A tussle between the Ministry of Legal Affairs and the Supreme Court over the hiring of the judiciary’s staff is continuing, with the court now moving to also hire staff for its Verbatim Court Reporting Unit (VCRU).
Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall has said that his ministry proceeded in July to advertise for vacancies for the VCRU, based on directions from the Public Service Ministry.
However, the Supreme Court subsequently said it will not recognise and will not accommodate anyone appointed pursuant to the ad as they would not be considered employees of the Supreme Court.
The positions are now being re-advertised through ads placed by the Judicial Service Commission, which is informing applicants that their curriculum vitae should be addressed to the Secretary of the Judicial Service Commission.
Several efforts to contact Chancellor of the Judiciary Carl Singh for comment proved futile.
“It’s just a tug of war right now but the law is clear. Is the Public Service Ministry wrong? I don’t understand that…,” a source close to both sides, however, told Stabroek News.
Nandlall, in response to the earlier warning by the court that it would recognize appointments made by the Legal Affairs Ministry, had told this newspaper that while the Supreme Court enjoys autonomy, some functions, including the recruitment of employees are within the remit of the Ministry as it has oversight of the judicial sector.
However, President of the Guyana Bar Association Ronald Burch-Smith says that the law strictly provides for the Supreme Court to make the decision.
Article 122 A (1) of the constitution prescribes that “All Courts and all persons presiding over courts shall exercise their functions independently of the control and direction of any other person or authority; and shall be free and independent from political, executive and any other form of direction and control”.
Article 122 A (2) of the constitution further says that “Subject to the provisions of articles 199 and 201 (appointment of judicial, legal and public officers) all courts shall be administratively autonomous and shall be funded by a direct charge upon the Consolidated Fund; and such courts shall operate in accordance with the principles of sound financial and administrative management.”
This article would seem to make it clear that all administrative matters fall under the court and not the executive. Additionally, in April, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh revised the 2014 budget in a manner which paved the way for the judiciary to be financed via a direct charge on the Consolidated Fund rather than being treated as a subvention agency by the government, which had been the case.
