Nomination Day…Enthusiastic supporters swarm City Hall, PPP/C executives chide Moses

Oct 28, 2011 News

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It is more than official. The last leg of the Guyana’s General and Regional Elections 2011 is

off and running. And the winner seems not clear.
It was a day when a sea of colours dominated by the red, black, yellow and green virtually illuminated downtown Georgetown and despite the heavy police presence and barriers, some supporters managed to breach the gates and swamp City Hall, all to the throbbing sounds of music.
When the dust had settled, eight parties on Nomination Day had submitted their lists of candidates, with more questions than answers for the political analysts who would sure be hitting the TV channels and letter pages to place their spin on proceedings.
As early as today, it is expected that Guyana will know which parties’ submissions were done in accordance with requirements.
It was unclear which of the larger parties made the most impact- the ruling People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) with the red, yellow and black colours and a powerhouse list of supporters; A Partnership For National Unity (APNU) with its hundreds of energised supporters, or the Alliance For Change which sported a number of new and influential faces.
Hundreds lined the streets of the city, especially around City Hall, to view the ceremonial procession that comes every five years to Guyana.
From Freedom House, PPP/C headquarters, one man on a wheelchair waving his flag and decked out with party’s bandanna was among the crowd. A truck with large speakers, by now a prominent fixture of party rallies and meetings, led the procession.
Behind the hundreds, a number of pushcart music vendors blared the ‘Cup’ song of the party.
The crowd wended its way east to Camp Street where it turned south and then west into Regent Street.
At least one school boy with his notebook folded into binoculars waited impatiently, oblivious to the hot sun, for the crowd.
But it was far from over. After City Hall, the PPP/C contingent made its way back to Freedom House where President Jagdeo and other

speakers, including Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, focused attention on Moses Nagamootoo, a former Executive Member, who resigned this week from the party, and has now teamed up with the AFC.
According to Jagdeo, Nagamootoo was an opportunist who lied that he was destined to lead the PPP/C. After not finding his way, he pulled out and is now with the AFC.
A few blocks north from Freedom House, at Parade Ground on Middle Street, the AFC contingent was waiting for its senior candidates to come
The first to arrive was Presidential Candidate, Khemraj Ramjattan and his wife, Sita, who were swamped by enthusiastic members and supporters.
But he was on the day second best to Nagamootoo, whose arrival prompted a huge roar of excitement from the crowd with hugs and kisses raining.
Soon, his jacket went off. It was serious business. The group, numbering a few hundreds, was off south along Carmichael Street.
It was about an hour later, just after 15:00 hrs, that the procession arrived at City Hall. The crowd waited for awhile as its Prime Ministerial Candidate, Raphael Trotman, arrived. There were more kisses to come.
Another senior AFC member, Nigel Hughes, arrived to a rousing welcome.
But the AFC group was made to wait for awhile.
Over the past few weeks, she was embroiled in a legal fight with former TUF leader, Manzoor Nadir, over the TUF, one of Guyana’s oldest parties. Despite a public fight in which she was ejected from the party’s headquarters, Valerie Garrido-Lowe, who burst on to the political scene earlier this year, refused to stand down, insisting she remains leader of the TUF.
She announced earlier this week her endorsement to the AFC.
The problem was another faction of the TUF yesterday also submitted a list of candidates.
Lowe made her dramatic arrival in a taxi, followed by a small canter truck and a handful of supporters.
The roar from the AFC faithful welcomed her.
But the AFC’s arrival was a mere drum-roll for what happened next.
Standing in front of City Hall around 16:00 hrs, the noise from upper Regent Street grew louder by the minute.
Several SUVs, cars and motor-cycles led and followed the large contingent.

On one truck, two persons waving flags flirted with danger, gyrating to the music and attempting to keep their balance at the same time.
The sea of green and banners announced the APNU delegation’s imminent arrival. And what a delegation it was.
Presidential Candidate David Granger and his running mate, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine, of the Working People’s Alliance, were protectively surrounded. The roar went up and for about two blocks the human wave surged forward.
Workers, just clocking off from the 16:00hrs shift, stood and took in the scenes in disbelief.
But the APNU supporters were forced to wait behind barriers as the AFC completed its business of dealing with the Guyana Elections Commission at City Hall.
A deafening roar went up again as leader of the Justice For All Party, TV host, Chandranarine ‘C.N.’ Sharma joined the APNU masses.
In front of City Hall compound, supporters and candidates hemmed in by vehicles and pushed by workers and passersby could do little but surge forward. Consequently, the barriers in front of City Hall meant nothing and police ranks and City Police watched helplessly as the crowd burst into the compound.
In the midst of those being pushed was boss of City Hall, Mayor Hamilton Green, also a senior official of the PNCR, and an APNU member.

Upstairs in the corridors of City Hall, one man waving a flag whipped the crowd downstairs in the compound into a frenzy.
It would be one of the crowning sights of the day as sun began to set.
Today, GECOM will be announcing which of the eight parties that submitted their lists of candidates for elections set for November 28th, would have met the criteria.

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