GEORGETOWN, Guyana – President Irfaan Ali Tuesday appealed to voters not to jeopardize the safety of the country amid concerns raised by the United States that it has “serious national security concerns about individuals’ in Guyana.
President Irfaan Ali delivering an early morning broadcast on Tuesday (CMC Photo)In an early morning broadcast, President Ali did not identify any one in particular to whom Washington has concerns, but his remarks are seen here as an apparent reference to the candidacy of billionaire businessman, Azruddin Mohamed, who remains sanctioned by Washington for alleged tax evasion and gold under-declaration.
Ali told viewers that Guyana’s relationship with the United States should not be put at risk.
“We must understand that one of our greatest threats is Venezuela. And to fight this threat, it requires diplomacy. It requires partnership. And one of our greatest partners is the United States.
“We can’t risk our relationship with the United States, who have already said to us that they have serious national security concerns about individual and individuals. One such individual believes that he can sacrifice the safety and security of an entire country for his self-interest,” Ali said.
“The choices are clear…our safety our stability, our transformation, it is fragile, but it is also strong once we make the right decisions consistently, the right decisions for our country, the right decisions for our families and the right decisions for our communities,” Ali said.
Last week, Mohamed, the presidential candidate of the newly-formed We Invest In Nationhood (WIN) political party, “over the past months, I have seen continuous efforts to attack my character, tarnish my name, and discredit my family. I strongly reject these actions”.
He urged voters to stay alert and take note of the ongoing political efforts to “undermine my credibility and hinder my campaign.
“These attacks are politically motivated, planned by the threatened PPP/C, and carried out by their associates to push false narratives,” he said, adding that since he announced that he would contest the general and regional elections, several tactics have been used against him. He said they include defamation of his family in the media, blocking his visits to indigenous communities, false accusations of tax evasion, and rape “and now reviving baseless murder allegations”.
In his broadcast, President Ali said that as the date for the September 1 regional and general election draws nearer, voters will be faced with clear choices.
“Our safety, our stability, our transformation, it is fragile. But it is also strong once we make the right decisions, consistently the right decisions for our country, the right decisions for our families, and the right decisions for our community”, Ali said, adding that citizens are rightfully concerned about their security and national security.
In the address, in which he outlined the achievements of Guyana since the ruling party came to office in 2020, Ali said that the government has been investing in the security architecture to make citizens safe, while working with the international partners to secure Guyana’s borders.
He predicted that the upcoming elections will be about leadership and understanding the needs of the country.
“A viable country is not like Christmas and Santa Claus walking around. A viable country is about strong policies, good leadership, consistent leadership, trusted leadership, and understanding of what is required to make our country great.
“Guyanese, many of you are also aware and rightly concerned about your security…that is why we are investing in security architecture to make you safe,” he said, adding that the government is working with its international partners “to secure our borders to ensure that we protect every square inch of our land against the aggression of Venezuela.
‘We have to ensure together, we build the eco system and the mechanism that will secure our country, through investment, through training for our men and women in uniform to ensure that they have better salaries….”
Ali also took the opportunity to criticize the opposition coalition, A Partnership for National Unity APNU) and the Alliance For Change (AFC), focusing on the five-year stint in government that ended in the controversial 2020 regional and general election.
He said the opposition parties have continue to fail to release plans or programs that are geared towards the future and instead are back to offering promises, telling viewers “dawn has broken…we have fulfilled all our promises in our manifesto.
“We are on the journey of building a strong stable prosperous Guyana that is globally recognized, that is now globally positioned. We are going on the right track. But we have more work to do. We are committed to building a Guyana for all,” Ali said.
Nomination day for the September 1 poll is July 14.
