The fundamental political problem in Guyana, as has been repeatedly emphasized in these columns and by others over the years, is the struggle for ethno-political dominance. It has long been recognized by most observers, and even by the two main political parties themselves, reflected at one time or another in their policy and manifesto promises. Even though first recognized by the PPP in the 1970s, that party’s electoral dominance over the past twenty-five years has resulted in its abandonment of policies of ‘winner does not take all’ and shared governance after 1992.
It took APNU+AFC longer, but it also came around to the same position in the 1990s. However, it failed to implement its manifesto promise of 2015 to promote constitutional reform to introduce shared governance. In the PPP’s case, it did not and does not want to share power. In the APNU+AFC’s case, faced with the reality, it feared that it would have only a secondary role in any shared governance coalition having regard to its winning of the 2015 elections by only 5,000 votes.