“I am interested in strong Government, strong leadership at City Hall” – Pres Ali

…says PPP/C aims to secure majority seats on Council at next LGE

President Dr Irfaan Ali on Monday declared that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) aims to secure a majority on the 30-seat Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC), arguing that the capital requires decisive leadership and stronger governance to drive development. His declaration comes as Guyana prepares to hold Local Government Elections (LGE) later this year. A date has not yet been announced for the elections; however, administrative preparations have already begun by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), and funding for the elections has also been allocated in the 2026 National Budget. Speaking at the official opening of Aubrey Barker Road, the President said his party is prepared to take responsibility for leading Georgetown as Guyana prepares for the next LGE and to elect leaders for the various Local Area Authorities (LAA) across the country. “I am interested in seeing a People’s Progressive Party Civic lead the city council. I am interested in seeing strong Government, strong leadership at City Hall. Don’t guess what I’m saying; my intentions are clear, and the intentions of the PPP/Civic are clearer than ever. We want a chance to run this city because the city deserves better than what it has today,” the President declared.
“Don’t second-guess that too; we will make it happen… It is time that we rise up and give the PPP/C that opportunity to lead the city. To lead the city in progress, prosperity, and to deliver good governance for the people of Georgetown. If Georgetown is to become the finest city, it will be under the People’s Progressive Party Civic city council.”
Over the past 10 years, the PPP/C has been making incremental inroads in its number of seats on the 30-seat Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC). At the last LGE in 2023, the PPP/C took 11 seats, marking a 450 per cent increase over the two seats the party previously won in the 2016 LGE. At the 2018 LGE, the party had won seven seats. The party also almost doubled its Proportional Representation votes from 6,719 in 2016 to 12,533 in 2023. Conversely, the PPP/C’s main political rival, the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), which has traditionally held controlling seats at the M&CC, has seen its influence decline. After gaining just over 30,000 PR votes in 2016 as a coalition under the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC), the party saw that number decline to 20,839 votes in 2023. Over the past few years under the PNCR ‘s management, the city has continuously struggled with a severe garbage situation, drainage issues and dilapidated roads. On Monday, President Ali highlighted the Government’s drive to see better management of the country’s capital city as he defended the Government’s recent decision to designate several city streets as public roads, noting that it was not politically motivated but part of a broader development agenda aimed at improving infrastructure and mobility.
“We are not taking roads for politics. We are designating roads as public roads in the cause of progress. We have no political interest in dispossessing any entity,” the President said. “We are not playing politics with potholes. We are not campaigning with congestion or grandstanding with gridlock. We are governing, and governance requires responsibility. It requires decisions. It requires standing on firm ground, and I don’t have the time to shift on sinking sand.”
President Ali argued that Georgetown cannot achieve its potential without modern infrastructure and effective administration. “If Georgetown is to become the finest city in the Caribbean, then its infrastructure must match that ambition. A modern city cannot run on broken roads. A growing economy cannot move on yesterday’s infrastructure,” he said. He further noted that more than 50 roads in Georgetown have been designated as public roads to accelerate maintenance and modernisation under the national development plan. “Our road networks must be modernised to accommodate exponential growth in motor vehicles, increase safety and enhance productivity,” he said. “More than fifty roads in the city have been designated as public roads, not merely to transfer responsibility but to accelerate modernisation under our national development agenda.” The President also pointed to challenges in drainage and infrastructure management, saying central Government intervention may be necessary where local systems fall short. “If they don’t want to open the koker and don’t want to maintain the drains, we will show the people of the city. We are ready to do it, and with their support, we will do it continuously,” he said. “To the people of Georgetown, we love you. To the streets of Georgetown, we will change you so that the people will love you too.”