Mass exodus to accelerate as more PNC/AFC members flee ‘chaos and confusion’ – Nandlall

Lack of vision and internal disarray are driving a growing wave of resignations from the Alliance For Change (AFC) and the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), according to Attorney General Anil Nandlall, SC, who believes the exodus will intensify as Guyana draws closer to the 2025 elections.

“These people are not just leaving—they’re running from chaos,” Nandlall said during his weekly Issues in the News commentary on Tuesday night.

“They no longer want to be associated with confusion, incompetence, and political stagnation.”

The Attorney General said that what began as a trickle has now snowballed into a sustained movement away from the opposition coalition, with defectors not only stepping away from their parties but openly endorsing President Irfaan Ali for a second term.

On Monday, Opposition MP and former PNC General Secretary Geeta Chandan-Edmond declared her support for the President from the floor of the National Assembly. Her resignation follows similar moves by other high-profile political figures including Lenox Shuman of the Liberty and Justice Party; The Citizenship Initiative’s Shazaam Ally; and senior PNC/R operatives Daniel Seeram, Samuel Sandy, and Dr. Richard Van-West Charles.

The latest to defect is David Daniels, the AFC’s Region Seven Chairman and founder of the Small Miners Association, who on Tuesday declared his support for President Ali and the governing People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C).

Months earlier, businessman and former parliamentarian James Bond also broke ranks with the PNC/R, publicly endorsing President Irfaan Ali and praising the PPP’s development agenda. Prominent Guyanese-Canadian civil rights lawyer Selwyn Pieters also declared his support for President Ali.

“This is not about party-switching for convenience. It’s about people recognising that the PPP has a vision for Guyana, and they want to be part of that transformation,” Nandlall argued.

He pointed to what he described as a “repellent culture” within the PNC that is pushing members out. “No sensible political group would want to form a coalition with what the PNC has become,” Nandlall said, asserting that the party is “demonstrating every day that it is not a rational or coherent political unit.”

The Attorney General said the movement will only grow as the elections draw nearer. “This will continue,” he warned. “Intelligent people cannot sit comfortably in that environment. Those who are brave enough are leaving—and they are embracing the PPP.”

Nandlall believes the PPP’s development track record is also fuelling the shift. “People want to be on the side of progress,” he said. “They’re seeing roads, housing, jobs, and a real plan for Guyana. And they know where that vision is coming from.”

The 2025 General and Regional Elections are scheduled for September 1.