– as planned meeting postponed

A PLANNED meeting between the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC) to discuss the revision of the Cummingsburg Accord was postponed on Monday, hours before it was scheduled to take place.

Instead, the two sides exchanged documents on the review of the Cummingsburg Accord, APNU stated in a press statement on Monday. According to the APNU, the parties will meet at a date to be fixed after consideration of the documents by their respective leadership.
APNU General Secretary Joseph Harmon is leading his party into talks with the AFC. In a recent interview, Harmon declined to disclose the critical issues to be discussed around the negotiating table. However, Guyana Chronicle understands that the method of selecting the Prime Ministerial Candidate for the upcoming General and Regional Elections; and the formula for the allocation of Parliamentary Seats are among critical issues that would be ‘hammered out’ by the two teams.

Under the Cummingsburg Accord, which brought the two political parties together as a coalition on February 14, 2015 ahead of the elections, the APNU nominates the Presidential Candidate and the AFC, the Prime Ministerial Candidate. Added to that, APNU was allocated 60 per cent of the seats won by the Government in the National Assembly while the AFC received the remaining 40 per cent.

A reliable source told this newspaper that during the negotiation, the teams representing the APNU and AFC will determine whether they will retain the 60:40 formula as the Cummingsburg Accord is revised. This formula would also guide the allocation of ministries between the APNU and the AFC. Under the existing accord, the AFC had requested certain ministries such as the Ministry of Public Security.

While Harmon declined to comment on the issues to be discussed, he reminded that the APNU and AFC, ahead of the planned negotiation, agreed on some core principles. “The discussions between the APNU and AFC are imminent but I can’t comment on any issue or aspect of what the discussions will be premised on,” the APNU General Secretary told this newspaper.

However, AFC General Secretary David Patterson said while AFC would like to have sections of the Cummingsburg Accord revised, it would like to retain the 60:40 formula and the current method of appointing the Prime Ministerial Candidate. Patterson is leading the AFC negotiating team which includes its National Executive Members Dominic Gaskin and Dr. Vincent Adams. During this round of negotiation, which is expected to last approximately four weeks once started, the functionality of the Grievance Committee and other areas within the existing Cummingsburg Accord which need strengthening are expected to be addressed.

The core principles, the source said, include the vision of the APNU + AFC Coalition. Those principles also touch on areas of unity, the creation of a joint manifesto, the selection of candidates and the management of shared resources.

The Cummingsburg Accord is due to expire on February 14, 2020 but, with General and Regional Elections expected this year, the parties have agreed to revise the accord ahead of the elections. Earlier this month, the AFC confirmed that there is a broad agreement between the two parties that the existing Accord can be amended for better alignment with the Constitution and can accommodate additional guiding principles that may previously have been omitted.

However, it noted that the existing Accord remains in effect, until its life expires or it is amended by mutual agreement. “The AFC remains fully committed to coalition politics in the national interest. Coalition politics in this regard reinforces our core belief of a functional multi-ethnic, ‘multi-viewic’ society to unleash the energies of all our people regardless of race, class, religion or gender enabling all Guyanese to enjoy their fullest potential,” it said. APNU General Secretary, in a recent interview, told Guyana Chronicle the partnership is also committed to the coalition, and as such, would work with the AFC to revise the Cummingsburg Accord ahead of the elections. It was the coming together of the APNU and AFC that resulted in the defeat of the PPP/C Government.