Former AFC official predicts its death
Dear Editor,
Since joining the coalition, there are signs that the AFC has been losing support especially among the youths in Regions Five and Six as well as in other Regions of the country.
This was evident in the 2015 election when the AFC lost a significant number of votes to the PPP compared to 2011. The AFC had never had a solid support base like the PNC and the PPP.
Its membership is comprised mostly of disgruntled members from the two major parties, so if the trend of losing support continues, it will only be a matter of time before the party becomes defunct.
There are several other reasons for the AFC loss of support. One- it is due largely to the fact that it has not fulfilled its promise to the youths and most of its supporters by offering them jobs.
Two- most of its Ministers have become arrogant and aloof and have distanced themselves from the members. Three; most of its members in Region Five and Six were former PPP members who have now returned to the PPP.
The same is true for the AFC New York/New Jersey Chapter (NY/NJ) where most of its members have drifted back to the PPP and the PNC. The only functioning AFC Chapter in the United States is the Queens AFC Chapter which has only fourteen members.
The loss of support for the AFC has been a major problem for its leaders who are totally confused as what to do. However, the current problems facing the AFC have stemmed from the bitter public squabble after the election in its stronghold constituency of Region Six on the Corentyne when its leading candidate was told by the AFC leader that there is no job for him and the boys.
This was the ultimate test of the sincerity of the promises made by the leaders of the party to its members during the election campaign. It was the straw that broke the camel’s back.
Many of the AFC supporters have bought into the narrative which says that the AFC leadership is weak and indecisive and does not act on behalf of them when they should.
Many AFC members are fed-up with the selfish behavior of some of its leaders and have abandoned the party because they seem to believe that it, along with APNU will lose the next election.
In other words the people are quietly evaluating the performance of the lackluster leadership of the AFC in government.
In Guyana as in many other countries with two-party dominated systems, third parties have found it very difficult to survive more than three or four election cycles which is approximately twelve to sixteen years.
This has been the lifespan of the United Force (UF) which formed the first coalition government in Guyana with the PNC in 1964.At the time, the UF was viewed as a viable third party but it lost that status during the 1970s.
The same can be said of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) which is now a shell of itself than when it was under the tutelage of the late Dr. Walter Rodney and so was ROAR. The AFC has endured three election cycles and is now heading to the sunset. Can it survive a fourth election cycle, only time will tell?
If the AFC continues to lose support as it is now, the coalition will be in serious trouble in the next election, whenever it is held.
In fact, the AFC will become a liability to APNU which together will not win enough votes to defeat the PPP.
Lest we forget, with all the crime and corrupt practices of the PPP, the APNU/AFC coalition won the election in 2015 by the skin of their teeth—by a mere 4,506 votes.
The AFC has made decisions that were unpopular and it will only endure as a party if it remains faithful to its members and to the principles upon which it was founded.
Asquith Rose
