Another AFC Executive resigns

…says leaders have lost their way, consumed by PNC

Prominent Linden Alliance For Change (AFC) party member Vladimir Glasgow has become the latest high-ranking official to tender his resignation from the party, citing that the party has lost its way and become consumed by the People’s National Congress (PNC).
Glasgow, who has been with the AFC for the past 15 years, tendered his resignation with immediate effect last Thursday. During his time in the party, he served as the Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) Chapter.
He also went on to serve as an Executive Member on the National Executive Committee (NEC) for some years, and in 2015 when the coalition Government went into office, he was appointed as the Prime Minister’s Representative for Region 10. In the resignation letter seen by this publication, Glasgow said: “I leave behind a record of my hard work, always working to the best of my ability to promote and model the values that have always been of utmost importance to those of us who devoted ourselves to the principles which our party was built on: ‘‘honesty, integrity, fairness and transparency”, it noted.
He went on to state in the letter, however, that for the past four years, he has become convinced that the party leaders “lost their way” and became “consumed by the PNC”.

“…while there are many persons who still feel as I do and their voices have been drowned out by our leaders’ hateful, bigoted, narrow-minded rhetoric that only promotes fear for their personal agenda. I have seen members of my party that feel as I do swallow their opposition and provide their tacit approval of such behaviour. Therefore, I can no longer consider myself a member of this party”, Glasgow alleged in the letter. On that note, Glasgow tendered his resignation with immediate effect.
Glasgow’s resignation comes hot on the heels of AFC member and former Region Five Councillor Abel Seetaram’s resignation late last month. In his resignation letter, Seetaram had also cited the party having lost its way and being subsumed by PNC.
“For five years we the members had to keep our mouths shut and allow the AFC failed leadership to handle matters which were of importance and they were all overcome by the APNU/PNC leadership. For five years the AFC leadership allows the APNU/PNC to do what they want without voicing their concerns. For five years the AFC leadership had failed to address several matters raised by its members concerning the overcoming and overpowered by the APNU/PNC,” Seetaram wrote.

“The AFC I join since its formation is no more. The PNC swallows the AFC. The AFC cannot stand anymore to represent its members nevertheless the public. It’s my firm belief that the AFC has lost its footage and strength to continue in the political arena and the leadership seems to be sucking up to everything that the PNC wants,” he also said in his letter.
Former AFC Member of Parliament Audwin Rutherford also resigned in October of this year. He had also said that the AFC has lost its independent voice and with it, its principles.
“I would have joined the party shortly after its formation, because the party principles and vision coincided with mine. I was comfortable with my decision then as I am comfortable with my decision now. This decision is after much consultation with my family and friends, who all fully understand,” Rutherford wrote.
“The AFC seems to have no independent (voice) – the party has lost its way and seems comfortable being subservient to PNCR. This attitude is particularly pronounced in Region 10,” he added.
However, while former Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson did not resign completely from the AFC, he did resign as General Secretary of the party following a fallout with A Partnership for National Unity (APNU).
His resignation came after the larger party once again bullied the AFC, this time to install its own candidate into the Vice Chairmanship position of the Region Four Regional Democratic Council (RDC). This happened despite an agreement with APNU that AFC would have its own candidate as the Vice Chair.