While the Alliance For Change (AFC) is singing the praises of the Cummingsburg Accord that brought it elections victory, a former executive member of the party is describing the agreement, three years later, as nothing more than a sham.
Former AFC Executive Sase Singh
According to former AFC Executive Sasenarine Singh, the Accord was marketed particularly to the youths as a forerunner to change. This change, Singh noted, was supposed to fulfill the wishes of youth.
“However, history has exposed what a sham that promise proved to be; because, in reality, the Cummingsburg Accord has been one of the most dishonest documents (and) was hijacked by some very insincere people who cared little about the youths of Guyana.
“It was more a document to facilitate some fat pensions and perks for some septuagenarians and octogenarians. To really talk about the Cummingsburg Accord, the entire situation must be given context. The way the Cummingsburg Accord was sold to the nation in 2015 was that it was going to be designed to reflect the wishes of the youths.”
Reflecting on his time spent campaigning with and for the AFC on the frontlines during the 2011 General and Regional elections, Singh noted that the youths wanted change and a more accountable government.
Singh also suggested that had the party’s co-founder, Sheila Holder, been alive today, she would have resisted an alliance with the People’s National Congress (PNC)- dominated APNU due to her independence of thought.
Praise
Earlier this week, the Alliance For Change (AFC) Public Relations Committee had hailed the agreement in the wake of its anniversary. Despite persistent analysis and criticism of the party’s passivity in matters ranging from unconstitutional appointments to massive loss of jobs in the sugar belt, the AFC maintained the accord’s usefulness.
“The Accord laid the foundation for the restoration of honour, dignity, credibility and unprecedented levels of accountability and transparency in executive governance in Guyana. The Cummingsburg Accord is, without question or debate, one of the most significant partnership and collaborative agreements in the Caribbean’s political history,” the party had claimed.
“The Cummingsburg Accord is a sunset agreement for 3 to 5 years. The three-year mark has been reached. Having achieved the initial objectives of the restoration of the rule of law and order in our beloved country, the party has been reviewing the accord as we work with all parties with shared interests to unlock Guyana’s true potential,” the AFC had continued.
There have been other criticisms of the Accord, including the fact that certain provisions were never followed. The Accord had designated responsibilities, such as domestic affairs and chairing of the Cabinet, to AFC executive Moses Nagamootoo, the Prime Minister.
Ever since these things did not materialise, the Prime Minister has always had to defend against claims that his role was ceremonial. In addition, Nagamootoo has, for some time, expressed the need for a revised agreement.
In April of last year, Nagamootoo had said that he was of the firm opinion that a renegotiation of the Cummingsburg Accord was in high order. He had noted that the agreement was supposed to be for a limited time duration and that when the Government was midterm, it should be reviewed.
Former AFC General Secretary and Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson had, in the past, complained that the day-to-day administration of the Accord has been problematic, especially at the local level.
