ROSEAU, Dominica, November 8, The sole Commissioner to advance efforts towards electoral reform in Dominica, Sir Dennis Byron, had proposed presenting the first phase of his report by the end of November with the Parliament tabling the Register of Elector’s legislation in December and the plan to enact it in January 2023.
But such plans may have been scuttled after Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit on Sunday announced December 6 this year as the date for a snap general election, three years after he led the ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP) to an 18-3 defeat of the main opposition United Workers Party (UWP) in the December 6, 201’9 poll.
They had demanded electoral reform ahead of the last general election, but the Skerrit administration said it had been stymied by Opposition legislators who refused to debate the necessary legislation needed to advance the electoral reform process.
The UWP tried to get the 2019 general elections postponed to February the following year on the grounds that there was a need for electoral reform, more specifically, the issuance of picture identification cards and a cleansing of the voters’ list.
The opposition parties in Dominica have not yet responded publicly to the decision to hold the general election ahead of electoral reform.
Sir Dennis, a former president of the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), had written to Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, as well as the Opposition Leader, Lennox Linton, indicating that he was “working towards expediting the presentation of my Recommendations for the improvement of the Electoral Process in the Commonwealth of Dominica.”
In the November 6 letter, which was also sent to the leader of the United Workers Party (UWP) and copied to the chairman of the Electoral Commission, Duncan Stowe, the prominent international jurist with over 50 years of judicial and related experience, also explained that he would be presenting the report in two phases.
“Phase I will deal with the Registration of Electors and Phase II with the Election Process,” Sir Denis wrote, adding, “I am in the final stage of the Phase I report.
“It is in this context that I present to you, under confidential cover, a draft Registration of Electors Bill and draft Registration of Electors Regulations and invites you to study these drafts and be available for a consultative meeting regarding them at a time to be agreed. These drafts should not be presented to the public. A publication should be the responsibility of the Hon. Prime Minister only after I have made a formal presentation to him of my report,” he wrote in the letter, a copy of which has been obtained by the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC).
Sir Dennis, who was appointed as the sole Commissioner in September 2020, wrote in the letters to the four people that he has “been mindful that my engagement carries the expectation of bridging the sharp divisions of opinion that have handicapped the completion of this reform exercise.
“Against this background, legislative support is required to give effect to the recommended reforms. The existing legislation relating to the registration of electors as well as the electoral process is quite old, and it has been a flashpoint for political disagreement and community dissatisfaction.”
He said, “merely amending the existing laws would not satisfy the goals of the reform exercise,” emphasizing that “new legislation is needed to modernize the electoral system and to bring it in line with international best practices.”
The letter notes that the preparation of the new legislation has benefited from the expertise of Dr. Beverley Pereira, a Legislative Drafting Specialist and that it was also considered that consensus resulting from consultation with the Electoral Commission would increase the probability of acceptance of the proposed reforms.
“Consultation took longer than anticipated as it was characterized by robust discussion and even resulted in several modifications to drafts of the proposed legislative instruments,” Sir Dennis wrote, adding that he is “pleased to report that the draft legislation now presented to you has the consensus of the Commission.
“I do not present accompanying information but am willing to respond to your inquiries and submit any information you may request,” he wrote, indicating that his proposals as to the timelines going forward would be that he will present a Phase I report during the month of November 2022.
“Parliament tables the Register of Elector’s legislation in December 2022 with the plan to enact it in January 2023 so that the Register of Electors could be compiled in accordance with the recommendations during that calendar year.
“I will present Phase II of the Report after a consultation process similar to that undertaken in Phase I in February/ March 2023. Parliament tables and enacts the Phase II legislation in March/ April 2023,” he wrote.
But on Sunday night, Prime Minister Skerrit announced December 6 as the date for a snap general election here, telling the nation that he wanted the year 2023 to begin with a fresh mandate given to a fresh Dominica Labour Party (DLP) team to commence the work of building post-COVID Dominica.
However, in his Independence Day address last week, Prime Minister Skerrit said that his administration had acted properly in engaging Sir Dennis to investigate and advise on the issue of electoral reform.
“While the Government engaged him, Sir. Dennis does not report to the Government. The Electoral Commission has been the coordinator of the activities of Sir Dennis, and he has been working very closely with the Commission in carrying out his responsibilities.”
Skerrit said the Government expects that when the process is completed and “the draft bill approved by the Electoral Commission, they will be shared with the Government, Opposition, and other stakeholders for consideration.
“While we recognize that our electoral laws for the proper conduct of our election since independence, as with anything, there is always room for improvement. We, therefore, look forward to receiving and implementing the recommendations from this exercise,” Skerrit told the nation.
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