Guyanese losing interest in the AFC

FIFTEEN YEARS after its launch and enthusiastic national embrace when it won five
parliamentary seats as a rookie political party, the Alliance For Change (AFC) is losing
relevance nationwide steadily, insiders and former members complain.
The AFC’s waning influence was witnessed firsthand late last year when just a handful of
members show-up for the Regional Management Committee (RMC) meeting in the bauxite
mining town of Linden, the political fortification of the A Partnership for National Unity
(APNU) the largest of the multi-party coalition of which it is still a part.
“Believe me that before the end of 2021 you will see a large exodus of AFC members as the
party still has not come to grips with its faults and missteps which continue to give enormous
strength to the PPP (Peoples Progressive Party, the ruling party). A handful of persons will go to
the PNC. Regardless of what name you call it, we all know that there is no APNU but rather
PNC,” one AFC affiliate predicted.
According to this source, who no longer has political ambitions, the national slide in interest for
the party was precipitated by its straying from its original vision soon after the coalition
triumphed at the 2015 polls. Consequently, there was no drive among party executives to
consolidate its base and/or boost membership, but jostled each other fiercely for personal
aggrandizement.
The former member promised explosive revelations about his former party at the opportune time.
Well-placed Linden sources told www.aroundtheregions.com that at the RMC meeting in
Linden, Upper Demerara – Berbice (Region Ten) at the Egbert Benjamin Hall a paltry seven
persons turned up. A number of key AFC executives ignored the meeting, including Regional
Councillor, Mr. Norris King. King late last year openly blasted his party and the APNU
leadership after the election for Regional and Vice Chairmen of Region Ten.
Missing too was former Regional Vice Chairman, Mr. Elroy Adolph, the party’s key man in
Kwakwani with responsibility for Ituni, a vital community for the coalition. Adolph at several

forums had complained that the party leaders continue to ignore the concerns of its members.
This snubbing, Adolph claimed, resulted in the defeat of the APNU+AFC party at the 2015 polls.
Many believe that Adolph’s open criticism of his party cost him the Regional Vice Chairman’s
post.
Another former member said desperate AFC leaders will do anything to hoodwink their
membership and maintain their support and relevance lost after the 2018 local government
elections when it contested as an independent party.
“The relevance of the AFC was lost after the 2018 Local Government elections when out of
stupidity and desperation they contested it alone and exposed the weakness of the party. I stood
until after elections as I thought that we had time to clean up but ultimately leaders who refuse to
listen to their ordinary members are worse than idiots,” the former member said.
He added, “Many ‘Lindeners’ are seeing the AFC for what it truly is and that is why you will see
that many persons are blatantly and openly ignoring the party as they, like many of us, have
come to the realisation that the leaders are not listening or don’t have an effective management
system that is why some are quitting, a few going to the PNC and others seeking to either rejoin
and or join the PPP.”
Members were stunned by the poor attendance at the recent RMC meeting. That the party’s
newsletter did not, as is its custom, publish a photograph of the meeting, is confirmation that
most members ignored the meeting the party member said. The member said even party leader,
Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan was numbed by the astonishingly poor turnout.
“As you see no pic was even shown in the newsletter because they had a handful of persons
at the event,” the AFC member said.