Former Prime Minister and Vice President Moses Nagamootoo, who served in the A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Coalition Government from 2015 to 2020, has launched a blistering attack on the Irfaan Ali administration over Guyana’s failure to vote at the United Nations on a procedural motion concerning Cuba, arguing that the Government has abandoned a decades-long foreign policy rooted in regional solidarity and support for Havana.
Guyana did not vote during a July 7 United Nations General Assembly procedural motion that paved the way for a debate on the impact of the United States’ economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba, including what Havana has described as a “fuel and food” blockade. The motion was adopted by 136 votes in favour, nine against and 30 abstentions, while Guyana was among the countries that did not cast a vote.
In a hard-hitting commentary titled “Three Letters, Three Words…“, posted on social media on Friday, Nagamootoo said Guyana’s absence from the vote represented more than a diplomatic misstep—it was a betrayal of a country that has stood by Guyana for decades through medical assistance, education, technical cooperation and trade.
“I enquired from a friend, my good friend, how Guyana voted recently at the United Nations. His response was terse: ‘It didn’t vote,'” Nagamootoo wrote.
“It was a motion to place before the General Assembly for a debate the ‘fuel and food’ blockade against Cuba.”
According to Nagamootoo, countries supported the motion for two principal reasons.
“Many did so because the blockade violates international law, is illegal and criminal. Others, on humanitarian grounds.
“Guyana didn’t vote. I felt empty after I heard those three words.”
The former Prime Minister said Guyana’s failure to participate was particularly painful given Cuba’s enduring contribution to Guyana’s development.
“Imagine, surgeries being performed in Cuba on ailing children in operating rooms lit only by torchlights!
“Yet, Guyana didn’t vote to end a clear injustice, and to support a generous people now in need – the Cuban people who have sacrificed for Guyana. Ingratitude is a kind word.”
Guyana and Cuba have maintained close diplomatic relations since the 1970s. Thousands of Guyanese have benefited from Cuban scholarships, while Cuba has trained generations of Guyanese doctors, nurses, engineers, teachers and agronomists. Cuban medical brigades have also played a critical role in Guyana’s healthcare system, particularly in hinterland and remote communities, and Cuba has long been a market for Guyanese rice and timber.
Nagamootoo, who served as Prime Minister and First Vice President under President David Granger, said Guyana maintained those close ties throughout the APNU+AFC administration and argued that the country’s failure to vote represented a significant departure from a foreign policy that had transcended political administrations.
In one of the most pointed sections of his commentary, Nagamootoo turned President Mohamed Irfaan Ali’s initials into a political rebuke.
“Guyana was Missing in Action (Mia),” he wrote.
“That no-vote at the United Nations bears the name of Guyana’s President – Mohamed Irfaan Ali (MIA). Three words, and a three-lettered acronym. It carries his stamp of approval!”
He added that such a decision “couldn’t happen under [Forbes] Burnham or [Cheddi] Jagan, or even under [Donald] Ramotar and [David] Granger.”
Nagamootoo contrasted Guyana’s position with that of Barbados, praising Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley for standing with Cuba.
“Our independence was inviolable. That was demonstrated time and again by the other ‘Mia’ (Mia Amor Mottley) in Barbados.
“The Right Honourable Mottley, Prime Minister of Barbados, stood up. She stood tall for Barbados and the Caribbean. She didn’t cringe; she didn’t crawl. She didn’t surrender.
“Barbados said, ‘Heck, no! I am here!'”
He pointed out that Barbados was joined by Jamaica, Belize, Dominica, Suriname, Haiti, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Lucia and St. Kitts and Nevis in voting in favour of the motion.
“So did Jamaica, all the Caribbean Saints – St. Vincent, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts – and Belize, Dominica and even crisis-torn Haiti! Our neighbour, Suriname, voted ‘YES’!
“Where was Guyana? Missing in action! (MIA).”
Nagamootoo also highlighted the distinction between abstaining and not voting.
“I checked it out. Abstaining is when the voter is present in the meeting and officially declares a choice to neither support nor oppose the motion. Not voting is due to the voter either being absent, leaving the room or simply failing to cast a vote. This indicates indifference.”
“‘Indifference’? Towards Cuba for maintaining our medical and health care system? For buying our rice, our timber, and training our doctors, engineers and agronomists?
“As non-voters, Guyana was in bed with Venezuela!
“The mind boggles!”
Nagamootoo’s criticism comes only days after CARICOM Heads of Government unanimously endorsed Guyana’s nominee, Ambassador Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, for the post of United Nations Secretary-General and reaffirmed the Region’s unwavering support for Guyana in its border controversy with Venezuela.
The comments also come as Guyana’s relationship with the United States continues to deepen through cooperation in energy, defence and regional security amid ongoing tensions with Venezuela over the Essequibo controversy.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not publicly explained why Guyana failed to cast a vote on the July 7 motion.
Nagamootoo’s intervention revives a broader debate over whether Guyana’s foreign policy is evolving as its strategic partnership with the United States expands alongside its oil-driven economic transformation. The Government’s silence has left unanswered why Guyana stood apart from most of its CARICOM neighbours on an issue that has historically united the Region. Until that explanation is provided, questions are likely to persist over whether Georgetown’s diplomatic priorities are shifting away from the independent, non-aligned posture that has long been a hallmark of Guyana’s foreign policy.
