(L-R) Courdel Joseph, Executive member of NFA; Keith Scott, Leader of NFA; Tabitha Sarabo-Halley, Leader of GNB; Vincent Henry, Leader of GAP; Jaipaul Sharma, Leader of ERJP and Errol Ross, Chair of GAP.
The People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) has dismissed a recent election held by the A Partnership for National Unity where Vincent Henry of the Guyana Action Party (GAP) – one of the small parties that formed APNU – was elected as the new chairman.
Back in 2011, the PNCR had joined forces with GAP, the Working People’s Alliance (WPA), the Justice for All Party (JFAP) and the National Democratic Front to form APNU. Two other small parties, the Equal Rights and Justice Party and the Guyana Nation Builders Movement, later joined APNU in 2021.
Before the June 6 election, PNCR Leader Aubrey Norton was the Chairman of APNU. In addition to Henry, GNBM’s founder Tabitha Sarabo-Halley was also elected as General Secretary of APNU.
In a brief statement on Saturday, however, the Norton-led PNCR said it did not authorise the APNU meeting and called the elections “null and void.”
This development comes on the heels of division within the PNCR over Norton’s leadership with party members citing the lack of financial accountability among a host of other issues since he took over the helm of the main Opposition party in December 2021.
See below for the full statement from the PNCR on the APNU elections:
The PNCR, which is the Chairman of the APNU, and who at present is Mr Aubrey C. Norton did not send out any notice for APNU meeting nor elections. What purports to be an APNU election is unauthorized and null and void. As is well known, the APNU has no General Secretary since none was elected after the resignation of Mr Joe Harmon.
The PNCR wishes to note that any claim that the PNCR was invited to a meeting is totally untrue, as we received no such invitation. Moreover, there is no one with the locus standi to send such an invitation.
The PNCR remains committed to the necessity and principles of coalition politics in Guyana.
