Dr Randy Persaud: The PPP has opted for a stalwart from the party to lead it into the general elections this year. This must immediately be of concern to the PNCR and AFC, because Donald Ramotar has decades of experience in the field of democratic politics. He has been in the trenches, has been tested, and has been battled-hardened for the upcoming contest. By comparison, both the PNCR and AFC candidates are really struggling to get off the mark. Both parties have weak leadership and politically unimpressive men at the top.
Let us look at the AFC first. The party is in a real mess from top to bottom, and must be prepared for mass defections as the election fever heats up. Major in-fighting will also develop because the leadership is thin, and the advisers to the party are mostly folks with big ambitions but little know-how. The AFC is likely to lose about 60% of the votes it received in the 2006 elections.
The depth of the AFC’s problems can be gleaned from the tragic error committed by Khemraj Ramjattan last week, when he tried to stop Guyana from getting US$ 40M due to it through an international agreement. I will tell you this – Mr. Trotman would have never done that. No Guyanese who wants to lead the country would have done that, and Trotman is too much of a patriot to be conned into joining something as ludicrous as proposed by that group. Mr. Ramjattan should issue an immediate apology to the Guyanese people.
And over at the PNCR, Mr. David Granger’s problems are equally serious, because he does not have control of his own party, and in fact does not even know his party’s platform. He is also at odds with a lot of senior comrades, including those whom he defeated at Sophia. At times he is hiding behind Mr. Corbin, and at other times he seems to have been abandoned by the crafty PNC leader. I think the PNC must be regretting the decision to have Granger lead them.
Donald Ramotar does not have any of these problems. Unlike Ramjattan and Granger, Donald has been in close touch with the Guyanese people for decades. It is also well known that Donald Ramotar is as clean as a whistle. The Guyanese people know him as a humble man who listens to what people have to say. I have no doubt that he will carry on the great work done by President Jagdeo.
It must also be said that the PPP had an excellent line-up from which to pick its presidential candidate.
Donald Ramotar has worked with these stalwarts of the PPP for years, and the party should be assured that the consensus reached would indeed prevail later this year.
Let us look at the AFC first. The party is in a real mess from top to bottom, and must be prepared for mass defections as the election fever heats up. Major in-fighting will also develop because the leadership is thin, and the advisers to the party are mostly folks with big ambitions but little know-how. The AFC is likely to lose about 60% of the votes it received in the 2006 elections.
The depth of the AFC’s problems can be gleaned from the tragic error committed by Khemraj Ramjattan last week, when he tried to stop Guyana from getting US$ 40M due to it through an international agreement. I will tell you this – Mr. Trotman would have never done that. No Guyanese who wants to lead the country would have done that, and Trotman is too much of a patriot to be conned into joining something as ludicrous as proposed by that group. Mr. Ramjattan should issue an immediate apology to the Guyanese people.
And over at the PNCR, Mr. David Granger’s problems are equally serious, because he does not have control of his own party, and in fact does not even know his party’s platform. He is also at odds with a lot of senior comrades, including those whom he defeated at Sophia. At times he is hiding behind Mr. Corbin, and at other times he seems to have been abandoned by the crafty PNC leader. I think the PNC must be regretting the decision to have Granger lead them.
Donald Ramotar does not have any of these problems. Unlike Ramjattan and Granger, Donald has been in close touch with the Guyanese people for decades. It is also well known that Donald Ramotar is as clean as a whistle. The Guyanese people know him as a humble man who listens to what people have to say. I have no doubt that he will carry on the great work done by President Jagdeo.
It must also be said that the PPP had an excellent line-up from which to pick its presidential candidate.
Donald Ramotar has worked with these stalwarts of the PPP for years, and the party should be assured that the consensus reached would indeed prevail later this year.
The candidates for the AFC and the PNC/R, Ramjattan and Granger both share some shameful records. They both are well known for being unaccountable, disloyal, deceitful and corruptive. What can one say as a positive outlook on their lifestyles? Nothing... On the other hand, Donald Ramotar has proved to be an exceptional Guyanese who has served as a politician for many years. He has been the General Secretary of the People's Progressive Party (PPP) since 1997, as well as a member of the party's Central and Executive Committees. He was unanimously elected as the General Secretary of the PPP on March 29, 1997, succeeding Cheddi Jagan, who died earlier in the month. At the PPP's 29th Congress, he was re-elected to its Central Committee on August 2, 2008, receiving the fourth-highest number of votes (637). Following the Congress, he was re-elected by the Central Committee as General Secretary on August 12, 2008, without opposition; he was also elected to the editorial board of the PPP paper “Thunder” on that occasion.
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