Either she is a masterful politician, clever enough to have been aligning poultry while biding her time to the end of the Twelfth Parliament, or Amanza Walton Desir is lying. She does not have all her ducks in a row and may not satisfy all the requirements for Nomination Day in less than a month, July 14.
As has been widely publicized, Walton-Desir has left the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR). She has formed her own party, Forward Guyana. During a press conference yesterday where she announced the formation of her new party, Walton-Desir told reporters, at least three times, that her “ducks are in a row.”
Having one’s ducks in a row in the context of contesting General and Regional Elections in Guyana takes hard work, dedication, and plenty, plenty of support. It means having adequate campaign financing, securing candidates, gathering 175 signatures for each candidate in geographic and regional, as well as 330 signatures for top-up. Noteworthy is the fact that backers cannot be duplicated. Meaning, if Tom Jones appears on Forward Guyana’s list of backers he cannot then appear on another party’s list.
To have all of the above ducks secured and, in a row, Walton-Desir would have had to have known for at least 4-6 months that she would abandon the troops, but waited for the last minute.
It has been confirmed that Walton-Desir met with PNCR Leader Aubrey Norton as recently as June 7. During that meeting, she asked what role she would play in the campaign and after the election, be it in government or opposition. Persons in the PNCR confirmed that Walton-Desir believed she deserved nothing less than a prime ministerial or presidential candidacy; after all, “she dresses well.”
Despite the fact that she enjoyed legal practice that predates her stint in parliament, the major political value of Walton-Desir, as identified by some of her peers with whom this author spoke, is the image factor. She speaks well and her attire, even in casual clothing, is never lacking.
Word in Congress Place is that Walton-Desir decided to take her leap of faith when she realized that Norton was not going to entertain her at the level she thinks she deserves. The eloquent sister must have felt even more jilted when news broke about Juretha Fernandes being the chosen one to run alongside Opposition Leader, Aubrey Norton. Fernandes is another one who left her party behind to pursue her ambitions but, as the young people would say, Fernandes levelled up.
Back to Desir. Many believe she acted hastily and her political future is now hinged on coalescing with other nescient or newly formed parties. But this author is willing to explore the possibility that she has indeed been plotting her exit from a PNCR now regarded as a shell of its former self.
While the PNCR, a longstanding party, has been struggling to secure funding, Walton-Desir could have alternate sources; sources who believe in her vision.
She could have been travelling to the various regions across Guyana, including the far-flung areas like Region One, to secure backers for her list. She might have been courting PNCR members to follow her exit, just like the biblical stories we were told. Her manifesto could be printed. And she could have been doing all of this while keeping it quiet in a society like the one in which we live.
Guyana can very well be on the brink of witnessing the “new dawn” ushered in by Walton-Desir’s Forward Guyana, “a movement built not on ego or an entitlement but on principle,” as she eloquently described.
The youth will finally be given the chance to experience “purpose before power” and “people-centered development “regardless of race, class, religion or region. It’s a new dawn.”
Or, Walton-Desir bluffed, her ducks are not in a row, some are missing, and a few might be pigeons.