–Hughes says ‘absolutely not’ to reports of Norton being appointed presidential candidate

THE possibility of another coalition between the ‘divorced’ A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and Alliance For Change (AFC) hangs in the balance, as talks were put on “life support” because of what appears to be a power struggle and distrust among stakeholders.
Reeling from a history of widely reported internal conflicts, the parties which officially parted ways in 2022 after being voted out of office in 2020, recently convened talks with the hope of forming a new partnership ahead of the 2025 elections.

This, however, has already gotten off to a rocky start, as Leader of the Alliance For Change (AFC), Nigel Hughes was forced to hold an impromptu press conference on Tuesday evening to address issues of concerns related to the coalition talks.
Earlier in the day on Tuesday, a news report was published, stating that a senior PNC/R official said that their party leader Aubrey Norton would be the APNU+AFC presidential candidate, as discussions got underway to form a new partnership.
Just a few hours later, Hughes said: “The AFC’s position tonight is that there have been developments which have caused us to pause,” indicating a high level of uncertainty over whether the APNU+AFC will be retying the knot and the trust deficit will be filled.
The AFC Leader, himself, firmly stated that his party will be contesting the elections on its own if necessary.

He said: “That is the position of the party. We have been authorised by our executive to enter into discussion with other parties. We believe that with some parties, it is better to have documented the parameters of our engagement, just so that we are all on the same page.”
The AFC Leader then stated that there is no change in the commitment on how they will enter the elections, and they intend to enter into similar agreements to “protect” the terms of any arrangement with any other party.
He told the press that the APNU and the AFC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) but it is on “life support.”

However, in his usual style, he hop scotched around what exactly this means. And while not directly referring to the news report that said Norton will attain the presidential candidacy, based on his statements, it was implied that the report caused the agreement to be on “life support.”
The PNC/R Leader has consistently maintained that should he not be presidential candidate the other person must be approved by him.
He had even emphasised that the PNC/R, as the largest party in the coalition, is entitled to the presidential candidacy and would not relinquish this role to a smaller party, and to put it frank, not to “anybody who just fly off of a tree top.”

While there is an attempt by the opposition camp to boost electoral appeal, the public has continued to echo its concerns over whether the uneasy partnership can hold amid unresolved differences.
When questioned whether the possible grand coalition will have Norton as its presidential candidate, Hughes immediately said no, claiming that there needs to be a “mechanism” and a “process” for identifying the leadership.
“Absolutely not,” Hughes promptly responded when asked whether Norton was identified as the presidential candidate.

Executive member, David Patterson, during the press conference, said that Hughes was unanimously appointed and was unopposed by the AFC executive to be the presidential candidate.
Both the AFC and the PNC/R have remained at odds over key issues, leaving the prospect of a unified front for the upcoming election in serious doubt.
Addressing the MoU between the APNU and AFC, Hughes said that it was structured in two phases.

The first phase would be an exploratory phase where they examine whether or not it is possible for them to collaborate and present a joint team or a single team to contest the next elections. And the second phase is dependent on whether or not they have a successful conclusion to the first phase.
Hughes said the MoU stipulates that they should arrive at a decision by March 31. Hughes said that the parties have identified and appointed negotiators for the process and the AFC had one leading up to the discussion.
He disclosed that the AFC’s negotiator is Jamaican businessman and PNP activist, Alston Stewart.

It was reported in the media that Stewart, who is no stranger to the AFC was reprimanded and discharged by a court in Trinidad after at least two bullets were found in his luggage when he visited the twin island republic in 2019, while reportedly on his way to Guyana.