(k) The Learned Chief Justice (ag) erred in law when rendered a decision which was against the weight of the evidence and public records and or documents of which the Court had judicial notice.
Responding, shortly after August 23 ruling, Forde said “the decision whilst correct on the issue of the unconstitutionality of the Police Service Commission and the unconstitutionality of Findlay engaging in consultation with the other members of the Police Service Commission, in the absence of a Chairman of the Public Service Commission, the Court was wrong to find that consultation between the Leader of the Opposition and the President satisfied the requirements of meaningful consultation and consultation.”
The named respondents are: the Attorney General of Guyana, Mr. Patrick Findlay, Mr. Chandra Gajraj, Dr. Kim Kyte-Thomas, Imaam Mohamed Ispahani Haniff, Pandit Hardesh Tewari and Reverend Wayne C. Bowman.
