Chairman of the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) Mark Ramkerrysingh is remaining silent following the ruling by Justice Mira Dean-Armorer regarding the UNC’s election petition.
The party had contested the general election result in five constituencies and had sought to have the 2015 general election result nullified.
Dean-Armorer had ruled that the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) acted illegally in extending the polls for an additional hour due to inclement weather. However, she said she saw no reason to consider the election void.
The original petitions challenged the results of six marginal constituencies—La Horquetta/Talparo, Toco/Sangre Grande, Tunapuna, St Joseph, San Fernando West and Moruga/Tableland—after the UNC’s 23 to 18 defeat.
One of the petitions, for La Horquetta/Talparo constituency, was struck out because it was served too late.
The UNC has challenged the judge’s decision before the Appeal Court.
In its notice of appeal, the UNC identified almost two dozen grounds on which it was challenging Dean-Armorer’s judgment.
Ramkerrysingh was at President’s House, St Ann’s, yesterday for the swearing in ceremony of new EBC member, anthropologist Dr Dylan Kerrigan.
Asked to comment by members of the media on the court’s ruling Ramkerrysingh said there was nothing he could say as the issue was before the Appeal Court.
“We have to wait and see what the decision of the Court of Appeal is at which time we would say what our position is on it,” he said.
Pressed whether the EBC would challenge the judge’s decision at the Appeal Court Ramkerrysingh said that was in the hands of its lawyers.
On the upcoming Local Government election Ramkerrysingh said the EBC was already conducting its ground work.
Salaries Review Commission (SRC) chairman, Kyle Rudden, said no definite decision had been taken to increase the salaries of parliamentarians.
He was also present at President’s House yesterday to witness the swearing in of the SRC’s latest member, former T&T ambassador Monica Clement.
Describing a recent newspaper headline which alluded that an increase was set for parliamentarians as “interesting” Rudden added:
“What was actually going on was the consultants were meeting with parliamentarians to get their opinions and I am fairly sure the parliamentarians were explaining why they think they need an increase,” Rudden said.
He said an ongoing job evaluation exercise for some 300-plus posts being conducted by an international firm was expected to be concluded by next year.
Such posts, he said, included parliamentarians, senior public servants and judges, adding that it has been 15 years or more since people’s jobs were actually evaluated.
“Prior to that there was basically no yardstick to say Person A was doing a more complicated job than Person B so any salary differentials are very difficult to address so that project is underway,” Rudden added.
He said following the exercise then it would be decided whether or not there should be increases but what must then be factored in was the economic capacity to pay.
He said every three years the SRC conducted a general review of all the posts but the consultants have been meeting with everybody to garner their opinions.