FOR those who relish politics, the shenanigans in the ranks of the PNCR, APNU, and AFC over the last week must have been highly entertaining in a Shakespearean sort of way. I confess, the events this last week strike me as highly unusual and a bit startling. Let me explain why.

The public feasted on what amounts to a bizarre case of musical chairs. First up was Amanza Walton-Desir’s tearful resignation from the PNCR, a party that she said “sidelined, undervalued and silenced” her voice. It took her long enough. She could have joined with the late Amna Ally and Vanessa Kissoon back in March when they quit the party, citing concerns over leadership and the treatment of women. Difficult to say whether Aubrey Norton was bruised by her departure or whether he’s worried that her Forward Guyana party will certainly pull votes away from the PNCR.

A day later, Norton must have been in a celebratory mood. Sherod Duncan, Juretha Fernades, and Deonarine “Ricky” Ramsaroop, heavy hitters in the AFC, displayed a lack of basic courtesy when they jumped ship and into the arms of APNU without even so much as an email to Nigel Hughes informing him of their exit. Small courtesies do count for something.

And as if that sting weren’t enough, APNU promptly dismissed yet another tired overture from Hughes’ AFC to join forces. By Friday, a deflated Hughes was left issuing a feeble statement confirming that talks had collapsed, all this with just two and a half months left to E-day?

Instead of turning their attention to campaigning, the minor and major opposition parties have resorted to attacking GECOM, questioning whether the Commission is prepared for the September 1 elections. Lamenting why prisoners should be voting and accusing GECOM of treating the small parties unfairly, they’re now grasping at straws and now, pleading with the President to delay the elections and give time to get their house in order.

Let’s be clear, this was not a snap election; 2025 was always going to be an election year. I did some digging and discovered that the first time Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo publicly stated that 2025 would be an election year in Guyana was on January 4, 2024, during a press conference. He repeated that fact numerous times in the last 18 months. Hughes, Norton, Simona Broomes, and Amanza Walton-Desir, every politician knew the time frame for national and regional elections. They had more than enough time to get ready. The fact that they are unprepared means they only have themselves to blame, not GECOM and certainly not the PPP/C.

The stakes in this election are high, the highest they’ve ever been in the history of the country. We can’t afford to take a chance on inexperience and toy with a cabal that is so disunited they are now cannibalising each other. If the Opposition can’t agree on a shared platform, how in the world can they execute a shared vision for our country? Not a single individual in the PNCR or the AFC, or any of the other parties, has any executive or management experience to lead our nation on September 2, 2025. None.

The Opposition has spent the last year squabbling over the spoils of war, and when the campaign is finally underway, they have no plan, no policy and no platform that spells out the kind of future they envision for our country.

It’s worth recalling what Hughes said when the government released its 2025 budget. He criticised the PPP/C’s heavy spending on infrastructure, arguing that “we can’t eat roads and bridges,” forgetting that those same roads and bridges are the very lifeline that delivers the food that we eat. I believe what VP Jagdeo said, the Opposition took the PPP/C manifesto and asked AI to repackage it and then turn around and issue it as a newly minted vision. And Hughes dares to talk about trust.

What should be clear to anyone with eyes is that the Opposition, if you can still call it that, is driven by greed and opportunity. President Irfaan Ali’s labelling of it as a “coalition of convenience” is apt. This is not about the people; it’s glaringly about power and securing parliamentary positions.

We’ve seen this game before. The people of Guyana gave these very same political actors a chance in 2015, which they squandered. Instead of melting away and allowing new and perhaps deserving actors to take their places, they stubbornly insisted on hanging around, like a damp odour in a mouldy room.

At the end of the day, Guyanese have a simple choice to make. Do we hand the future of this country over to a group of people who can’t even work with each other, let alone lead a nation? Or, do we stick with a government that has shown it can deliver on jobs, on education, on health, and real opportunities for people?

This election isn’t about clever slogans or political games; it’s about who’s ready to lead from day one and who’s serious about building. And when you look past all the drama and distractions, the answer speaks for itself.

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.