–party’s Chairman defends Norton after Ally ‘hammers’ incumbent leader; says ‘gloves are off’
THE mud-slinging competition has intensified within the People’s National Congress-Reform (PNC-R), as members take jabs at each other over the best suited person to lead the party that continues to lose support.

Chairman of the PNC-R, Shurwayne Holder, to party stalwart Amna Ally’s expression of disdain over Aubrey Norton’s leadership of the party, announced on Facebook that the “gloves are off.”
The disunity within the PNC-R camp is becoming more visible, as party members continue to show no hesitation in picking a side ahead of the long-overdue congress.

Holder quickly rushed to Norton’s defence after Ally, who has been with the party for about 50 years and served in various capacities, said the head of the PNC-R is not “fit” to be a leader.
While declaring that he respects Ally’s right to endorse whom she sees fit to lead the party, this did not stop him from delivering a number of “blows” to her.

In the post, Holder said that he does not believe she has “the moral authority to say who is unfit to lead the party”.
He added: “Let me remind us all that it was under her watch as General Secretary and Chief Whip that Charrandass voted “yes,” which led to the fall of the coalition government.”

Holder also said that the party cannot afford to be “divided” by her and those who do not have the party’s best interest at heart.
Internal clashes intensified after Opposition member Roysdale Forde launched his internal campaign on the day of Norton’s press conference, causing the party’s shaky foundation to “rock” even more.

Holder said that over the past two years, under the current leadership, Norton has “stuck to his promise to ground with the people and to rebuild the PNC-R from the bottom up.”

The reality on the ground, however, paints a different picture, as the party continues to haemorrhage support, sink further into financial troubles, fail to attract large gatherings at its outreaches and meetings, and express generic views on matters of national interest instead of presenting policy proposals.

In an interview with the Guyana Chronicle on Tuesday, Ally said that Norton is “losing ground” and “looking for scapegoats to place the blame on,” and in response to his accusations against her, she called on the party’s leader to get his act together.
“What Mr. Norton, the Opposition Leader, has to do is pull his socks up.

Mr. Norton must work with the Constitution, and he must seek to unify the party rather than splitting hairs and having people go their own way. He is not fit to be a leader,” she firmly said.
Additionally, Ally said that Norton’s feathers have become ruffled because she is not following him.

Instead, the former PNC-R General Secretary has placed her confidence in Forde, and while listing the qualities that Forde has, which she thinks make him a better candidate than Norton, Ally said: “…I don’t want to have a leader who has an issue with 30 blank cheques.”

According to former PNC-R Treasurer Faaiz Mursaline, in a previous interview with this publication, from the time he assumed the position of elected treasurer, he was made to sign blank cheques with no supporting documents. In November 2022, he signed as many as 20 blank cheques.

Moreover, when asked about the current financial state of the party and if she believes it is in a position to contest the upcoming elections, Ally said she couldn’t care less as long as Norton is at the helm.
“I don’t know and I don’t care, because I am not going to lift a finger under Norton’s leadership. When he is changed as leader, well, then I will look and see what contribution, if any, I can make. But as of now, I want nothing to do with Norton and his leadership,” she said.