Dr Vindhya Persaud’s email: Rohee says members can “agree to disagree”

In wake of criticism from one of its members, Dr Vindhya Persaud about it not entering Parliament, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) said party members can agree to disagree.

In an email addressed to several of her colleagues, Dr Persaud strongly expressed her disagreement with the Party’s plan to protest whilst the 11th Parliament was being convened.

The former Member of Parliament (MP) and current Head of the Guyana Hindu Dharmic Sabha, which represents a major part of the PPP/C’s constituency, argued that previous protest actions organised by the Party gained minimal support from the public and the PPP/C’s support base.

She added that the protests are not yielding the desired results. Dr Persaud, in the email, claimed that she advised the Party against the picketing exercise and urged them to participate in the opening of the Parliament. “I would like to advice for the picketing exercise planned for June 10.

My response comes against a backdrop of recent happenings…I strongly urge, as I did previously at our meeting, that we go to Parliament and represent our support base as a formidable opposition,” an excerpt from the email read.

Rohee, when questioned by media operatives about the Party’s position on the former MP’s stance, disclosed that the Party had a discussion with Dr Persaud and they have settled the matter, reaching an agreement where it was agreed that party members can disagree on certain issues.

“We conveyed to her our dissatisfaction with the forum she chose to express her views and not with the content…she conceded that the forum was not an appropriate one, but she held on to the fact that she was convinced of what she said was a conviction…so I told her that, we have an agreement…where we can agree to disagree,” Rohee explained.

But Dr Persaud, in a subsequent interview with this publication disclosed that the email was not meant for the public domain and appeared unsure of how the email was leaked. Nonetheless, in the letter, Dr Persaud mentioned a number of issues she believed contributed to the party’s failure at the May 11 polls.

When questioned about the contents of the email, Dr Persaud insisted that the letter was not meant for the public and therefore she will not be making any public pronouncement on the matter. “I would just like to say that that email was meant for the internal party…it was meant for the internal party and I am not commenting on anything else,” she maintained.

Clinton Urling, another PPP/C member, had several issues with the functioning of the Party. Urling, who recently joined the PPP/C, declared that the Party will be better off without the involvement of former President and Executive Member Bharrat Jagdeo.

In response to his statements, Rohee had also indicated that the forum used to express those views were inappropriate.

Rohee reiterated that if any PPP/C member has an issue with the Party, there is an established system in which they can voice their concerns internally, rather than doing the unprofessional thing by going public with their opinions.