AFC wants more prominence on Local Gov’t bodies, State Boards

The Alliance For Change (AFC) is currently compiling its recommendations to review its partnership agreement with A Partnership for National Unity (APNU).

In May, the AFC had appointed a special Cummingsburg Accord Review Committee (CARC) to identify areas that need strengthening.

During a press conference at the party’s head office on Thursday, Executive member, David Patterson said the eight-member team has begun making its recommendations, among which is the need to address the composition of State boards and Regional bodies.

Following the 2016 Local Government Elections which the party contested with APNU, the AFC was concerned with the places given to it in the Regional Democratic Councils and Neighbourhood Democratic Councils and municipalities. However, it was found that the governing of local authorities was not addressed in the Cummingsburg accord.

The Accord which brought together the AFC and APNU was signed on February 28, 2015. Also among items for review is a “far better mechanism” of inter-party discussion as well as dispute resolution.

Over the past two years, there have been a number of measures implemented by the Government which the AFC publicly stated its displeasure with including the recent VAT on private education.

“They also made suggestions on how cabinet should be reporting back to the various parties – the relationship between the government and the parties—in the sense that they do think that the government should hold more regular meetings, distinctly with the heads or executives of the various parties within the coalition,” Patterson outlined.

The Working People’s Alliance (WPA), which is also part of the Governing coalition, had previously disclosed that cabinet issues are not discussed at the party level, when asked about the performance with the education sector which was headed by its member, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine.

Following the AFC Congress earlier this year, the party noted that the accord is a sunset agreement which requires review before Local Government Elections of 2019 and General and Regional Elections in 2020.