Partnership for National Unity (APNU) has been formally launched with a promise to revitalise the economy and ensure development for all.
Top officials of the opposition coalition − A Partnership for National Unity − lead the gathering at its launching at the Ocean View International Hotel in the national song, "Let us co-operate for Guyana"
Leaders of the new grouping unveiled their plans for this country, should they be elected into office, before a packed Convention Centre of the Ocean View International Hotel, Liliendaal, ECD on July 15.
Outlining the partnership’s shared vision of a brighter future for Guyana, former finance minister Carl Greenidge said APNU will develop the right policies, utilise skills and create an environment conducive to business, with well-paying jobs in a stable and fair industrial climate.
“The road ahead with APNU involves arrangements for the extensive discussion of the challenges and the forging of consensuses on policy. It is a road involving the full participation of our human resources to positions based on merit… It is an inclusive approach that seeks to share ideas and prosperity, as well as access to resources,” Greenidge declared. According to him, APNU’s approach will also shy away from all forms of discrimination.
“On such a road, we will seek to realise and release the ‘can do’ spirit of Guyanese, that spirit which distinguishes us as individuals and teams, but which we have yet to consistently bring to bear as a people in confronting the political and socio-economic challenges,” he further stated. The PNCR member is adamant that an APNU-led administration will ensure that ‘no citizen is left behind.’
Greenidge is of the opinion that constitutional reform plays a critical role in the promotion of the rights of the ‘can do’ Guyanese. As such, he revealed that the group of political parties will seek to make several constitutional amendments, which include the separation of the functions of head of state from those of head of government, establishing a Bi-Cameral Parliament, enshrining shared governance in the constitution, setting a fixed date for the holding of elections, as well as strict separation of powers between the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary.
On the issue of economic policies, Greenidge’s area of expertise, the former finance minister announced that an APNU government will establish and nurture a vibrant, flexible and modern economy, combining skill-intensive and natural resource-based development.
National unity and reconciliation
And with the movement now gaining momentum, two other political parties and a civil society group have been added to the coalition. These are the Guyana People’s Partnership (GPP), Guyana National Congress (GNC) and the Guyana Association of Local Authorities respectively (GALA).
“We are today a wider, more diverse partnership than we were last week. We are not yet nearly as diverse and as wide as we need to be. We know this, APNU is a dynamic, expanding partnership; together we must and will create a genuinely inclusive partnership where all constituencies can enter and represent themselves,” said a very positive WPA Co-Leader Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine.
He added that the partnership will make room for women across the board to be actively involved in the decision-making processes of the merger. “In the months to come, our partnership must make room for women across race and class; women organized in their own interests: mother’s groups, anti-violence activists, lawyers, teachers and trade unionists, businesswomen, vendors, security guards, church groups, women of the coasts and women of the hinterland coming to the partnership and enrich our collective thinking, enlarge our collective vision, and deepen our collective humanity,” said Roopnaraine. That aside, he urged Guyanese to be part and parcel of the partnership, for they will reap much benefits in the long run. He said young people and pensioners, as well as the business community, are all going to be the beneficiaries of a viable and productive society that will inevitably breathe progress.
Meanwhile, the group’s presidential candidate, David Granger, continued with similar passion to justify the option of shared governance, declaring that the winner-take-all political culture has become “dangerously dysfunctional.” “… the tide of ideas in Guyanese politics has turned. Today, the 15th of July, marks the birthday of the new politics, a birth begotten by A Partnership for National Unity. We are more than a party, we are a movement,” Granger declared as he, too, celebrated his birth anniversary. Granger turned 66 on Friday.
The coalition is still to announce its prime ministerial candidate and its list of representatives. The manifesto is also still outstanding. APNU has, nonetheless, shifted into high speed gear, as it intends to hold three political rallies this month, starting with Linden on the 22nd, New Amsterdam on the 23rd, and finally at the Square of the Revolution in Georgetown on July 29. Those in attendance at the culturally filled activity included members of the diplomatic corps and the National Assembly.
