We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) General Secretary and Member of Parliament Odessa Primus has defended her attendance at a reception for King Charles III, held at the invitation of President Irfaan Ali, saying she attended on the instructions of Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed and hoped to use the opportunity to raise concerns about developments in Guyana.
Primus addressed the controversy last night while speaking at a candlelight vigil outside the Convention Centre, where she responded to questions about a photograph of herself alongside Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo that had circulated on social media. She rejected suggestions that the encounter represented a shift in her political allegiance.
“First of all, that was me in the photo,” she said, while also claiming that AI-altered versions of the image had circulated.
Primus explained that the invitation came from President Ali and that she and others had been told they would have an opportunity to meet in a group to discuss challenges facing the country.
“The Leader of the Opposition granted his blessings for us to go,” she initially said, before clarifying: “I don’t even know if it’s blessings per se because it was upon his instructions, based on what we were told, that we went there.”
According to Primus, the intention was to highlight the Opposition Leader’s circumstances and concerns affecting other families seeking justice. She also referred to reports of a death in police custody and the detention of a police officer as matters she would have wanted to raise.
She said engagements with United Kingdom representatives took place after the function and argued that the attendance had helped build relationships. Some diplomatic work, she added, happens behind the scenes and may not produce results immediately visible to the public.
Primus acknowledged that people viewing the photographs might not have known the context, but described some of the accusations of betrayal as hurtful. She firmly rejected any suggestion that she supported the governing PPP.
“At no point in my life have I been a supporter of the PPP. At no point in my life will I be a supporter of the PPP,” she said.
She argued that opposition politics requires professional engagement with people in government, including when representing constituents seeking assistance with land and other matters. Greeting or speaking to a political opponent, she maintained, should not be treated as evidence of disloyalty.
“I must at least be able to have a professional cordial relationship with absolutely everybody if I am going to represent people,” she said.
Primus also questioned the prominence given to photographs of her on Jagdeo’s social media page, noting that three consecutive images featured her. She suggested that supporters should be cautious about drawing political conclusions from those photographs.
When a questioner sought details about when she received the invitation and when the Opposition Leader authorised her attendance, Primus declined to pursue those questions at the vigil. She maintained that she had provided sufficient information and wanted attention to remain on the circumstances facing Mohamed and the gathering planned outside the Georgetown High Court the following day.
“It’s not that I have no intentions of dealing with or speaking on this matter at any time in the future,” she said.
She urged supporters to keep their focus on the detained Opposition Leader and the issues surrounding his incarceration.
