President’s comments on top judicial appointments ‘downright dishonest’ – Jagdeo

TIMES INT'L

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo on Wednesday described comments made by President David Granger with respect to his decision to reject two persons nominated by the President to be appointed as Guyana’s next Chief Justice and Chancellor, as disingenuous and dishonest.

Opposition Leader – Bharrat Jadgeo

Jagdeo said it is his constitutional right to object to the appointment of any nominee if he believes that a better candidate could be appointed. He maintained that a careful decision was taken after his due diligence process not to agree to the appointments of Justice Kenneth Benjamin and Yonette Cummings-Edwards as Guyana’s next substantive Chancellor and Chief Justice respectfully.
“I’ve always harboured the suspicion, and I’ve spoken publicly about this before, that President Granger has to be living in a parallel universe,” the Opposition Leader remarked.
He said for the President to “say that a decision of mine, which does not agree to his nominees for the Chancellor and Chief Justice positions would paralyse the Judiciary, is disingenuous. It is not only disingenuous, it is downright dishonest”.
Jagdeo reminded that for 12 years, the People’s National Congress and the A Partnership for National Unity never agreed to a substantive appointment in the Judiciary as a whole, especially to the Chancellor and the Chief Justice’s posts and that did not paralyse the Judiciary. “To say now that my decision not to agree to his nominees will paralyse the Judiciary is dishonest”, Jagdeo insisted as he promised to address the comment made by the President in more detail during his next media briefing.

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