–as party eats away at Norton’s base in what Dr Jagdeo describes as a backfired plan

THE grave miscalculation by the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) to silently embrace United States (US) sanctioned businessman, Azruddin Mohamed’s political party-We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) has backfired as their base is now splintering.

There were clear indications that APNU was hoping WIN would pressure the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C)’s strongholds, but instead, according to critics, it has laid bare the desperation within the APNU camp, as prominent figures along with party supporters are abandoning ship, all while the PPP/C maintains its strength.
In an invited comment to the media on Nomination Day, PPP General Secretary, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo said: “I think APNU has to worry more about the Mohamed than the People’s Progressive Party and their quiet collaboration is harming them. It’s backfiring [on] them.”

Dr Jagdeo alleged that the purely transactional partnership between WIN and the APNU is one driven by the cynical hope that WIN would split the votes.
Dr Jagdeo also offered a sharp critique of the opposition’s rapid decline, while dismissing any speculation about a hung parliament, pointing to the 2020 polls where the PPP/C gained victory even when the odds were stacked against them.

As seen on Nomination Day, the opposition’s plan to peel away at the PPP/C’s votes has gone south, as the faces of many former APNU executives and party supporters were spotted in WIN’s crowd.

OPPOSITION IN COLLAPSE
WIN’s candidate list submitted to the Guyana’s Elections Commission (GECOM) on Nomination Day further reflected APNU’s massive loss, as former APNU+AFC parliamentarians have appeared on the US-sanctioned businessman political party’s list.

Former parliamentarians from APNU+AFC, Dawn Hastings-Williams, Natasha Singh, and Tabitha Sarabo-Halley have now joined WIN.
Dr Jagdeo said APNU is now a “shadow of itself,” and the mass exodus is testimony to this reality.

NO VISION, NO PLAN
This is the case although WIN has presented no plan for the country’s development. While Mohamed has been called out for running his campaign on social media and not hosting a single press conference to engage the media, with each unanswered question on Nomination Day, the hollowness of WIN’s party became more glaring.

Despite several questions from the media, Mohamed, although claiming his party has a manifesto, did not speak on a single plan or policy that the party plans to present to the electorate.
“Very shortly and soon” were the only words he used in response to almost all of the direct, basic questions which were related to his plans for the country’s development and progress of Guyanese.