Working People’s Alliance (WPA) Co-Leader David Hinds has thrown his full support behind the “scrapes” responsible for the recent wave of looting, destruction and terror that rocked the nation.

Hinds, speaking on both Tuesday and Wednesday, defiantly rejected national calls for calm and unity, lashing out instead at fellow opposition figures for urging peace.

He described Monday night’s riots not as criminal acts, but as a “transformative” uprising, and referred to the lawless destruction as “torches of freedom.”

The Alliance For Change (AFC) and several newly resurfaced opposition factions—including the ALP, V-PAC and TPM—issued a joint statement Wednesday urging a shift from criminalisation to the empowerment of so-called “scrapes”

Hinds went further, unapologetically embracing the chaos that unfolded across parts of the country and denouncing middle-class critics of the violence.

“What we saw on Monday night were torches of freedom,” Hinds declared during his Wednesday commentary ‘Politics 101.’

He referred to the fires and road blockages that swept through several communities following the death of 11-year-old Adriana Younge.

“They are not thugs. They are not scrape heads. They are young soldiers… They speak for me,” Hinds said.

“Scrapes” or “Scrape Head”, is a derogatory slang or insult often used to describe people who are involved in criminal activities or viewed by society as troublemakers or delinquents.

According to Online sources, it’s similar to calling someone “foolish” or “ignorant” in English, and most commonly comes from the idea of someone having a “scrapped” or empty head.

The professor drew sharp lines between the WPA and other opposition voices who have urged non-violence and national healing.

He took direct aim at prominent figures like AFC leader Nigel Hughes, Terrence Campbell and other opposition leaders, accusing them of betraying poor Black youth for political correctness.

“You all condemn the blocking of roads? Y’all go to hell!,” Hinds exclaimed. “You cannot want to say that our people are oppressed and when the oppressed decide to fight back… you’re telling them what they did was wrong.”

On Tuesday, Hinds had already stirred the pot  by stating bluntly that victims of looting and government “must take it in y’all behind,” while proclaiming his solidarity with the very youths being blamed for robbing stores and setting fire to property.

His comments, again, have triggered widespread condemnation, with politicians  accusing him of glorifying lawlessness and undermining efforts to restore peace.

But Hinds remains unrepentant, describing the unrest as “many more Monday nights to come as we trek through the Babylon system.”

His stance contrasts starkly with the message released by the AFC and its partners on Wednesday.

The opposition alliance while stopping short of condemning protests urged for a redirection of the energy behind the youth unrest into constructive nation-building.

“Many of us were once called ‘scrapes’. We know what it’s like to be dismissed… But we also know what it means to rise,” the AFC statement read.

“Now is the time to raise Guyana’s youth; not as weapons, but as architects of the nation’s future.”

Yet the group’s call for peace has been criticised for its silence on the harm caused during Monday’s events particularly to Chinese-owned businesses, schoolchildren and ordinary citizens caught in the crossfire of rioting.

Despite this, the AFC-led coalition insisted their statement was not a political maneuver, but “a united stand for national peace, justice, and transformation.”

Hinds, meanwhile, rejected any attempt to sanitise the revolt.

“I’m not condemning one African. I will not let them take my words and turn it into condemnation of my people. The looters? That’s not my business. I didn’t send them there,” Hinds said.

He added, ”No bullet shall stop us now.  If they don’t want to understand it, we will make them understand it. If they can’t hear, they will not feel! And they felt it on Monday night. There are many more Monday nights to come as we trek through the Babylon system.”

Following the illicit acts of persons who exploited a peaceful protest for their own self-interest, President Dr. Irfaan Ali has affirmed that justice will be served, as the perpetrators will be prosecuted in accordance with the law.
The Head of State made this known via a post on his social media page on Tuesday afternoon, when he noted that he had the difficult task of speaking to several persons who were harmed, robbed, and injured by criminal elements on Monday.

“I expressed our collective concern and love as law-abiding citizens. I assured them that those responsible for inflicting pain, harm, injury and damage would be prosecuted according to the law,” he said.

He went on to say that the pain of innocent women and children is the worst and hardest to imagine and indicated that some of the stories were troubling and horrific.

To this end, Dr. Ali assured those persons and their families support and commitment to ensuring that they, too, receive justice.

The government, in response to widespread violence, looting and destruction of property across the country, has enforced a public safety order to maintain law and order.

This order restricts public meetings, gatherings and processions in all ten administrative regions between 00:30 and 05:00 hours until further notice. However, these orders were lifted on Thursday.

This curfew was ordered after several roads across the country were blocked with debris and burned, businesses vandalised, and citizens attacked during the unrest.

The violent demonstrations erupted on Monday after it was announced that Adriana had died as a result of drowning, according to an official forensic autopsy.

The revelation sparked immediate, unlawful acts by groups who used the situation to engage in criminal behaviour.

Among the most disturbing incidents was an acid attack on three pupils and two teachers from the Chateau Margot Primary School on the East Coast Demerara. The victims were doused with a chemical substance, suspected to be acid, by two unidentified men on a motorcycle.

The Guyana Police Force has since launched a full investigation into the matter and is seeking the public’s help in identifying the suspects.

Additionally, several Chinese-owned supermarkets and major retailers, including Courts and Lucky Dollar, were looted during the unrest. Investigations are ongoing, and the police have pledged to arrest and charge all those found culpable.

On Wednesday, persons were hauled before the courts and remanded for looting and inciting public terror.