Lawyers advise that Boodoo’s position be advertised

Chief Elections Officer Gocool Boodoo is expected to know his fate soon and may very well take legal action if necessary.

Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) Chairman Dr Steve Surujbally has been provided with advice from lawyers on how to treat the request by Boodoo to consider a renewal of his contract.

The lawyers for Dr Surujbally also suggested that Boodoo’s post be advertised.

However, the statutory meeting of the commission scheduled for Tuesday last was not held, owing to the absence of two commissioners, Dr Keshav Mangal and Attorney Jaya Manickchand.

The commission was expected to meet and discuss the issue pending the legal advice provided to Dr Surujbally.

The GECOM chairman had postponed a previous meeting with the commissioners, asking for time to seek legal advice on the issue.

He sought the advice of his lawyers after receiving a letter from Boodoo’s Attorney Mursalene Bacchus that no decision should be made on the resumption of his services until an appraisal on his performance was forthcoming.

However, sources within GECOM confirmed that an appraisal on Boodoo’s performance is subject to waiver and is based on the decision of commissioners of the Guyana Elections Commission.

A GECOM official told Guyana Times International that a performance appraisal is not mandatory and the commission has the power to waive any such appraisal on the part of employees.

It is expected that the decision will be put to a vote, but opposition commissioners are not in favour of the proposed extension to Boodoo’s contract which expired at the end of April.

Boodoo’s fate would ultimately be decided by a majority vote of the complete quorum of commissioners.

The commissioners are legally mandated, based on a unanimous decision, to deal with all issues relating to employment of senior functionaries of the commission.

Boodoo, who has been with the commission in ex ess of 10 years, has applied for a renewal of his contract.

While the commissioners had earlier requested correspondents that Boodhoo may have received during his years in office to allow for an assessment, the opposition’s contention seems to be pointed at the 2011 incident involving Boodoo’s announcement of national elections results in favour of the ruling administration.

The current commissioners are Vincent Alexander, Dr Keshav Mangal, Charles Corbin, Jaya Manickchand, Sandra Jones and Mahmood Shaw.