In a candid interview on The Starting Point podcast on Sunday, current Region Four Chairman Daniel Seeram, who recently broke ranks with the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), explained his decision to leave the party and align with the governing People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C).Seeram, a former army officer who ended his military career in 2019, said he entered politics with the intention of continuing his public service and was approached to do so through the PNC/R. He officially joined the party in January 2020. However, five years later, he says he no longer recognises the organisation he once believed in.“The PNC I joined in January 2020 is not the same PNC we see today,” Seeram stated.“It has become completely void of the standards and morals I once aligned with… It’s no longer attractive; in fact, it repels progressive thinking.”Seeram cited a long-simmering disconnect between his personal values and the party’s current leadership as the primary reason for his departure. He criticised what he described as an environment that sidelines bright and capable individuals while failing to articulate a coherent path for regional development—especially in Region Four, the country’s most populous administrative area.“We were left alone,” he explained, noting that under the PNC’s leadership, there was “nothing coming out of the party” in terms of vision or guidance for Region Four. He said that rather than working with the party hierarchy, he had to depend on partnerships within the region to get anything done.But it was the treatment of a long-standing party stalwart that pushed him over the edge.“The late Amna, who served the party for 50 years and gave her life to it—when I saw how she was treated in death by the current leadership, that was the final straw,” Seeram said sombrely. “It made me wonder: what is really going on, and what is there left to stay for?”While acknowledging that many inside the party remain silent, Seeram said he knows there are others who share his discontent.“A lot of people may not come out publicly, but deep down, they know what’s going on,” he added. “Even outsiders of the party could tell me more about what’s happening than some of our own.”He said many strong PNC members made efforts over the years to bridge the growing gap within the party, but these fell on “deaf ears”.Seeram’s decision to align himself with the PPP/C, he said, was not difficult given what he called the lack of a constructive opposition in the country.“We do not have an opposition,” he asserted. “There’s no vision, no plan. All we get are soundbites reacting to what the government says.”He praised the leadership of President Irfaan Ali and the development trajectory under the current administration.“Since taking office, all the successes I’ve had have been through collaboration with the government,” he said. “I could see the vision. I could see the direction. That made the decision quite easy.”Responding to recent criticism from WPA Executive Dr. David Hinds—who described individuals like Seeram who crossed over as “ethnic window dressing”—Seeram dismissed the remarks.“The behaviour speaks for itself,” he replied. “Are those the people you want sitting in positions of authority, representing us nationally or internationally? I leave that to the public to decide.”The post Daniel Seeram cites declining morals, visionless leadership as reasons for breaking ranks with the PNC/R appeared first on News Room Guyana.