Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister, Anil Nandlall, SC, has issued a firm reminder that the recent walkout by opposition-appointed commissioners at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) will not hamper preparations for elections on September 1, 2025.
Citing Article 226(5) of the Constitution, the AG emphasized that the law provides a clear remedy when quorum is deliberately withheld, ensuring the Commission’s work continues uninterrupted in the defence of democratic governance.
Nandlall said during his weekly “Issues in the News” programme that the Constitution states that if members refuse to attend or walk out of a meeting without a valid reason, one that the Chairman has the authority to determine, the meeting must be rescheduled within two calendar days.
The meeting must also be held at the same place and at the same time previously set, and a notice of adjournment shall be given to the absent members.
Nandlall added that if at that adjourned a quorum is not present, the members then present, being not less than four, including the Chairman, shall be deemed to constitute a quorum, and any decision made at that or at any such meeting shall be in law valid and binding.
“That, my friends, is expressly set out at Article 226(5) of the Constitution of the Republic of Guyana. Article 226(5) sets out what constitutes a quorum and what happens when a quorum is unreasonably withheld by members of the meeting,” Nandlall said.
The AG stated that the framers of Guyana’s Constitution had the foresight to predict such refusal to engage and therefore, were wise to provide an alternative mechanism.
“So, you cannot hold the Elections Commission at ransom. The framers of our Constitution contemplated rogue elements like these three banding together in a conspiracy to obstruct and derail democracy, and they have contemplated and provided for an alternative to the quorum,” he said.
The AG added that the provision is not new and has been activated many times during the March 2020 elections fiasco.
