Amend the Registration Act to allow the Registrar General to verify the truth of records
Attorney General (AG), Anil Nandlall, SC, during a presentation of the bills at the December 2020 National Assembly sitting.
Kaieteur News – Attorney General (AG) and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall, SC, are expected to table an amendment to the Registration Act to close an existing gap in the law.
According to Nandlall, the current loophole allows Magistrates to make changes to birth and death certificates, without first allowing the Registrar General to verify the authenticity of the information.
The disclosure follows a legal notice in the press release detailing a scenario in which the Registrar is seeking to challenge an order from Magistrate Fabayo Azore, to change the date of birth from November 6, 1975 to November 6, 1974, not validated. of the records.
In the High Court application, the Registrar through the Attorney General – the legal representative of the State – seeks to quash the Magistrate’s order and set it aside on the grounds that it was granted in breach of justice laws national.
Among other things, the application seeks a declaration that His Worship, Magistrate Fabayo Azore, had no jurisdiction to make an order without the services of the Registrar General for births and deaths.
In its recent comment on the matter, the AG explained that the scheduled amendments will help protect a person from giving inaccurate or invalid information to alter the records.
Nandlall had explained that the current Act allows for the correction of clerical errors on a Birth or Death certificate based on an order of a Magistrate. The Magistrate in granting this Order is required to hear from the complainant and those responsible for making the record. However, in the case currently before the High Court, the AG stated that it is not about a minor clerical error but a significant change in the minutes.
In this regard, the AG explained that the law must be amended to give the Registrar General an opportunity to be heard on the minutes before any Court order is made. The amendment to the Registration Act is expected to be part of the Government’s next legislative agenda.
During the last sitting, the AG introduced several bills to improve the lives of citizens; these included the Hire Purchase Bill 2020, the Law Reform Commission (Amendment) Bill and the Administration of the Estates of Deceased Persons (Amendment) Bill 2020.
In the case of hire purchase it provides protection for people purchasing items on credit in the form of hire purchase. Currently, the item is only owned by someone who purchases an item under a hire purchase agreement after the final payment has been made. This means that the supplier can repossess the item if the consumer fails to make the final payment. The Bill was introduced to the National Assembly to offer customers a number of protections before businesses can exercise their right to forfeit the item.
With regard to the Law Reform Commission (Amendment) Bill 2020, it was introduced to the House to allow a wider range of qualified candidates to be appointed to the Commission. The amendment will see the appointment of non-lawyers, including those trained in finance, natural and social sciences, and law enforcement. It will also mandate consultations before appointing nominees.
The Administration of the Estate of Deceased Persons (Amendment) Bill 2020 seeks to increase the value of estates from $ 1,000 to $ 750,000 in which the Registrar may briefly appoint an administrator where the deceased does not leave a legal will. Under the current Act, letters of administration are not required for small estates where the value does not exceed $ 1,000.
In addition, the amendment also seeks to allow, in the absence of letters of administration, a bank manager to pay a claimant not more than $ 750,000 from a deceased person’s savings. The current Act limits the amount to $ 1,000. The amount can only be withdrawn when the deceased’s savings do not exceed $ 750,000.