Dear Editor,
The PPP holds its Congress this weekend to choose the members of the central committee that in turn will select the executive committee which in turn chooses the leader (General Secretary) and executive secretary, as well as other leadership positions. The Congress is a gathering of delegates from around the country.
But as revealed to me, the Congress and the entire system of choosing the central committee and other committees as well as holders of leadership titles is criticized by party supporters and members as being undemocratic. It is time for the party to democratize the selection of its leadership with one person one vote in an open transparent process.
It is the delegates who vote to elect the central committee, but I am told the delegates themselves are not always democratically elected. They are not a true reflection of the choice of the membership of communities or party groups because of a rigged system of membership. And some communities have more delegates than others. Often, the delegates are handpicked or at times party groups are randomly formed to get accreditation to send a delegate to Congress with the objective of voting for certain individuals who encouraged the group’s formation.
At times, influential persons go around and give instructions to the delegates, who are beholden to certain individuals, on how to vote. The entire process is subjected to some kind of undue influence of powerful figures as revealed to me by party insiders and those who have attended previous Congresses. In short, the delegate system, as used by the PPP, PNC, and AFC, is not democratic and should be changed to one that allows for a one person one vote principle, as used by the Democratic and Republican parties in the US.
Democracy is about one person one vote as used in the US and other mature democracies. In the US, party members vote to select delegates who will attend the convention to choose the presidential nominee.
This is a more democratic system that prevents fraud in delegate selection. Alternatively, the parties can have a direct election to choose their leaders and executive members as in Trinidad. Basdeo Panday introduced the one person one vote system among its members in the 1990s.
It was subsequently copied by Dr Keith Rowley in the PNM and Winston Dookeran in the COP. One person one vote will eliminate abuse. It will also reduce manipulation as happened, for example, when PNC delegates twice cheated a candidate for the leadership.
It is time for the PPP and all parties to move beyond the delegate system and ensure that every single party member has an equal say in how their leaders, executives, and presidential nominees are chosen. Those elected under this system will be truly representative of the party.
Yours faithfully,
Vishnu Bisram
