Barbadian political strategist Hartley Henry earlier this week met with representatives of several political parties and other groups here, as part of an AFC-led initiative to explore alliances ahead of next year’s general elections.
In addition to members of the AFC’s National Executive Committee, Henry met with members of the PNCR, including leader Robert Corbin and Winston Murray as well as GAP/ROAR MP Everall Franklin and representatives of other groups. “We are still in the process of working out the principles or terms in which we would be involved in any alliance,” AFC Vice-Chairperson Sheila Holder told Stabroek News yesterday, “We would like to hear from the general public, to see how they feel about it.”
Holder explained that Henry was invited by the party to give a briefing on the negotiations of the pact that led to the formation of the People’s Partnership, an opposition coalition which won a landslide victory in Trinidad and Tobago recently. She, however, emphasised that it was premature to talk about an opposition coalition, explaining that the party has been having internal discussions on the issue but is also interested in feeling the “pulse” of the people.
Last Saturday, the AFC’s National Executive Committee reaffirmed its commitment to forging compatible alliances and Holder noted that party leader Raphael Trotman was mandated to arrange meetings with several groups and individuals, including Corbin and Murray. She said that all members of the party’s executive were aware of planned meetings, adding that there was nothing “secret” or “clandestine” about the meetings.
Some opposition leaders contacted by this newspaper were keen on playing down the significance of the meetings.
Stabroek News was told that the Henry’s involvement is a sign that the AFC is prepared to do whatever it takes to unseat the PPP/C and in this instance it is drawing on the recent experiences of the opposition parties in Trinidad and Suriname, where opposition coalitions have been successful.
Henry has been an advisor to Barbados Prime Minister David Thompson and his Democratic Labour Party. He was recently engaged as a strategist for the People’s Partnership in Trinidad.
Henry’s meetings come in wake of the publication of the findings of a political opinion survey conducted by Caribbean Development Research Services Inc (CADRES), which has suggested that a coalition of opposition forces under an umbrella of a Trotman-led AFC might be the “best political formula” for change. It also noted the attractiveness of a PNCR led by Murray.
The survey was commissioned by Floyd Haynes of the Washington-based Newton Group. He is married to Chantalle Smith, a former AFC MP. CADRES’ Director of Research Peter Wickham has said that the client has no vested interest in any major political party. The client did, however, seek to know the “route that would most likely yield change,” according to a report on the survey seen by this newspaper. In the report, Wickham stated that it “made no assumptions about the advancement of the fortunes of any political party or candidate” but it did “seek to chart a course that could deliver political change in Guyana.”
The ruling PPP has dubbed the findings “bogus” and designed to “mislead” the people. The alliance discussions also come amid signs of tension in the AFC over the leadership rotation principle and what exactly was decided at a meeting last Saturday of the executive about party chairman Khemraj Ramjattan possibly acceding to the post of leader.
‘A broader alliance’
An attempt to forge a broad opposition alliance that included the PNCR ahead of the last general elections was unsuccessful. Meanwhile, although the AFC’s leaders have been open to alliances, they have repeatedly ruled out involvement with either the PNCR or the ruling PPP/C, saying it would render the party’s reason for being meaningless. Instead, the party has highlighted its interest in alliances with civil society groups.
The AFC should be moving to broader alliances, according to former party Chief Executive Officer Peter Ramsaroop, who added that the opposition parties have to act on their commitments to a united approach in order to win the next general election.
“I want to be part of a broader alliance,” Chairman of the Vision Guyana movement Ramsaroop told Stabroek News, adding that there was no reason that he could see why the AFC could not be part of a coalition with the main opposition PNCR.
However, Ramsaroop stressed that a united approach is necessary to unseating what he called the “dictatorship government,” while noting that all the signs already point to the opposition parties embracing a coalition approach. He cited the announcement by PNCR leader Corbin that he would not seek to be his party’s presidential candidate as well as the indication that the presidential candidate of a coalition does not have to be a PNCR member. He said the opposition parties and their leaders need to look at their own ideologies and decide whether they want a better country with a better economic platform. “And if we do there is no reason why we can’t work together,” he added. “…At the end of the day, people have to have that same dream,” Ramsaroop said, “and as all the polls indicate, no one party in the opposition can win an election by themselves.”
He did note that while the opposition needs to work out a united approach, it should not rule out the inclusion of components of the PPP/C. He explained that there are many people within the PPP that have publicly stated that things need to change within the party’s structure, and he named MP Moses Nagamootoo, as an example. He said along with participants from the PPP, a united opposition approach could be a vehicle for a government of national unity. He added that the backing of institutions and especially civil society would also be crucial to the success of such a united opposition movement, especially if it is to capture broad support and in particular among younger voters. He said a large majority of the electorate at the next election would be young voters, who have seen the PPP manage the country in a discriminatory fashion without any proper emphasis on economic development.
Ramsaroop said too that apart from the economy, one of the main platforms of any national campaign is a change of the constitution, which would give individual parties more of an ability to compete in a fair system. He emphasised the need for the people to have a right to directly vote for their representatives in parliament as well as the abolition of the executive powers of the presidency, in favour of a system where they inhere in the Prime Minister, who would be accountable to the National Assembly.
