President David Granger yesterday deflected questions about whether Minister of National Security Khemraj Ramjattan would be the APNU+AFC coalition’s Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2020 elections.
“This is one of the issues that would have to be discussed,” Granger said in response to questions from reporters at the Pegasus Hotel.
He explained that “A Partnership for National Unity and the Alliance for Change are discussing the Cummingsburg Accord of 2015 and [PM candidate] is one of the issues that will have to be discussed but I cannot say now who I’ll be running with… I can assure you that the two groups are reviewing the 2015 accord and we hope to come up with a revised accord.”
Asked if the candidate is likely to come from the AFC, in keeping with the provisions of the Accord, Granger said “it is not prudent to anticipate the outcome of negotiations.” He added that the main concern is that the agreement “abide by the Constitution of Guyana.”
“That is the principal foundation of any agreement. Nothing in the accord should collide with the Constitution,” Granger stressed.
The AFC’s February 14th, 2015 accord with APNU was seen as the key factor in the defeat of the PPP/C at the May, 2015 general elections.
Following the election of the APNU+AFC, it came to light that one of the Provisions of the Accord, that the Prime Minister would chair Cabinet meetings, was not being adhered to.
When questioned then, current Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo explained that the constitution states that the president performs the task. Article 106(3) of the Constitution states that the President shall preside over Cabinet meetings although it also sets out that the Prime Minister shall do so in his absence.
Despite concerns being voiced that the key stipulation of the Accord was being breached, Nagamootoo like AFC Leader Ramjattan had played down the issue.
Other key features of the Accord were that the AFC would have 12 seats in Parliament. Similar provisions were not put in place for allocation of seats following the historic 2016 local government elections, with the AFC pressing at various points for an adjustment in this area. Matters came to a head at the 2018 local government elections when APNU threw down the gauntlet and had the AFC contest the polls on its own in an apparent bid to have it show its real worth. The junior party did not fare well.
In June this year, Ramjattan received the majority support of delegates at his party’s National Executive Conference (NEC) to be the prime ministerial candidate for governing coalition at the next elections and his party’s negotiators have maintained that his candidacy was non-negotiable.
The APNU has, however, refused to commit to anything.
The PNCR – the main grouping in APNU – has also not conferred support on Ramjattan being the prime ministerial candidate.
In July, PNCR Chairperson, Volda Lawrence said “The party welcomes the fact that the AFC party was able to have their conference and elect their new candidate for the prime ministerial position. The party or the coalition and the AFC have not reached that stage in terms of discussions on prime ministerial candidate”.
Lawrence’s statement attracted push back from AFC General Secretary, David Patterson. He noted that he was part of the team that worked on the Cummingsburg Accord and added that the agreement, which was signed by the AFC and the APNU, states very clearly that “Alliance For Change shall nominate the prime ministerial candidate and … that the APNU shall nominate the presidential candidate.”
Patterson added, “We would not engage any discussion that changes that and that’s just the way it is.”
Asked if he is surprised at such a statement, he responded that this may have been the response to a question asked. “If somebody asks you are we discussing the thing and she says ‘no’ …is that a question for alarm?” he said.
Analysts have said that APNU is faced with the dilemma that the AFC will have little appeal in what is likely to be a tight upcoming general election. Sources say there is pressure for APNU to assume control over the primeministership and this is likely to be thorny issue in talks underway between the two groups. It is believed that Minister of State Dawn Hastings-Williams is being promoted as a possible prime ministerial candidate for APNU.
