Now onboard with the Civic component of the PPP/C, former AFC executive member Gaumattie Singh says that her decision to join the PPP was influenced by the tremendous infrastructure development taking place in Guyana and the “great confidence” she has in the leadership of Donald Ramotar.
“We have moved a far way. We have had so much infrastructure [building] taking place,” Singh said yesterday at a news briefing at Freedom House. Singh had resigned from the AFC in September 2006 after she accused the party’s leadership of failing to deliver on their promise to make her one of the party’s parliamentary representatives. She was joined at the press conference by former senior member of the PNCR Joe Hamilton who also recently endorsed the PPP/C. He repeated his belief that the PPP is the soundest political entity currently existing in Guyana.
Both Hamilton and Singh denied that they had been offered any incentive to join the PPP/C. Hamilton said that there had been no offer or no discussion of any offer on the part of the ruling party. He also indicated that his two sons, who are both employed with the Secretariat for the One Laptop Per Family Project (OLPF), got their jobs based on merit.
“There is no obligation on the part of the PPP/C towards me. When I proposed to give my support to comrade Donald…was in last year December….and I indicated to Donald by way of a Christmas card “I hope and pray that you will be selected to be the person to lead our country in the next election come 2011,” Singh said. “I did not ask for any position; I don’t want any position. I am committed to the development of this country in whatever form it can be,” she continued. She indicated that her confidence in Ramotar’s leadership comes back from the days when they were both students at the University of Guyana where they did courses in political science together.
Meanwhile, Singh told reporters yesterday that since she has joined the PPP/C platform she has received threatening phone calls but insisted that this would not deter her. Singh said that she had not yet reported the matter to the police but indicated that she would.
In March 2008, Singh sustained severe injuries after an assailant threw acid in her face as she sat in her vehicle outside the Guyoil gas station on Sheriff Street.
Singh officially endorsed the PPP/C on Sunday when the party held a public meeting at Port Mourant. There she spoke of the hard work she did for the AFC and said that she was not given the seat in Parliament. She also accused the AFC leaders of being deceitful and dishonest. She said the egos of the leaders were “bigger than the circumference of this earth”, saying that “they want to be president of this country and they can’t run their own party.”
