UWP’s Wayne James and Hilary Shillingford have been sworn in as electoral commissioners by President Charles Savarin. But the two new electoral officials are not happy given that DLP nominees were not present to be sworn in as well, and they do not yet know who the new electoral commission chairman will be.
Opposition Leader Lennox Linton nominated James and Shillingford for appointment as electoral officials on August 11, and the president accepted their nomination before swearing them in on August 24.
However, both officials complained that no DLP nominees witnessed their swearing in and that they were no around to be sworn in at the same ceremony. More irksome to the officials is the fact that they do not know who the new chairperson of the electoral commission is going to be. They expressed their concern that President Savarin is colluding with the DLP administration to shroud the chairperson nominee in secrecy.
Rumours are flying in some quarters that either Alick Lawrence or Lennox Lawrence is penned to become chairman, but this cannot be officially confirmed yet. In fact, the opposition has expressed their rejection of Lennox Lawrence because of his involvement in the last election results.
DFP President Johnson Boston has also lent his voice to that of the opposition to decry the situation where DLP nominees and appointed chairman were not at the swearing in ceremony of the UWP nominees. He said this development might lead to a divided electoral commission and called on President Savarin to stand up to truth and fairness without recourse to partisan politics.
James and Shillingford were members of the electoral commission before the last general elections in Dominica.
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