THE Mohameds will have their day in a U.S. courtroom and, in time, before a Guyanese judge as well. When that moment arrives, no amount of social media theatrics will make the slightest difference. It may disappoint those who are tempted to believe otherwise, but the PPP/C, no matter what illusions some may harbour, holds not an ounce of sway over the workings of the American legal system.

Struggling to grasp the implications of “United States vs. Nazar and Azruddin Mohamed” does not render the matter trivial, nor does it justify its dismissal. Legal briefs are written in the language of law, not with the easy clarity of newspaper columns, a reality that makes them no less consequential.

As I write, Azruddin is feigning ignorance as to why he and his party are being treated as if they are radioactive. He is particularly ruffled that his party’s candidate, Mark Goring, did not win the position as Chairman for Region Ten.

“I don’t know why all of these parties are trying to work together to get WIN out,” a befuddled Azruddin told News Source Guyana.

Azruddin should spend less time in his half-a-million-dollar air-conditioned Lamborghini and more time outside with the Guyanese who are working tirelessly to move our country forward. Instead of complimenting President Irfaan Ali and his administration on a job well done with the construction of the Bharrat Jagdeo Demerara River Bridge, Azruddin’s sister, Hana Khamelia, the toxic mouthpiece of Team Mohamed, chose instead to take umbrage with the naming of the bridge.

No one, as far as I can tell, fears Azruddin’s ideas; there aren’t any. He has no track record of leadership or service. How about his programmes and initiatives? Zilch. Has he built a bridge, a road, a house or an outhouse? He has not even flushed a public toilet in his life.

Hours after the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida indicted Azruddin, his sister screamed political persecution. According to U.S. records, 21,304 non-U.S. citizens (i.e. foreign nationals) were sentenced in federal courts in 2024 alone for cases involving immigration violations, drug trafficking, fraud, money laundering, and firearms offences. Most of these foreign nationals are from Latin American countries. What Team Mohamed fails to understand is that Azruddin is just another number. The PPP/C is not a bogeyman. The people of Guyana are not easily fooled.

For the last 18 months, my day job has been to write and edit stories about government programmes, initiatives and policies. Our team follows ministers of government as they go about addressing the needs of ordinary Guyanese. I have reviewed thousands of photos and hours of video of ministers on the ground in hinterland and coastal communities. At no point in time have I ever seen a PPP/C minister or an elected PNC/APNU member, for that matter, walking around as if they are a billboard for luxury brands.

Azruddin, on the other hand, struts his stuff like a peacock on social media platforms. He is nothing but an empty flexer. It astonishes me that a great deal of people don’t see it that way. Two months ago, an imam in Georgetown endorsed President Irfaan Ali for a second term. The imam detailed his experience when, months earlier, he tried to visit the U.S. on a valid visa. He said that U.S. immigration officials in New York questioned him about his relationship with the Mohameds. His visa was subsequently cancelled, and he was put on the next flight back to Guyana.

That particular imam was subjected to a withering public rebuke by Hana Khamelia herself. On her Facebook page, she set out to embarrass him, posting photos taken before the U.S. sanctioned her brother. The images show the imam posing inside Azruddin’s extravagant mansion, where marble floors and gilded gold ceilings glisten under opulent chandeliers, a setting that all but shouts privilege.

As a pointed contrast to her brother’s display of wealth, Khamelia inserted a photo of the imam delivering the Friday sermon in a space that is clearly well-worn and unadorned, its plainness underscoring simplicity.

When another imam stepped up to endorse President Ali, he too came in for a severe public reprimand that slipped dangerously into slander. Uninterested in facts, Azruddin’s sister accused him of living rent-free in her grandma’s house. This particular imam took to Facebook to defend his character and demand an apology.

It came as a surprise to me when, last Tuesday, Azruddin’s sister urged the Muslim community to rally behind her brother, claiming that he is being persecuted and quoting the Prophet Muhammad, “When a single limb is wounded, the whole body feels the pain.”

It was a cynical attempt by her to invoke religion as a shield for conduct that cannot be defended on religious grounds. Azruddin is not on trial for his faith; he was indicted for large-scale gold fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering, brought against him by the United States after a meticulous investigation supported by forensic evidence. Pretending these charges are acts of religious oppression is a ploy, one designed to distract, divide, and deflect from the facts that matter most.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.