FGM must pay $4 million in Court-ordered costs by Nov. 14 – Nandlall reminds

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, has written the Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) about two court-ordered costs, totaling $4 million, to be paid on or before November 14, 2025.

“In advance, we have sent out letters demanding payment in compliance with the order on or before November 14. That is $2 million to the Attorney General and $2 million to GECOM, so that’s $4 million,” Nandlall said during his weekly ‘Issues in the News’ programme.

The Attorney General stressed that decisive steps will be taken to recover the sums if the FGM fails to comply with the payment order, though he declined to disclose the specific measures planned.

The Court of Appeal, on October 5, 2025, dismissed an appeal filed by FGM challenging the Guyana Elections Commission’s (GECOM) decision to exclude the party from ballots in Regions Seven, Eight, and Nine during the September 1, 2025, elections.

Delivering the judgment, Chancellor (ag.) Justice Roxane George ruled that the appeal had no merit and affirmed the High Court’s decision that GECOM acted lawfully. She further ordered that costs for the appeal be paid on or before November 14, 2025.

The appeal stemmed from a ruling by Chief Justice (ag.) Navindra Singh, who had earlier found that GECOM was justified in excluding FGM and the Assembly for Liberty and Prosperity (ALP) from the ballots in constituencies where they failed to submit candidate lists.

In the appeal, Krystal Fisher, representing FGM, argued that the Chief Justice erred in law by holding that including a political party on the ballot in a constituency where it did not field candidates would undermine the constitutional principles of inclusivity and representation for smaller or remote communities.

“Navindra Singh told them their case was hopeless, completely without merit, and ridiculous. The Court of Appeal said it was ludicrous, wholly without merit, and an abuse of the process of the court. The judges even accused the party and its lawyers of not being candid and withholding information. It was a tongue-lashing of the highest order,” Nandlall said during his programme.

Meanwhile, FGM has continued its legal challenges. The party has now filed for leave to appeal to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) through the Court of Appeal of Guyana, as required by law. In addition, FGM has lodged an election petition in the High Court, which is expected to come up for arguments on December 10.

However, the Attorney General revealed that his chambers have already filed a summons to strike out the petition on several procedural grounds, including failure to obtain leave of the High Court, failure to name all necessary parties, and failure to properly serve the petition within the legally required timeframe.