Agriculture Minister Leslie Ramsammy has clarified a statement issued by him and carried by News Source which appeared to have given the impression that he believed that the new coalition between the two opposition parties, APNU and AFC stood a chance at winning the upcoming elections.

In his statement Ramsammy said “I am not disappointed because I believed that they have improved their chances to win an election – but that they lied so easily and effortlessly.” He was referring to the AFC’s decision to join forces with the APNU for the upcoming polls. The statement which was carried in an earlier News Source article appeared to have been misread.

Meanwhile, Ramsammy has accused the AFC of  “lying” to its supporters by joining forces with the APNU.

“Now the people who voted for them because they could never support the PNC know that they were deceived in 2011. They were always part of the PNC and they can no longer hide their stripes. They had to end up at home and home they are now. The sad truth is that they expected to take many others with them, through sinister and deceitful strategies. They are hopeful that they could fool the people that they did not sell out. But they not only sold out, they baptized themselves as loyal and faithful PNC accolades.”

Ramsammy is the second government Minister in as many days to openly target the Berbice community with concerns about the APNU/AFC agreement. Minister within the Ministry of Finance Juan Edghill offered similar views when he said the people of Berbice have been betrayed.

The AFC enjoys strong support in the Berbice community which is the stronghold of the governing People’s Progressive Party. The PPP has been concerned about the growing popularity of the AFC in its backyard and appears to now be rallying its support base in wake of the coalition pact between the two opposition groups.

The APNU and AFC have said that they intend to form a national unity government once elected to office and will leave the doors open to members of the PPP who may feel the need to move on.

The PPP has been in government since 1992. It’s support has been slipping nationally over the past few years and many political observers believe its fortunes could slip further as it heads into national polls on May 11, 2015.

Filed: 17th February, 2015

EDITOR’S NOTE: Previous article has since been removed from site and replaced with above article.

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