Promising that local government elections will be held every three years, President David Granger yesterday said that they would put “real power” in the hands of the people and government would work with them.
“The local government elections that are upon us are probably the most important political event since independence… it is putting power into the hands of people… real power, and this time you have a government which is going to work with the municipalities, the neighbourhoods, to make sure that our agendas serve the people,” Granger was quoted as saying yesterday at the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) General Council meeting, where he urged members to make the remaining days leading up to the March 18 polls count.
The first General Council for this year was held at the party’s headquarters in Sophia and Granger, who is the leader of the party, delivered the feature address.
Absent this time around from the meeting were special invitees, who comprise largely of longstanding members of the party.
Contacted yesterday, PNCR General Secretary Oscar Clarke confirmed that there were no special invitees in attendance. Asked why, Clarke told Stabroek News that that is “not a matter for the press.” He informed that it is the party that decides who is invited. “So this is not a matter for speculation,” he stressed.
Granger, according to a party statement, said that it was the PNCR that had always been in the forefront of democratic change and was committed to local democracy.
He said it was the PNC that first tackled the local government system in Guyana, that the People’s Progressive Party was never interested in local democracy and it was the PNC that introduced the regional system, and continued the struggle for local democracy over the decades.
According to the statement, Granger said local democracy was important and promised that as long as he was President, local government elections would be held every three years in accordance with the Constitution.
“…If we are to improve our living and working conditions, if we are to improve our social conditions, if we are to improve safety, law and order in our communities, if we are to insure that our children go to school, improve education, improve employment opportunities, if we are to improve sanitation and hygiene in our communities, we have to take control of the management of our own communities,” he was further quoted as saying.
Granger also urged discipline and party unity. “…We will go into these elections as a coalition APNU+AFC, we have 40 days to get our act together,” he said.
According to the statement, the General Council was held under the theme ‘The Year of Renaissance’ and was chaired by the Party Chairman Basil Williams.
In his welcome and introductory remarks, Williams made the observation that the first General Council meeting was happening in a year of celebration, given that this year marks the 50th anniversary of Guyana’s Independence, the first anniversary of the signing of the Cummingsburg Accord and overdue holding of local government elections. The polls were last held in 1994.
Williams thanked party members for their hard work, steadfastness, sacrifice and for staying the course and told General Council that winning the upcoming local government elections was pivotal to the achievement of “the good life” being pursued for all Guyanese by the APNU+AFC administration.
Clarke, meanwhile, brought the General Council up to date with the state of the party’s secretariat, the youth and women’s arm of the party and all party regions (local and overseas), and the work of the secretariat during the period between general councils.
He also reported to General Council that the state of the party was strong, poised and ready for local government elections and that the party must use the local government elections to recapture the hopes and dreams of the founding fathers for a united Guyana, the statement added.
There was also a panel discussion on local government elections.
The PNCR is the main constituent of A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), which is a major partner in the coalition government. The APNU+AFC government took office in May last year from the PPP which had been in office for more than two decades.
