–President Ali tells voters not to gamble with their future;
–VP Jagdeo tells voters Mohamed will vanish after losing elections

WHILE positioning his party as the only credible guardian of Guyana’s future, President Dr. Irfaan Ali joined Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo in delivering a stinging rebuke to those “one day” political parties, especially embattled businessman Azruddin Mohamed’s We Invest in Nationhood (WIN).

Speaking before a roaring crowd at his party’s rally in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), President Ali, on Saturday evening, said the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) is not a party that would insult voters’ dignity by offering them money for their vote or support.

A video surfaced on social media showing WIN’s Presidential candidate and United States (US)-sanctioned Mohamed distributing cash in an indigenous community and making certain promises.

“Do not put any community at risk by gambling with the blue crew or any other party like the APNU/AFC. They are one of the same. Do not put your communities at risk. Do not put this country at risk. Do not put this region at risk,” the President said.

Azruddin, along with his father, Nazar Mohamed and their businesses, namely Mohamed’s Enterprise, Hadi’s World and Team Mohamed’s Racing, on June 11, 2024, were sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which oversees sanctions against individuals and entities tied to illicit activities and hostile foreign governments.

President Ali said that Mohamed could have crippled the entire mining sector.

Further, PPP General Secretary and Guyana’s Vice-President Dr. Jagdeo urged residents not to accept money for their votes.

He told citizens, especially those in Amerindian communities, that when Mohamed loses the elections, he will leave them drifting in the wind.

“They will come to Bartica and to communities across the region…They will promise money if you support them. But after September 2nd, Azruddin Mohamed will disappear. Who will be there to pay the money? You’re not going to get your money,” he said.

Dr. Jagdeo was referencing the incident involving a key organiser of WIN violently assaulting a woman over alleged payment for attending a WIN event.

“Don’t let your village on September 2nd be considered a pariah village,” he said, adding: “We are the only party that did what we said… we reject those who divide our people… we’re the only national party in this country, a party that brings together people of every race.”