…Lawrence reacts to APNU losing three constituencies in Georgetown

MONDAY’S low voters’ turnout for the Local Government Elections affected the outcome for the major political parties and even the independent candidates, Public Health Minister and A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Executive, Volda Lawrence said on Tuesday as she reacted to her party losing three of its constituencies to the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) in the Municipality of Georgetown.

On Tuesday at the Critchlow Labour College, GECOM disclosed that APNU won 21 of the 30 seats for the Municipality of Georgetown while the PPP/C secured seven (7) and the Alliance for Change (AFC) two (2) in the mixed system of Proportional Representation and First-Past-The-Post.

“We don’t see it as a loss. What we see it as is taking stock of the fact that we need to do more. One; to educate people more about Local Government and that this is their thing,” Lawrence said, while noting that many persons have not bought into Local Government.
Fielding questions from reporters, the APNU Executive said it is no secret that the APNU+AFC Coalition did not contest as a single unit in the Local Government Elections after the AFC opted to contest the elections separately.

“It says to us that there is much more to be done on the ground one on one with people and we have to get out there and get the job done,” she said.
The APNU Executive, however, made it clear that she would not base the outcome of the much anticipated 2020 General and Regional Elections on the results of the just-concluded Local Government Elections.

“I believe that people see 2020, the General Elections, the National Elections as a must, as oppose to Local Government Elections,” she said.
Alluding to the just concluded elections, Lawrence reasoned that some voters may have had expectations that did not materialize, causing them to feel disappointed in the system, and those elected following the 2016 Local Government Elections. As such, they have opted not to exercise their democratic right to vote and elect their local leaders.

Alluding to the fact that Monday was not declared a national holiday, the Minister said that the poor showing for the elections may have been as a result of persons having to work.
Notwithstanding, the APNU executive applauded those candidates who rose to the occasion, and opted to take a leading role in the management of the city. Based on the cadre of leaders elected, Lawrence said they have done a commendable job in the lead up to polling day, even as she expressed confidence that they will act in the interest of the people.
Lawrence also made a case for the number of the representatives per constituency in the Municipality of Georgetown to be expanded in light of a growing population.

Better positioned
AFC Executive Member Michael Leonard, who was also present at the Critchlow Labour College to witness the announcement, told reporters that this was the first time the AFC opted to test its strength after coalescing with the APNU in May 2015. AFC suffered a major blow in many of the Local Authority Areas (LAAs) but according to Leonard, the alliance is now better positioned.

“I am not sure that I should say something went wrong. The APNU and AFC contested the last time as a coalition in 2016. They were obviously riding the success of 2015 (General Elections), so there was no true test to see what is the constituency of the AFC versus the APNU,” Leonard told reporters.

According to him, on the basis that the AFC started mobilising and campaigning late for the Local Government Elections, it did relatively well in the elections. “So we know now, if this is what we can attract, this is what we can attract. We know where we are, and I don’t have an issue with that,” he said while noting that the AFC won two seats on the Council of Georgetown.

He, however, expressed the view that the move to contest the Local Government Elections independent of the APNU will have no effect on the Cummingsburg Accord, which brought the parties together.
“I don’t believe so. It is very clear from the results across the country that the APNU by themselves cannot defeat the PPP. So it seems as though the coalition is necessary, and we have said before that we believe in coalition politics,” the AFC Executive said.

He reminded that in the General Elections, every vote counts, every seat counts, maintaining that APNU cannot do it alone. That aside, he too bemoaned the low voters’ turn out, contending that the majority of the persons voted were above the age of 40. Though the AFC campaigned among the younger population, Leonard acknowledged that the alliance was not able to pull the votes in their favour.

“There were a lot of party stalwarts voting, so I am not disappointed, thinking that we did badly, I am thinking there is a lot of voter apathy. There is a lot of disinterest in Local Government Elections,” the AFC Executive explained.

Massive victory
Over at Freedom House, Leader of the Opposition Bharrat Jagdeo told reporters that based on preliminary results received, the PPP/C won the popular votes, pointing out the main opposition party won five of the 10 towns.

He said PPP/C won most of the seats at Mabaruma, Anna Regina, Lethem, and Rose Hall, and all of the seats at Corriverton. Though the PPP/C did not win Georgetown, Jagdeo boasted that the party made significant improvements by securing seven seats on the council.
With more seats on the council, Jagdeo said the PPP is ready to work while making it clear that it will not support any attempt to increase rates and taxes.

“We will keep our promises that we made to all of Guyana. We will not increase their rates and taxes for the next three years, we will ensure that every quarter, those councils make public their financial status…And we will try to involve people as far as possible in the work of the council,” he told reporters.

Dubbing the party’s overall performance as a “massive win,” Jagdeo, a former President, said the PPP secured 46,000 more votes than the APNU and AFC in the Local Government Elections. During the last elections, Jagdeo said PPP led by approximately 24,000 votes.