–who still managed to win a landslide victory against Harmon and Van-West Charles in party’s leadership race

VICE-President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo has made a stark analysis which highlights that only about 30 per cent of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R) delegates at their recent congress supports the new leader of the party, Aubrey Norton.

Jagdeo, during an interview on Friday, highlighted that some 3,000 delegates from across Guyana and North American were slated to vote at the party’s 21st Biennial Congress held on December 18, 2021. At the elections, Norton received 967 votes, a mere 32 per cent of the overall delegates.

While voting was facilitated through a hybrid system, where persons had the option to vote virtually or at one of the 13 polling stations locally, four in Region Four and one in each of the other nine administrative regions, only 1,282 votes were cast at the polls.

Norton outperformed his two competitors, Dr. Van-West Charles with 64 votes, and Leader of the Opposition Joseph Harmon, who got 245 votes.

According to Jagdeo, the 1,718 delegates abstaining from voting is a clear indication that they have no-confidence in either of the candidates who contested the elections.

“If you have over 3,000 delegates, how come you only have just over 1,200 votes for the leadership; it meant that 60 per cent of their delegates to their Congress did not vote for any of their three leaders. You’re in a bad shape when that happens as a political party,” Jagdeo said.

He added: “What is interesting to me is that at this point in time, most of the membership and the senior membership of the APNU+AFC do not believe that they can win the elections in 2025, or that this bunch of leaders can guide them to any victory in the near future.”

Norton finally managed to be elected leader of the PNC/R, after serving the party for some 49 years, and even after all that time, leading up the recent elections, he was viewed with concern in some quarters of the party and society who see him as someone who is unable to win cross-over support, due to his past actions as the party’s grassroots organiser.

“We spoke to a number of Members of Parliament who were supporting Harmon, and many of them said this guy is useless; he’s racist, and many of them will have to contemplate their future. They may still hang on because it’s a job, but many of them do not believe he can lead or mobilise the party into any force to regain political office,” Jagdeo shared.

NOT AUTOMATIC
The Vice-President related that “longevity in the party doesn’t mean that you have the requisite skills to be a leader, nor to manage the affairs of this country or to inspire people to follow you,” and neither has Norton distinguished himself as someone fit to lead.

Even though Norton has been involved with the PNC/R since he was 15 years of age, he has never occupied any substantive decision-making positions. When the A Partnership For National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) won the 2015 elections and assumed government, Norton was appointed Youth Empowerment Adviser, but was months later sent packing by then President David Granger.

“If you look at Norton’s history, Norton has not distinguished himself in academia; secondly, he has always existed at the fringes of the leadership of the PNC, and thirdly, his tenure in government has been as a junior functionary; no policy-making position,” Jagdeo said.

He continued: “And even in the five years that they just emerged from, he was practically somewhere; I don’t know where he was, but didn’t again distinguish himself in any major role. So, when you are faced with that, how do you bring the requisite skills to the table to manage a country like ours?”

Jagdeo made comparison to President Dr. Irfaan Ali, who, he reminded, served at the ministerial level in his 20s, and spent several years in high policy-making office in government, as well as in opposition.

Norton, on the other hand, is known for his work in street protests. The Vice-President is not against protests, but affirmed that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) will not be bullied into submission by violent insurrections, something the Norton-era PNC/R members are known for.

“The best way to engage with the PPP is to commit to a national agenda; move away from racism. There’s room for us to work today, but don’t believe you can bully us into any submission,” Jagdeo said.