Dear Editor,
At a time when political tensions in Guyana remain high, the Caribbean Court of Justice must protect its credibility at all costs. That is why Justice Arif Bulkan should recuse himself from matters involving the PPP/C Government.
This is not a personal attack. It is a matter of ethics, optics, and public confidence.
Guyana is deeply politically divided. In such an environment, Judges connected, directly or indirectly, to active political figures must appreciate how their involvement in politically sensitive cases will be viewed by the public.
Justice Bulkan’s immediate family is heavily intertwined with Opposition politics. His sister, Janette Bulkan, has for years been one of the PPP/C’s most outspoken critics and has openly supported political opponents of the Government. His brother, Ronald Bulkan, was a senior Minister in the APNU+AFC coalition Administration and remains a prominent PNCR figure, now linked with Amanza Walton-Desir’s Forward Guyana initiative.
Whether Justice Bulkan himself is capable of being impartial is not even the central issue. The larger issue is perception. Can the average Guyanese citizen reasonably be expected to believe there is absolutely no risk of political predisposition when such close relatives are deeply embedded in anti-PPP political activism and opposition politics? That question alone is sufficient to justify recusal.
Across the democratic world, Judges routinely step aside from matters where there is even a reasonable appearance of conflict. They do so to preserve confidence in the judiciary and to protect the integrity of the courts themselves.
The CCJ should not wait for controversy or accusations before acting prudently. The court’s authority depends on public trust, and public trust depends on visible neutrality.
In a country as politically polarised as Guyana, even the appearance of bias can damage confidence in the judicial process. Recusal would therefore be the responsible, ethical, and statesmanlike decision.