Shortly after the Alliance For Change (AFC) arm of the coalition administration signaled that it may contest the upcoming Local Government Elections (LGE) alone, the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) announced that its parties have agreed to vie together.
In a press statement Monday evening, APNU said its partners have already started to plan collectively for the Local Government Elections campaign, noting that they are “better together than apart”.
The parties which form the APNU are the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R) – the largest membership – the Guyana Action Party (GAP), the Justice for All Party (JFAP), the National Front Alliance (NFA), and the Working People’s Alliance (WPA).
The APNU statement was released just hours after AFC Leader Raphael Trotman announced at a press conference on Monday that there is an overwhelming call from within the Party for it to compete in the elections as an individual unit.
Trotman said the main reason for the demand was for the AFC to maintain its identity and reconnect with grassroots.
The Cummingsburg Accord – the agreement which outlines how the AFC and APNU will operate in a shared governance structure – is silent on how the parties will contest the LGE.
After contesting the last LGE as a coalition, the AFC had expressed concern that the APNU did not consider allowing for 40% of the candidates to be drawn from its membership as outlined in the Accord for the General Elections 2015.
Trotman said the AFC will also consider creating a new Accord with APNU or revise the existing agreement to include a section that outlines how the parties would operate at LGE.
He said the AFC has put together a delegation to lead the talks with the APNU regarding a review of the Cummingsburg Accord.
Both the AFC and APNU have already begun separate preparatory works for the LGE – despite not deciding whether they will be contesting jointly.
Trotman boasted about the progress the AFC has made over the years, having achieved significantly than any other “third force” political party in the Caribbean.
APNU, in its statement, pointed out that it was established six and a half years ago, “as a temporary electoral expedient, but on the basis of an enduring political principle.”
