AFC not allowed to file No Confidence Motion

THE ALLIANCE FOR CHANGE (AFC) FAILED THURSDAY to file its No Confidence
Motion (NCM) against Demerara/Mahaica (Region Four) Chairman Mr. Daniel Seeram. The
measure died because the AFC ignored serving Seeram’s office with copies of their NCM
motions and the time expired for filing the documents.
“Regrettably however at this morning’s (Thursday’s) statutory meeting, the Acting Chair
disallowed a reading of the Motions on the grounds that the office of the Chairman was not
served with a copy of the motions nor did they conform to the stipulated timeline,” the AFC said
in a late-night statement.
The AFC, one of six parties in the parliamentary opposition A Partnership for National Unity,
AFC (APNU+AFC), is not giving efforts to oust the controversial former army captain as the
Region Four RC.
“Notwithstanding their disagreement of the interpretation of the acting Chair, the AFC Region 4
Councillors will seek to remedy these defects and table the motions at the next statutory meeting
of the council,” they AFC statement said.
It continued: “In September 2020 the APNU+AFC coalition was elected leaders in the
management of the affairs of Region 4. However, nearly a year later, several issues persist which
highlight the fault lines within the Council and its ability to discharge their responsibility to serve
the communities of Region 4.”
The AFC has been the bane of the six-party coalition which defeated the ruling Peoples
Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) coalition in the 2015 polls, but later triggered the fall of the
David Granger-led government when one of its legislators, Charrandass Persaud, sided with the
then opposition PPP to pass the NCM.
In March, the PPP rewarded Persaud with a post as this country’s High Commissioner to India,
after the party was declared winner in the bitterly contested and highly controversial 2020
national and regional elections.
Seeram, replaced Ms. Genevieve Alleyne as the RC of the most populated of the 10 Regions
comprising the 216,000 square kilometer, multi-racial independent Republic in 2020.

However, controversies have dogged the former Guyana Defence Force (GDF) rank from the
beginning of his tenure because of his polemical management style.
Many months ago, www.aroundtheregions.com reported tensions in the Region Four Regional
Democratic Council (RDC) and had quoted some Councillors already fed up with Seeram.
General Secretary of the PNC, Amna Ally, staunchly defended Seeram when this media house
raised the issue with her. She dismissed Councillors concerns as non-issues branding some as
troublemakers.
Ally also rubbished concerns that evidence have surfaced that Seeram may have been
considering jumping ship and joining the PPPC.
“Daniel Seeram is a PNC and he will remain a PNC,” Ally had emphasized.
Then she invoked race to strengthen her convictions about Seeram’s loyalty to the PNC.
“Not everyone who has straight hair like me (referring to her East Indian ancestry) is a PPP or
can be won as a PPP,” referring to the ruling Peoples Progressive Party.
“I want you to know that the PNC believes in Daniel Seeram as he is firm and has nowhere to
go,” Ally had said confidently.
AFC Councillors have pushed for the NCM because Seeram has unilaterally suspended Regional
Administration of Committees meetings, without notifying Councillors. The decision is creating
chaos in the RDC. They have also blamed Seeram for hoarding information, stymieing their
work.
“The alienation and exclusion of the AFC and its representatives by the Chair is seen in that he
currently holds Chairmanship of key committees including the Tourism Committee which to date
has never met as well as the Drainage & Irrigation committee. The Chairman is currently the sole
representative on the Sea Defence Board of the Ministry of Public Works, the National Drainage
& Irrigation Authority (NDIA), the Board of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Covid Task
Force of the Office of the Prime Minister,” the statement disclosed.
Seeram’s penchant for one-upmanship is also hurting recruitment of staff for the RDC.
“This action deviates from the historical norm of sharing these positions with other Councillors
and the spirit of partnership which is fundamental to the APNU+AFC coalition. It is necessary to
note that the Personnel and Human Resource Management Committee also has not met for over
eight months. Most worrisome is the fact that this has resulted in employment malpractices
perpetuated by the PPP within the Council. Among other issues, this has resulted in 14

healthcare workers’ contracts not been renewed and two nurses not being paid for several
months,” the AFC statement claimed.
“The deterioration of the relationship between the Chair and his Vice Chair (Mr. Samuel Sandy)
on matters of principle approach and operations which permeates every statutory meeting has
also been identified as a major source of discord that impacts negatively on the ability of the
Council to function effectively, the statement noted.
It added, “Currently these deficiencies have resulted in several contractors not being paid for
close to six months due to the failure of the Vice Chair who heads the works committee to
convene meetings and sign off request in a timely manner.  This has resulted in their hard-
working employees not being paid during these difficult times, caused by the PPP COVID
related policies,” the AFC statement complained.
It said, “The AFC Region 4 Councillors recognise that these fundamental differences in approach
and operations make it difficult for the citizens of our most populous region to receive optimal
services given the current structural differences which must be solved urgently.”
“The Alliance For Change Region 4 Councillors have also taken note of recent public
statements on this issue and wish to state that no discussion with any other political party
on these motions has taken place,” the release said.