Former Attorney General Anil Nandlall and People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Member of Parliament, Dr Vindhya Persaud did not secure the presidential candidature, but the pair is committed to seeing the Party to victory at the next General and Regional Elections.
Nandlall, in an interview shortly after the vote, said, “Naturally, I am disappointed. You don’t ever enter a contest thinking you will not win. I thought I would have won. But the Central Committee of the Party did not feel that way. We have all pledged our commitment to work towards the Party’s victory at the next election. And I’m committed to that… the process was that which we agreed on. It was fair because the collective agreed to it.”
For her part, Dr Persaud was one of three candidates to withdraw before the voting began, the others being Opposition Chief Whip Gail Teixeira and former Culture, Youth and Sport Minister, Dr Frank Anthony. Interviewed afterwards, she noted that the process was followed.
“I think at this point there was a process and the process was carried. And it allowed the 35-member committee to vote by secret ballot. And it allowed for two people to go towards that process. For me, the next step is looking at the elections and the Party winning.”
When asked why she withdrew from the race, Persaud declined to comment. She would only say that while there were varying factors, she would not delve into them.
Dr Anthony and Teixeira all declined to comment when they exited Freedom House after the voting, although when pressed, Teixeira noted that “withdrawal does not mean defeat”. She also added that the best man won and that she would be there to support Ali. Also present at Freedom House was former Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon.
Saturday’s election was conducted by way of secret ballot.
According to the PPP, in a statement released later on Saturday, the four other contenders congratulated Ali and pledged their support to working towards a PPP/C victory after the vote.
Dr Vindhya Persaud 
Former Attorney General Anil Nandlall
