The Electoral Reform Coalition (ERC) applauds the decision of the Honorable Velma Paul-Victor, Leader of the Opposition, to expeditiously appoint the two opposition representatives to the Electoral Commission, paving the way for the President of the Commonwealth of Dominica
to swear in the Electoral Commission on Friday 17th February 2023, an action that was delayed for almost one year after the 2019 general elections.
The ERC therefore calls on the reappointed chairman of the Electoral Commission, Mr. Duncan Stowe, to take control of the constitutional responsibility of the Electoral Commission to administer all the activities of Sir Dennis Byron with regards to his engagement as the Consultant paid by the people of the Commonwealth of Dominica to undertake the review of the electoral reform process.
In so doing, the Electoral Commission must instruct Sir Byron to stop all secret consultations with Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit who must be made to understand that he has absolutely no authority over the electoral process and his only responsibility is to make the necessary funding available and to be prepared to present the legislation to parliament, untampered, when it is presented to government.
Now that the six months of continuous partying and none stop sewo is over, the ERC appeals to the people of the Commonwealth of Dominica to take a pause during the Lenten Season to give attention to Electoral Reform and dedicate the month of March to educating themselves on the contents of the Sir Dennis Byron report and draft legislation.
In this regard, the ERC proposes the following:
1. That the Electoral Commission declares the month of March 2023 as Electoral Education Month and that it embarks on convening nationwide public consultations to inform the population on the contents of the Sir Dennis Byron report and draft legislation.
2. All opposition parties, trade unions, churches, the private sector and civil society organizations join the ERC in a collaborative approach of sensitizing their membership on the electoral reform process.
3. The ERC appeals to all media organizations to use their facilities to freely disseminate electoral reform related information to the public and to assist in a mass public awareness campaign to get the message out in every nook and cranny in the Commonwealth of Dominica.
4. The ERC appeals to the legal fraternity, specifically the Dominica Bar Association, to dedicate some time to educate the population on the legalities of the electoral legislation.
5. The private sector is reminded that history has proven commercial businesses suffer the brunt of any upheaval in Dominica and they must support the electoral reform process.
6. The ERC appeals to the government of Dominica to make all the necessary funds available to the Electoral Commission to advance the process without any constraints.
The ERC is confident that on the 44th Anniversary of May 29th, 1979, the people of the Commonwealth of Dominica will celebrate a major milestone for the advancement of the electoral process with new electoral legislation and conditions will be set towards achieving Free and Fair Elections within the next year
