The Alliance For Change (AFC) has criticised President Irfaan Ali’s remarks at the Enmore Martyrs commemoration, saying the Head of State used the occasion to advance a revisionist account of Guyana’s political history and the circumstances that led to the People’s Progressive Party/Civic’s (PPP/C) removal from office in 2015.
In a strongly worded statement, the AFC said a solemn event dedicated to honouring the five sugar workers killed during the 1948 Enmore strike was transformed into a political platform where the President sought to reinterpret one of the most significant electoral outcomes in Guyana’s modern history.
“The President’s attempt to portray the PPP as a perpetual victim of political circumstances is both misleading and insulting to the intelligence and lived experiences of Guyanese citizens,” the party said.
The Enmore Martyrs—Rambarran, Pooran, Lallabagee, Harry and Surujballi—were shot and killed by colonial police on June 16, 1948, during a strike by sugar workers demanding improved wages and working conditions.
The five sugar workers were formally recognised as the Enmore Martyrs in 1976 following international advocacy by the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) and acceptance by the Forbes Burnham-led People’s National Congress (PNC) government, which placed the observance on Guyana’s national calendar. Since then, the annual commemoration has become one of the country’s most important labour and historical observances, honouring the workers’ sacrifice in the struggle for improved working conditions and social justice.
The AFC contends that the significance of that historic sacrifice was overshadowed by efforts to recast the political circumstances surrounding the PPP/C’s defeat at the 2015 General and Regional Elections.
After governing Guyana continuously from 1992 to 2015, the PPP/C was voted out of office by the A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) coalition, ending 23 years of uninterrupted rule. The coalition’s victory was widely viewed as one of the most consequential political shifts in recent history.
According to the AFC, that outcome reflected widespread dissatisfaction among voters rather than any conspiracy or historical injustice.
“The truth is that in 2015, Guyanese from every race, region, religion, and social class united around a simple and powerful objective: to remove a government that had become synonymous with corruption, arrogance, cronyism, and abuse of power,” the party stated.
The AFC said voters had grown increasingly frustrated with what it described as opaque governance, unequal opportunities, weak accountability mechanisms and a widening disconnect between political leaders and ordinary citizens.
“The PPP was not removed from office because of conspiracy, manipulation, or historical injustice. It was removed because the Guyanese people had grown weary of rampant corruption, opaque governance, unequal opportunities, and the growing disconnect between the ruling elite and ordinary citizens,” the statement added.
The party argued that rather than engaging in honest reflection about the factors that contributed to its electoral defeat, the governing party continues to revisit that period through a partisan lens.
“Rather than reflecting honestly on the mistakes that led to that historic defeat, President Ali has chosen the path of revisionism. Such efforts cannot erase the facts, nor can they erase the memories of citizens who lived through that period and demanded change,” the AFC said.
The opposition party’s criticism comes amid renewed debate over governance and accountability in an oil-rich Guyana. Since commercial oil production began in December 2019, the country has generated more than US$8 billion in cumulative oil revenues and royalties, while national budgets have expanded to record levels, reaching G$1.558 trillion in 2026.
Despite that economic transformation, concerns continue to be raised by opposition parties, civil society groups and commentators about transparency, procurement practices, the cost of living, poverty, public spending and whether the benefits of the country’s oil wealth are reaching all Guyanese.
The AFC suggested that many of the concerns that motivated voters in 2015 remain relevant today.
“Today, as Guyana approaches another critical electoral season, many of the same concerns that motivated voters in 2015 have re-emerged,” the party stated, pointing to governance concerns, the concentration of power and questions surrounding the management of the country’s unprecedented revenues.
The party said the lesson of 2015 was that no government is beyond scrutiny and no administration is entitled to perpetual political support.
“The electorate spoke clearly in 2015, delivering a democratic verdict that reflected widespread dissatisfaction with the PPP’s record in government,” the AFC said.
More broadly, the party framed the debate as one about historical truth and democratic accountability.
“The AFC believes that democracy is strongest when governments are held accountable and when political leaders tell the truth about our history rather than attempting to rewrite it for partisan gain.“
The AFC maintained that political narratives cannot alter the verdict delivered by voters eleven years ago.
“President Ali may seek to revise the past, but he cannot change the verdict rendered by the Guyanese people in 2015,” the party stated. “Nor can he ignore the growing sentiment across the country that meaningful change may once again be necessary.“
The statement signals that the AFC intends to make accountability, governance and the interpretation of recent political history central issues heading into the next election cycle, while challenging what it views as efforts by the governing party to reshape public memory of why it lost office in the first place.
