APNU to join AFC with no confidence motion against the Government

APNU to join AFC with no confidence motion against the Government

Leader of the Opposition and A Partnership for National Unity, retired Brigadier David Granger has announced that the APNU will support the no confidence motion being taken to the National Assembly by the Alliance For Change.

The combined Opposition parties hold the majority in the National Assembly and with Granger indicating the decision of the APNU to throw its support behind the AFC motion, it is almost a done deal that the motion will be passed and the President and his cabinet will be forced to resign from Government and set a date for national elections.

That date could come within three months of the passage of the no confidence motion.

Speaking to News Source from his Georgetown home on Tuesday evening, Mr. Granger said the Partnership was fully behind the move. He said the APNU received a letter outlining the motion to be taken to the National Assembly on August 1 and now that it intends to throw its full support behind the motion, it will consult with some of its other partners as it gets ready to move the process forward.

The Opposition parties have been talking about the no confidence motion following the decision by the Finance Minister to spend unapproved money from the consolidated fund for projects that were thrown out in the national budget by the National Assembly. Over $4 Billion was spent.

The Opposition Leader said the APNU is ready for national elections, noting that the political coalition has been on the campaign trail for the past eleven  months preparing for local government elections that are still to be called by the Government. The last time Guyana had local government elections was in 1994.

“It has been in the air all year and we are prepared and we are not unaware of the consequences of this decision”, Granger said, when questioned about the readiness of the Opposition to challenge the Government in national elections, before the constitutionally due date.

He said the PPP Civic government cannot be tolerated with its “unlawful behaviour and lawless behavior any longer”.

The APNU Leader told News Source that his group would welcome the Alliance For Change into its camp and move forward with one national movement. He said the APNU has always made clear its intention to form a government of national unity. He said that has been a hallmark of his party’s message and moving forward would involve a broad coalition with a number of other groups and organisations including the AFC.

He does not believe that the recent disagreements in the Peoples National Congress at its Party Congress will have any impact on the APNU and its chances at the National Elections. The PNC makes up the largest part of the APNU. Granger said he will be working with those PNC members who have expressed their concerns to him and the party.

President Donald Ramotar recently indicated that he and his Peoples Progressive Party Civic would be ready for national elections should the Opposition parties  move ahead with their no confidence motion. Meanwhile the PPP has been expressing its worry and concerns over a recent decision by the Guyana Elections Commission to begin a Claims and Objections Period for the National Registration exercise. The PPP said such a period usually marks preparations for elections and it is not aware that the date has been set for any elections, national or local.

5th August, 2014

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