GUYANA | Roysdale Forde questions Nandlall's need to increase the number of Appeal Court Judges to nine

GEORGETOWN,  Guyana, October 9, 2022 - Increasing the panel of Judges of the Court of Appeal to nine may well be nothing more than a perverse attempt to pack the court through a politicised Judicial Service Commission. This is the word from shadow Minister of Legal Affairs Roysdale Forde, SC.

Last week Attorney General (AG) and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall, SC, announced the Government’s intent to expand the Court of Appeal to as many as nine judges. The extant law allows for a minimum of three but not more than five. 

Stabroek News quotes Nandlall as saying that “whereas he has done no consultation on the matter he hopes when he does with the judiciary and legal profession, his proposal will find agreement.”

But shadow Minister of Legal Affairs Roysdale Forde, SC, is questioning the Nandlall's intent, pointing out  that the statement that the panel of Judges of the Court of Appeal must be increased to nine, may well amount to nothing more than a perverse attempt to pack the court through a politicised Judicial Service Commission. 

Questioning what guides the AG’s decision-making processes, the shadow minister pointed out there has been no recent study released by the AG which has examined the current challenges and needs of the Court of Appeal.

However, according to Nandlall, the caseload leaving the High Court for further ventilation before the Court of Appeal is increasing and under the present circumstance the number of  Justices of Appeal is “obviously inadequate.” To this end the shadow minister countered: “Why stop at 9, why not 18?”

“Plucking the figure 9 without any rational appreciation of the current needs of the judiciary underscores the obvious attempt to have a compliant Court of Appeal,” added Forde, who flatly stated “Nandalal’s Court packing agenda is not Court reform.”

Nandlall seems in a hurry to expedite the process of activating the Commission that has not been constituted since 2017. This he intends to do when the National Assembly comes out of its annual recess this week. 

Only last week, following a 19-month delay,  the Guyana Court of Appeal on Monday says  it will expeditiously hear the election petition Appeal by the opposition A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC), which challenges the April 2021 decision of the High Court that there is nothing unconstitutional about Section 22 of the Election Laws (Amendment) Act and Order 60 (Recount Order),  which enabled the electoral victory by the People's Progressive Party Civic.

The election petition seeks to nullify the results of the March 2, 2020 elections because of non-compliance with Guyana’s constitution and electoral laws relating  to the conduct of those polls by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM).

The appellants are contending that the Recount Order which facilitated the national vote recount was unconstitutional.