Dr. Richard Van West-Charles, former Health Minister and a son-in-law of the late President Forbes Burnham, is upping his bid to wrest the leadership of the main opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) from Mr. Robert Corbin.

His backers claim that the PNCR support base “is totally demoralized, cut off, disenchanted and couldn’t care less about the current PNC leadership.”

A statement circulated yesterday said Van West Charles’ group has bought transportation for the team leaders to travel around the country to intensify the campaign against Corbin who is recovering in New York from surgery.

Van West Charles is bidding for the leadership of the party his father-in-law founded claiming he wants to get it in a new direction.

His team has accused Corbin’s backers, including General Secretary Oscar Clarke and stalwart Aubrey Norton of underhand tactics to block their forays among party members and groups.

“Dr. Van West Charles, after meeting with former members of `Team Alexander’ has confirmed that this current pattern of fraud and delay is a carbon copy of tactics used against `Team Alexander’. It is apparent that lessons have not been learnt”, they said.

Van West Charles is to participate in three party district conferences coming up, they said, noting that the Georgetown District has not had a conference in the past four years and none is scheduled.

“Our fear is that this former stronghold of the PNC will also change hands to the PPP (governing People’s Progressive Party)”, the statement said. Local government elections are scheduled by November.

“The only process we must accept for the rebuilding of the PNC internally and externally is one of transparency. Its processes must be a beacon for the rest of the country and provide no doubt that it could call on the resources of its members, friends and enemies worldwide to lead the way in nation building”, the Van West Charles group said.

“Dr Van West Charles will accept the results of any process conducted in an equitable and transparent manner but let it be known that the fraud perpetrated on Team Alexander with the subsequent expulsion of James McAllister will not be tolerated. His objective is to build not to destroy. The future of the PNC is at stake, we will not be deterred”, it added.

Van West Charles has said that he will stage his leadership challenge at the party’s Biennial Congress set for August.

He has admitted that it will be tough facing up to Corbin, his backers and hardliners in the party who have thwarted previous attempts to change the leadership.

He said he is hoping against a repeat of the manoeuverings that resulted in the party split last year by the group led by senior member Mr. Vincent Alexander.

The leadership battle in the party intensified late last year after stalwart McAllister was removed as a PNCR parliamentarian, prompting strong protests from senior members, including Alexander, who had previously attempted to challenge Corbin as leader.

In a statement, the breakaway group called `Team Alexander’ said it can no longer be of service to a party that “merely gives lip service to the ideals that inspired our continued service…”

Alexander, current Registrar at the University of Guyana, resigned as the PNCR representative on the Joint Task Force on Local Government Reform and Ms. Julianne Gaul submitted her resignation from the Regional Development Council of Region Four.

The group said its “decisions are not aimed at undermining the party; Mr. Corbin is single-handedly doing that himself. Our decisions reflect our outrage at the party’s continued display of vindictiveness.”

The current PNCR leadership went into a strategic weekend session in February at Splashmin’s Resort on the Linden-Soesdyke Highway and has promised other initiatives to reinvigorate and modernise the party.

In a statement, it said the 70-member gathering at Splashmin’s was part of the process of reforming, reinvigorating, and modernising the structure and operations of the PNCR “so that it remains a force in national politics which effectively represents its members, supporters and the Guyanese people”.

It did not provide details on decisions to chart its new course but among the resource persons at the meeting at Splashmin’s was management consultant, Dr. Aubrey Armstrong, identified as another person to take over from Corbin.

Van West-Charles was a senior Health Minister under the government run by Mr. Burnham until his sudden death in August 1985