• awaits New Assembly to shape PPP strategy

AS the unanswered questions about the ties between Venezuela and U.S.-sanctioned Azruddin Mohamed remain, People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, has stated that his government will determine its parliamentary strategy once the new National Assembly is configured.

During a press conference on Thursday at Freedom House, Dr. Jagdeo said unlike the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), which has historically aligned on Guyana’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, Mohamed’s political party, We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) is “transactional” and raises many concerns.
Based on the Statement of Polls (SOPs), it is likely that the WIN party leader will be the opposition leader.

Dr. Jagdeo said: “There was room always for collaboration on national issues with APNU historically because we tended to have a more patriotic position. We always saw the territorial integrity and sovereignty of our country as inviolable. And I think we had a common understanding on that. I’m not so sure about the WIN party. They’re transactional; the link with Maduro is still not fully explored. They refuse to answer why the father went into the embassy up to now, and they got away with it.”

Dr. Jagdeo, the PPP’s General Secretary who also serves as Guyana’s Vice-President, previously said that the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd’s summoning of the Venezuelan Ambassador, was not because an “ordinary citizen” was going to the embassy but because of the previous alarms raised by members of the United States (US) Congress.

The connection between Mohamed, his son Azruddin, who was also sanctioned by the U.S. and was a presidential hopeful and Venezuela was first flagged by members of the United States Congress.

Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar said, “We remain deeply concerned about efforts to undermine democracy in Guyana… Individuals sanctioned for illicit activities must not be allowed to jeopardise this vital relationship.”

Meanwhile, Congressman Carlos Gimenez accused the Maduro regime of backing “pro-Maduro puppet candidate, Azruddin Mohamed,” pointing to his status as an individual sanctioned by OFAC.

Recalling these alarms raised by members of the U.S congress, Dr Jagdeo said that they would not have made such pronouncements without thorough briefings from their respective intelligence agencies.

After Minister Todd’s revelations, Azruddin, in a statement issued on the Team Mohamed’s Facebook page, denied visiting the Venezuelan Embassy. He also denied applying for a visa to travel to Venezuela.

In June 2024, OFAC sanctioned Nazar, his son Azruddin, and their businesses, Mohamed’s Enterprise, Hadi’s World, and Team Mohamed’s Racing, alleging that between 2019 and 2023 they had under-declared over 10,000 kilogrammes of gold exports, defrauding Guyana of more than US$50 million in taxes.

Azruddin, now the public face of his newly formed WIN political party, has been repeatedly linked by U.S. officials to illicit gold smuggling and money laundering operations tied to Venezuela.

With Guyana’s ongoing case before the International Court of Justice, and national elections approaching, the government had reaffirmed that it would remain vigilant and proactive to prevent any external attempt to destabilise the nation.

This also comes at a time when the U.S. has intensified its criticisms of the Maduro regime, which has been accused of perpetuating narco-terror in the region.