GECOM Legal Officer’s contract not renewed after his arguments in opposition residency case

Last Updated on Wednesday, 9 April 2025, 22:00 by Writer

The seven-member Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) on Tuesday voted against the renewal of Legal Officer, Attorney-at-Law Kurt Da Silva’s contract, weeks after Chief Elections Officer Vishnu Persaud denounced his submissions in an opposition case that voters must reside at addresses that they gave during registration.

The GECOM Secretariat was yet to issue a statement on the decision.

However, opposition-nominated Election Commissioner Vincent Alexander said Commission Chairman Retired Justice Claudette Singh’s decision to support the non-renewal of Mr Da Silva’s contract was the clearest example yet of her towing the line of the governing People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC). “We find it extremely strange that someone who, for three years, had observed the work of this officer, appraised him, given him a score of 96/110 to be the basis of what may be called one incident completely reverse her disposition to the point not of a warning, not of a reduction but a non-renewal of contract,” Mr Alexander added.

Mr Alexander said Ms Singh’s “verdict” not to support Mr Da Silva for another three-year stint amounted to her recanting her previous position that the lawyer should have been given the nod. “Today she pronounced and she pronounced in favour of a non-renewal, contending that his conduct in the recent case brings GECOM into jeopardy and such a person cannot be retained by GECOM because it may result in all sorts of maladies including postponement of the elections,” Mr Alexander told reporters at a hurriedly called news briefing outside GECOM’s High and Cowan streets, Georgetown office.

The APNU+AFC-aligned Elections Commissioner said all of the commissioners had been fully aware of all of the written submissions, which formed the basis for the oral arguments, before they were submitted to the High Court in the case of residency by People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Chief Scrutineer, Carol Smith-Joseph.

Mr Da Silva had essentially agreed with Ms Smith-Joseph that residency in Administrative Regions is a constitutional requirement for electors to vote in regional elections.

GECOM Chief Election Officer, Vishnu Persaud had publicly denounced Mr Da Silva’s submissions.

However, Chief Justice Roxane George-Wiltshire ruled that residency is not a requirement for either general or regional elections, and that anyone was free to give any address at the time of registration. All she said that had to be verified by GECOM was the existence of the address, but residency could not be used by GECOM or a political party official to deny someone’s registration or right to0 vote.

The PNCR said the decision would be appealed.

Mr Alexander said the GECOM’s decision amounted to a dismissal because Mr Da Silva had remained on the job and performed duties beyond the expiration of his contract.