GUYANA’S current opposition is lethargic, uninspiring and drossy at best. Aubrey Norton, since his ascension to party leadership, has as his biggest success story, pure and utter isolation of literally all party stalwarts of note.
As I write these lines the Tradewinds song, “Where are your heroes” comes to mind. Aubrey retired not only Granger but seniors such as Basil Williams, Amna Ally, Joe Harmon, Carl Greenidge, Richard Van-West Charles, Winston Felix, Ronald Bulkan and more recently Dawn Hastings-Williams.
Up-and-coming politicians who are coming into their own such as Roysdale Forde, Amanza Walton-Desir, Chris Jones, Annette Ferguson, Jermaine Figueira, Sharma Solomon, James Bond, Vanessa Kissoon, Geeta Chandan-Edmond, Ubraj Narine and many others have faced isolation and castigation and are currently not in any arc or sector of the decision-making circle of the PNC.
I will set my response to the Tradewinds to the tune of folk song “Where have all the flowers gone.” The duet goes like this: Singer 1: “PNC, where have all your heroes gone?” Singer 2: “Aubrey cut them every one”, Singer 1: “When will he ever learn, when will he ever learn?”
If we extend this to APNU, Aubrey has essentially cut the ground from under the feet of at least two parties in the APNU configuration.
He uttered words to the effect that a person can’t just go and register a party with one man and expect to be treated as equals within APNU. That is serious isolationists’ shade being thrown at the parties being led by Tabitha Sarabo-Halley and Jaipaul Sharma.
Then drive-by political shots were fired at the Centre for Change, word on the street is that AFC’s Nigel Hughes’ bubble was burst and he is seriously wounded. Aubrey insisted that no amount of star power outside of the PNC would ever be eligible to lead a ticket that includes the PNC, as long as he is leader.
As is evident, Aubrey’s best quality is neutralisation of any and all forms of institutionalism, growth, challenge and frankly speaking – brain power. So, he has surrounded himself with quasi professionals who have no history of the rough and tumble of hardcore politics. His cadre includes people such as Elson Low who cannot put forward a single cohesive thought much less policy positions, and to think that he is the chief Economic Adviser to the Leader of the PNC.
At the last party congress, Aubrey neutralised all and any form of open contest for 2025 presidential candidate for PNCR and by extension APNU. An Aubrey-instigated motion was passed, which makes him the presidential candidate and gave him sole discretion to determine the candidate if for any reason he is unable or unwilling to run.
Bye-bye to any ambitions either Roysdale or Amanza may harbour. I really did take a liking to that catchy campaign song, “Its Amanza for me,” but now, po Amanza, she will have to rent protective storage space on Google drive and save that song and try again in 2030.
Aubrey is not capable of unity in his own party, apart from the hurricane Beryl-ish aftermath that has overtaken the party at home, many diaspora groups, in various countries, are in disarray and disunity. Given his most overriding standout qualities, why must we, at the national level, trust Aubrey Compton Norton to unite Guyana in any way form or shape? It is indubitably clear, if Guyanese have even a fleeting illusion of national unity, Aubrey is a proven nonstarter. We clearly have to look elsewhere.
Enter the smooth orator, Clarence Antony Nigel Hughes, with a gentle sheen and soft shellac political glow. The thing with this type of sheen, it accumulates dross, dreg and scum pretty quickly.
As a result, it will require constant polishing and waxing. The first sign of dross appeared when we were reminded that Nigel’s law firm represents major oil interests in Guyana. Nigel Hughes was heard uttering words to the effect that, he will recuse himself from all or any party deliberations on oil and gas policy, and if there is a conflict, he will certainly treat his clients as priority.
The AFC will be busy for a long time, Terry-cloth in hand, trying to polish that stance via its oil and gas committee. I will also argue that Nigel’s more recent form of activism, over the last quadrennial, takes in a lot of African activism, repetitive accusation of black subjugation along with the fact that many considers it a war trumpet, that 34 members were needed to make an absolute majority in our 65-member parliament – will make him unattractive to fringe PPP supporters who may contemplate other options.
On top of all that, Nigel, like Aubrey, presides over a party top brass that is all African, old henchmen who lack other forms of diversity. These things are dreg that Nigel and the AFC will have to constantly attempt to buff away to try to keep the lustre and attract “cross-overs.” As it stands, the AFC will have to accumulate a lot of cleaning fluids, Chamois and turtle wax because the party is accumulating scum much faster than it is currently able to clean.
While this is not unsurmountable, I don’t believe the image and stature of Nigel Hughes is enough to make an impression on the electorate beyond its current handful of captive support base in time for the 2025 General elections.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.