– had opposed coalition with APNU

Alliance For Change (AFC) General Secretary David Patterson said he is unaware of the impending resignation of Dr Veerasammy Ramayya from the party.

Hailing from Whim, like Moses Nagamootoo, Ramayya had single handedly campaigned for the AFC in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), which resulted in the party earning 12,000 votes at the 2011 polls. The A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) 2015 rally was held in front of his home.

Dr Veerasammy Ramayya

But following the 2015 General and Regional Elections, Ramayya indicated that he no longer wanted to be a part of the party which he was once deeply devoted to.

“Had it not been for me, the Opposition would not have had the majority to file a No-confident Motion… and the PPP would have still been in power today because we would not have had elections this year,” Ramayya said.

During an interview with Guyana Times at his Berbice home, Ramayya said the APNU/AFC coalition Government has no respect for him.
“They offer me $180,000 to sit in an office in Georgetown and take complaints from people and report to Khemraj. I want to work for the people of Berbice and serve them,” the politician said, noting that all he wanted to do was to serve the people of Berbice but the coalition is not allowing him to do so.

“What I wanted to do is to be able to fix all of the sports grounds in Berbice and to clean up the hospital compounds, but I have to have the authority and power to be able to do so,” he asserted.

Ramayya has not yet tendered his resignation to the party, nor has he internally expressed his dissatisfaction but instead, resorted to the media to signal his intentions to AFC officials.

Ramayya continued to lash out at the AFC, contending that the coalition simply used him and dumped him after it won the election; after he worked tirelessly to help the coalition to win the election.

“They did not even invite me to the Inauguration ceremony of President David Granger held at the National Stadium. I spent my money to organise meetings in Berbice during the campaign period. Now when I go to the office in Georgetown, the office is empty because all the boys get Minister jobs and big positions with some Ministry,” he said, expressing anger at the perceived disrespect.

Meanwhile, former President Donald Ramotar telephoned Ramayya on Monday evening to speak about his concerns. Ramayya was heard by this publication telling the former President that he will be restarting his television programme to fight for justice for Berbicians.
Asked about his future plans, the herbal doctor told Guyana Times that he plans on forming his own movement and continue to fight for Berbicians.
He noted that most of the senior positions in Government have gone to persons of one particular ethnic group which he thinks is unfair considering the way things were under the PPP/C.

Meanwhile, in one section of the media, AFC Leader Khemraj Ramjattan is quoted as saying that, “It is about serving the people rather than looking for money… I thought that he wanted to serve and all the indications were that he was going to serve but we are not going to simply condemn him; he is a very hard working fellow.”

Ramayya was the only party executive who did not vote in favour of the coalition when it was proposed and had voiced his disappointment to both Ramjattan and Nagamootoo because they had earlier claimed that they will never coalesce with APNU. Ramjattan, the party’s Leader had declared that if the AFC were to coalesce with APNU, they would be “dead meat”.

Ramayya’s departure from the AFC is being seen as a big blow to the coalition and is expected to throw a wrench in the wheel of the APNU/AFC forward movement in Region Six.