THE two main political parties and one community group in Kwakwani on Tuesday submitted their lists of nominees to contest for seats in the Neighbourhood Democratic Council.All three competitors have already commenced their campaigns while the independent group, Kwakwani United for Progress, has already completed their manifesto which is being publicized via social media.

Leader of the People’s Progressive Party Group, Sachi Parvaton told the Guyana Chronicle that she is anticipating the local government elections as this would give the residents an opportunity to practice democracy since her appointment as chairman of the Interim Management Committee in 2012 did not bring a favourable response.

She said that her appointment resulted in a series of protest actions and even vandalism to the NDC building although her installation came through the legal procedure and there was also a petition.
IMPOSITION
As a result of these constraints, Parvaton said that her office was not in a position to serve the residents as they saw her appointment as an imposition.

To this end, Kwakwani is without a regular garbage collection system, the drains are unkept and the roads are in a deplorable state. She also disclosed that there was an insufficient accumulation of funds since the market vendors were encouraged by residents who were supporters of the then opposition APNU to desist from paying revenues to the NDC.

Parvaton said that she is confident of winning the votes of the electorate, especially for the constituency she represents as the people will now have a chance to say who they want as leader. “I find that there is full cooperation from the people and I am optimistic of being victorious,” she declared.

In addition, Parvaton is calling upon the Minister of Communities to appoint an overseer immediately after the local government elections and a committee has been selected. She said that the NDC is without an overseer since March 2013 and this has stymied the efforts of the NDC as it cannot function effectively without an overseer.

The duty of an overseer is to give guidance and consent with regards to financial matters and to deal with the administrative issues of the NDC. “They need to appoint an overseer as early as possible after elections because the committee will be dysfunctional without one, it is just to say we have a committee but nothing else,” she said.

Parvaton said that once elected she will be focusing on the things she was hindered in doing as chairman of the IMC. These include the repairing of roads, the garbage collection system, drainage and the situation with the unoccupied lands.
APNU+AFC GROUP
Member of the APNU+AFC group, Kelvin Daily told the Guyana Chronicle that he is very optimistic about gaining a landslide victory as the party has submitted nominees for all constituencies. He said that he has been involved in community work even before being nominated and will continue to do so on a larger scale.

Some of projects on the APNU+AFC agenda include the cleaning of drains since their current state has resulted in the breeding of mosquitos. In addition, the party will be focusing on job creation, especially for the youths, upgrading facilities at the schools, and beautifying the community in an effort to boost tourism.

“Our aim is to bring Kwakwani back to its former glory as no attention was paid to this community by the former regime,” he maintained. His inspiration, he said, has come from his father who was a former chairman who worked assiduously to serve the people.

The independent group of 33 persons, Kwakwani United for Progress, will be vying for seats in all six constituencies. The group that was formed last December is open to the residents, and the leader, Charles Thom, told the Guyana Chronicle that he is very optimistic of winning the votes of the electorate.
INDEPENDENTS
Thom said that he will not be intimidated by the two major political parties who are telling the residents that they should not vote for them as the government will not support independent groups. To tackle this constraint, he said, his group will be bringing awareness to the people by visiting their homes, hosting public meetings, and using social media as well as hosting social events.

“We are not intimidated by this deception in which these parties are trying to get people on their side,” he stated. The group is currently raising funds to print their manifesto to share to residents as they hold consultations.

Thom said that his group will not only be looking at infrastructural issues as the other two parties but will also be focusing on economic and developmental issues. The last chairman of the NDC was Edgar Mendonca who served from 1994 to 2003 when the IMC was appointed.

Regional Vice-Chairman Elroy Adolph, who hails from Kwakwani, told this publication that he is anticipating the upcoming LGE in Kwakwani as there needs to be a change in leadership that will bring vigour and enthusiasm to the NDC.