Aubrey Norton leading nomination nods for PNCR leadership

…endorsements do not win elections – Harmon camp
…as APNU/AFC Chief Whip calls for name, photo to be removed from campaign banners

The race for the leadership of the People’s National Congress Reform party (PNCR) got underway on Thursday, and party executive Aubrey Norton is leading the nominations, having reportedly garnered more than 50 per cent of the endorsements submitted thus far.

PNC groups from across the country have begun submitting their nominations in support of the candidates who are contending for various leadership posts in the party. These include Leader, Chairman, Vice Chair, Treasurer, and 15 executives for Regional and District Secretaries.
According to General Secretary of the party, Amna Ally, the nominations process will run until today, then it will close off.
However, Guyana Times understands that Norton has already racked up support and endorsements from most of the party’s groups as well as from senior party members.
When contacted on Thursday, Norton indicated that the overwhelming support has put him ahead of his contenders – Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon and PNC Executive Richard Van West-Charles – for the party’s leadership post.
“From the information I’m getting, I have more than 80 per cent of the nominations… supporting me thus far. I’m doing extremely well in the nominations,” he related, noting that his campaign had seen him engaging the party’s support base across various regions.

In fact, he has received the support of most of the PNC groups in Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) – the largest voting district – and Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) – his home region.
Norton, who has dubbed himself the front-runner for this post, and had anticipated leading the race, reiterated his confidence in emerging as the next PNCR Leader at the upcoming Biennial Congress on December 11.
“Yes. I’m confident I will win the party’s leadership,” he declared to this newspaper.

Harmon camp
Meanwhile, Harmon, who himself has a large following among senior party members, on Thursday evening announced that if he becomes Leader, then he would appoint Opposition Member of Parliament Ganesh Mahipaul as the new General Secretary of the PNCR.

Earlier on Thursday, Mahipaul had stated in a Facebook post that nominations do not win elections. He recalled that when he ran for the Central Executive Committee (CEC) seat for Region Three (Essequibo Islands–West Demerara), he had only received two nominations while his contender got 21.
“…but you know what? At the elections, I won the seat with 97 delegates voting for me. My opponent got 62 votes. I say that to say, nominations don’t win elections. The race is not for the swift, but for those that can endure it to the end,” he posited.
Moreover, Harmon also published several posters on his Facebook page featuring several other party members who have endorsed his candidacy. Those include several Parliamentarians, namely: Geeta Chandan-Edmond, Jermaine Figueira, Dawn Hastings-Williams, Dr Karen Cummings, Natasha Singh-Lewis, Nima Flue-Bess, Dinesh Jaiprashad, Maureen Philadelphia, Coretta McDonald, Annette Ferguson and Opposition Chief Whip Christopher Jones.

Remove my name
But Jones, who is the Opposition Chief Whip, took to his social media page on Thursday to indicate that he has not endorsed any of the candidates as yet, and asked that his name and photo be removed from campaign banners.

“I wish to clarify that I did not give consent for my image to be used on, or form part of the campaign for, either Comrade Norton or Comrade Harmon’s election as Party Leader. As such, it is concerning to note that an image of myself, along with others, is circulating on social media, giving the impression that I have endorsed Comrade Harmon, which I have not… I therefore humbly request that this misunderstanding be corrected by the relevant parties, and that my image be removed from Comrade Harmon’s campaign poster,” Jones stated in his Facebook post.
The Opposition Chief Whip went on to note that he would make his endorsement of a candidate at his “convenience and a time of my choosing.”
On the other hand, there has been no word from Dr Van West-Charles, who has also been on the ground to rally PNCR supporters. Several attempts by this publication to contact him on Thursday were futile.
However, it was reported that he has received nominations from certain party groups.
Only last week, Van West-Charles had called for GS Ally to recuse herself from the post to allow for transparency and accountability in the election process. He had also alleged there were efforts by some to sway the PNCR membership to vote in a particular manner.
In addition to the PNCR leadership, party members will also be electing a new Chairman, since it was reported that current Chairperson, Volda Lawrence, might not be contending for the post, despite being nominated as a candidate at the December 11 Congress.
When contacted on Thursday, Lawrence declined to comment.
Other candidates for the Chairmanship post include: Christopher Jones, Simona Broomes, Roysdale Forde, Shurwayne Holder and Amanza Walton-Desir.
The PNCR – the leading party in the A Partnership for National Unity faction of the APNU/AFC Coalition Opposition – has been embroiled in an internal divisive power struggle since the party’s loss at the 2020 General and Regional Elections.
Hence, there was mounting pressure for Congress to be held to elect new leadership, including incumbent PNCR Leader, former President David Granger, who will not be contesting for the post.
At the party’s last biennial congress in 2018, Granger was reelected leader after the post was uncontested. (G8)