HUGH Wildman, the attorney representing Director of Elections Orrette Fisher, is expected to return to the Supreme Court today to seek an injunction barring the Electoral Commission of Jamaica (ECJ) from terminating Fisher’s one-year contract, which expires today.

Wildman, speaking with the Jamaica Observer yesterday, explained that the Electoral Commission (Interim) Act mandates that any appointment to the Office of Director of Elections must be for seven years. The director is nominated by the eight commissioners of the ECJ, but only six — three selected and three nominated — have to be in agreement in order to effect his dismissal.

“He was initially given a seven-year appointment and then they made two one-year appointments, the second of which comes to an end tomorrow, and that is not permissible in law; the law is clear that you cannot appoint for less than seven years,” he said.

Wildman insisted that Fisher’s acceptance of those two one-year contracts was “irrelevant” and would not affect the case. “The law is clear. That has nothing to do with him. The statute under which he was appointed makes it abundantly clear that he shall be appointed for seven years” he stated, adding that his client has a “good case”.

Justice Carolyn Tai, who heard the case yesterday, adjourned the matter until today.

The court action unfolded on the same day of three by-elections held in St Mary South Eastern, St Andrew South Western, and St Andrew Southern.

When the Observer spoke with Fisher last week he assured that he would be in office for yesterday’s by-elections, but said he could not at, that time, comment on the termination or renewal of his contract.

The director of elections recently clashed with Memeber of Parliament in Gordon House at a sitting of the Boundaries Committee of Parliament, which rejected the recommendations of the ECJ to make adjustments to constituency boundaries to correct anomalies detected across 163 polling divisions. Fisher, who was unsuccessful in convincing the committee of the need to correct the anomalies, staunchly defended his office in an open letter to the committee a day later in which he said his staff had been left demoralised by the accusations levelled against them.

However, there was no indication that the issue in the House has anything to do with the director’s contract.

The ECJ comprises eight members — four nominated commissioners and four selected commissioners. The four selected commissioners are agreed on by the prime minister and the leader of the Opposition. The nominated commissioners include two members who are nominated by the prime minister and two by the Opposition leader.

— Alphea Saunders