AFC leader Nigel Hughes said his party did agree to PNC leader Aubrey Norton as the Presidential candidate for a possible APNU+AFC coalition for the 2025 elections, but accepting Mr. Norton came with certain “conditions” that were ultimately shut down.
“The AFC accepted APNU’s nominee for presidential candidate, a major step forward for compromise,” Mr. Hughes said during a party press conference on Friday.
Later, he added, “One of the proposals we did make included him [Norton] in that position, and that proposal with the conditions was not accepted.”
The conditions were not detailed on Friday.
AFC did not demand Presidential spot in coalition but withheld support for Norton – Hughes
However, it was previously reported that the AFC was willing to accept APNU’s presidential candidate but wanted more than half of the cabinet positions as a way of balancing decision-making responsibilities. However, APNU has not budged from its position of a 70/30 split, with AFC getting the lower share.
The AFC has also been pushing for a “consensus candidate,” that is, someone seen as more electable than Mr. Norton. Earlier this week, Hughes clarified that the AFC has not demanded that it be given the Presidential candidate spot in a possible coalition with APNU, but maintained that the AFC wants the consensus candidate instead of Norton Norton.
“The AFC has proposed multiple independent and qualified Guyanese as potential consensus candidates, including former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Vice President Carl Greenidge, whose credentials and integrity are beyond reproach. None of these proposals was accepted by APNU, and it is a matter of public record that there was only one party that insisted on a specific candidate without compromise. That insistence, not any action by the AFC, has hindered meaningful progress toward unity,” the statement issued by Mr. Hughes noted.
“We have a long history of putting any suitable candidate that we feel will enhance our electoral prospects as our presidential candidate,” AFC Chairman David Patterson said on Friday, reflecting on the decision to put David Granger as the coalition’s presidential pick years ago.
APNU and AFC held government office between 2015 and 2020 as a coalition; they had been engaged in talks to revive the alliance ahead of this year’s general elections. However, multiple sources suggest the talks collapsed over disagreements about the presidential candidate, the allocation of parliamentary seats, and ministerial portfolios.
At Friday’s press conference, Hughes said his party was “serious and sincere” about the coalition talks as part of efforts to promote national unity. He said the AFC did not “insist on positions” but rather, on principles.
He also revealed that the AFC proposed that civil society should be included in the coalition’s cabinet, and that the leader of the coalition’s list of candidates should be an individual chosen by both the AFC and APNU.
The post Coalition talks: AFC had certain ‘conditions’ to accept Norton as Presidential candidate- Hughes appeared first on News Room Guyana.
