AFC to demand 40-60 split to partner with APNU in upcoming elections

– party insists Nigel Hughes will be AFC’s Presidential candidate

The Alliance For Change (AFC) National Executive Committee (NEC), having met on Sunday, has come up with a list of conditions under which they will partner with A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), one of those being an insistence that any Government positions won in the upcoming election be split 40-60 with APNU.
According to a statement following the meeting, it was explained that the lead negotiator for AFC is Alston Stewart, who acted as the AFC’s negotiator during the Cummingsburg Accord of 2015. The other two negotiators are AFC co-founders Khemraj Ramjattan and Raphael Trotman.

“The meeting was held to specifically address, the status of discussions between the APNU and the AFC on the formation of a coalition to contest the 2025 General and Regional Elections. Lead negotiator for the AFC Alston Stewart provided the meeting with a comprehensive report on the work done by both teams and exactly where talks currently stand.”
The party noted that following over four hours of discussions, the Party passed a resolution that it would accept a 60-40 split at all levels of Government with APNU, should they pull off a victory at the upcoming 2025 General and Regional elections. This would mean that APNU would hold 60 per cent of the positions, with AFC holding the remainder.
Additionally, it was determined that whichever party fields the Presidential Candidate, would not be permitted to influence or occupy the position of Leader of the List. At present, even though the Opposition Leader is People’s National Congress/Reform (PNC/R) leader Aubrey Norton, former President David Granger remains the head of the list.
“In keeping with the earlier unanimous decision of the NEC in January of this year, Party Leader Nigel Hughes shall be the Party’s Presidential Candidate. The meeting acknowledged the tremendous work done by the negotiating team and expressed its appreciation. The meeting further mandated the team to relay its resolution to the team from the APNU,” AFC further said.
The statement follows days of turmoil, including speculation that secret meetings were being held between members of Team Mohamed and the AFC with former AFC activists in the Essequibo Coast and Berbice leading the efforts.
Sources had suggested that the AFC, facing challenges in certain communities due to its past performance is seeking new alliances for its campaign and is engaging in secret meetings. Claims have also emerged that the AFC, in collaboration with APNU, has allegedly promised to lobby the United States (US) Government to lift sanctions against Team Mohamed should they win the 2025 elections.
It had been reported just Saturday that with just a day left before their March 31 deadline to reach an agreement on partnering, the AFC and APNU were deadlocked over the leadership of a potential united presidential ticket for Guyana’s upcoming General Elections in November this year.
On Friday, AFC leader Nigel Hughes had revealed that the two sides have yet to reach a consensus on the presidential candidate, suggesting businessman Terrence Campbell as a possible nominee. According to Hughes, he has already indicated that he would step aside in favour of a third-party candidate who could unite the opposition.
Meanwhile, speaking at the PNCR weekly press conference, APNU Chairman and Leader of the Opposition, Norton, had indicated that his side does not see the party coming to a consensus by March 31.
In January the two sides had set March 31 as the deadline for negotiations on a partnership, after Hughes described those negotiations as being on life support. Norton had noted that there is a possibility the talks will have to go beyond that date.