…there was one
There was the 19th-century kids’ counting ditty named “Ten little Indians”. It ended with “…then there was one”. The mystery writer Agatha Christie used the phrase as the title of a book in which ten individuals on an island were killed – one after the other. Then there was one!! Whodunit??!
Well, the PNC Congress opened yesterday (as your trusty Eyewitness was writing this piece), and while there were only seven nominations for Leader of the PNC: Aubrey Norton with 177 nominations, Amanza Walton-Desir with 9, Roysdale Forde with 20, Volda Lawrence with 1, Gary Best with 2, Carl Greenidge with 4, and Simona Broomes with 2, there is now 1 nomination – Aubrey Norton!! What did it??!!
From the outside, looks like we had a lotta blowhards who just couldn’t stand the heat – so they ran out of the kitchen!! Volda Lawrence, who’d declared “only PNC people is my friend”, and only dem could get a job when she was ‘minista’, declined – even though she’d been chief cook and bottle washer in the GT PNC for donkey years!! Simona Broomes – who’d burst into the public consciousness after she highlighted TIP, and had caught the Yanks’ attention – declined. Maybe she didn’t want that “fried rice” incident at Amazonia Mall revisited. And then comes Carl – who clearly doesn’t want to jeopardise his gig with the Govt on the Border Controversy. On former GDF Commander Gary Best, there’s not much to say: he was cleared of killing a young man while DUI. So, we ended up with the leadership contest being between the remaining three: Norton, Walton-Desir and Forde.
Norton has been around – and inside – the PNC forever, and has a well-earned reputation as a bare-knuckled streetfighter. Some criticize his visage, but forget that while he didn’t actually engage in too many one-on-one street fights, he ended up with that permanent glowering scowl from egging on his troops!! You don’t skin yuh teeth when creating mayhem in the streets!!
Very few had heard about Forde and Walton-Desir – both lawyers – before they were roped in as MPs by David Granger. They are both from the lower middle-class, coloured, elite strata as Granger, and he had felt most comfortable with them – aside from his army squaddies. After Norton was elected PNC Leader by trouncing Granger’s chosen second-in-command, Lil Joe, that strata tolerated Norton because they thought he would “manners” the PPP. A thug was all he was to them!! When he didn’t go past refusing to shake Pressie’s hand, that was the end of their use for him!!
Their challenge was to bring back the PNC leadership to its class origin, but Norton proved that, notwithstanding his visage, he’s opened his eyes to their modus operandi.
He outrigged them, and they had to fall out!!
…why withdraw?
Your Eyewitness is still ruminating over the withdrawal of Desir and Forde. They said they were “suspending” their campaigns because of so-called “irregularities” in the arrangements for Congress – which they evidently concluded was “outcome determinative”!! Jeez!! How come they didn’t withdraw from Parliament after the Mingo rigging attempt – like Granger’s son-in-law?? Removing over 100,000 PPP votes wasn’t an “irregularity”??
It’s best, however, that they pull out before ejaculating anything untoward during the Congress – which might’ve permanently hurt their party. But their pulling out proved they didn’t have the mettle for Guyanese politics – which has never been a walk in the park!! Most of their cohorts, whom Granger created, are of the same mould, and your Eyewitness wouldn’t be surprised if Norton drops them come 2025. They seem to believe politics is played from behind smartphones on Facebook, X, Instagram, and TikTok! Place them in a fish market and they’ll run out – both because of the smell and the language!!
Look for Norton to wean some street fighters!!
…Congress proceeds
Some overseas Guyanese have clearly been away too long. Take the fella who went with his overseas Guyanese lawyer to the High Court – to have Congress stopped. The CJ threw them out on their ears!!
