The Odd Couple

Oct 12, 2025 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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(Kaieteur News) – Somewhere in the smoky backrooms of Guyanese politics—between the last bottle of El Dorado and the next declaration of democracy—two sworn enemies met eyes across the table. It wasn’t love at first sight. It wasn’t even mutual respect. It was something much deeper, much more sacred. It was self-preservation.

We’re talking about the great Guyanese political soap opera — “The PNCR and the PPPC: Till Death (or Power Loss) Do Us Part.” A long-running series, with new episodes released every election cycle, in which the protagonists passionately hate each other in public, only to sneak off together to plot the downfall of anyone new, fresh, or remotely independent.

And the latest episode? Region 10. Starring the upstart WIN party— “We Invest in Nationhood,” though these days it might as well stand for “We’re In for Nonsense”—because nonsense is exactly what greeted them. They won the most votes in Region 10, which, in any respectable democracy, should mean something. But in Guyana, democracy is not a destination; it’s more like a buffet. Everyone picks what they want.

Now, let’s not forget the precedent. Back in 1994, Hamilton Green’s Good and Green Georgetown (GGG) party pulled off the political version of a miracle—beating both the PNC and the PPP in the municipal elections. It was a shock.

And here’s the thing—Desmond Hoyte, the PNC leader at the time, accepted defeat. He said the party with the most votes should take the mayorship. That’s right: he chose democracy over pettiness. In Guyanese politics, that’s like choosing salad over pepperpot at Christmas. Unheard of.

Fast-forward thirty years. The wheel of democracy has turned into a Ferris wheel—going round and round but never actually moving forward. The WIN party, after hustling and sweating for votes, thought they had earned their seat at the grown-ups’ table. But no. When they arrived at the Region 10 boardroom, they found the PNC and PPP combining to deny WIN the Chairmanship of both Regions.

And just like that, the so-called archrivals were back in each other’s arms. You could almost hear the love theme swelling in the background.

The PNCR and PPPC relationship is truly something for the history books. Think of it as The Odd Couple, but instead of Felix and Oscar, we have two parties that have spent decades calling each other corrupt, dictatorial, and unfit to govern… and yet, when a third party shows up and threatens their respective base, suddenly they’re holding hands and finishing each other’s sentences.

They are symbiotic twins—attached at the hip, but always fighting over who gets the better suit. One cannot exist without the other. If the PNC vanished tomorrow, the PPP would be in mourning by morning. “Who will we blame now?” they’d cry. “Who will we accuse of undermining democracy by rigging elections?

Meanwhile, WIN sits outside. They won the votes, but apparently did not get the  memo that in Guyana numbers are only meaningful when they’re convenient.

In Region 4, the PPPC got the most votes, and voilà—the Chairmanship was theirs. “Democracy prevails!” they declared. But in Region 7? When WIN took the lead, democracy suddenly developed a bad back. Couldn’t stand up that day. And in Region 10—well, democracy didn’t just stay home. It took a vacation.

Now, I’m not saying the PPP and PNC coordinated this. No, that would require communication, and anyone who’s watched Parliament knows that’s not their strong suit. What I’m saying is that somewhere, deep in their political DNA, lies a shared instinct—a reflex for survival. Whenever a new force emerges, they unite faster than you can say “coalition.”

They might fight bitterly over who gets the presidential palace, but if a third party so much as pokes its head into the tent, they’ll both grab the same broom to sweep it out.

It’s the Guyanese version of the Cold War. Two superpowers locked in eternal rivalry, united only by their fear of change. Because as long as there’s power to share and rivals to crush, these two will keep finding ways to turn democracy into performance art.

So, here’s to the PNCR and the PPPC—Guyana’s most enduring love-hate relationship. A political marriage held together not by affection, but by a mutual fear of being alone.

They may fight in public, but behind the scenes, they’re like two actors in the same tragicomedy—forever sharing the stage, forever pretending it’s not a duet.

And as for WIN? Well, they’ve learned the first rule of Guyanese politics: winning votes is easy. Winning acceptance is the real campaign.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

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• El Dorado, Guyanese politics, Peeping Tom, PNCR, PPPC

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