Dear Editor,
Permit me to share with the nation my thoughts on the rise of Mr Azruddin Mohamed and his WIN political party, its role in the nation’s politics.  By doing so, I’m honouring my commitment to viewers on Dr. David Hinds’ Politics 101. As a political/cultural activist and a WPA Co-Leader, I have the responsibility to understand the political environment and share my insights with my countrymen/women, and more particularly the African community.
In previous discussions in Politics 101 and within the WPA, I recognised the potential political importance of Azruddin Mohamed’s entry into the country politics but reserved my full assessment of him for after nomination Day. Now that he turns up with his slate, we know for sure he and his WIN party are in the elections, it raises questions about the role of the Western powers, especially the Unites States, in our politics.
Given the American sanctions on the Mohameds and the national, regional and international attention it generated, Mohamed’s entry into Guyanese politics in normal circumstances would have been seen by the U.S authorities as an affront and challenge to their regional and international policy on organised drug trafficking, money laundering, gold smuggling and trafficking in persons. The decision by the U.S not to issue a warrant for the Mohameds, thereby forcing the PPP and the Guyana government to act one way or the other, raises questions that require answers. It was the US sanctions that were the catalyst for the Mohamed’s decision to enter formal politics and run for President.
Historically the Mohamed family always supported the PPP and their empire was built based on that alliance. It is widely known that the Mohamed economic empire provided money and special security arrangements to presidential contender Ali and top PPP leadership in the 2020 elections surpassing what state security agencies provided. This is known to the Americans and our ABC partners. Any keen political observer has access to public information on the internet that can confirm the US was monitoring the Mohamed family for some time.
What is not known is whether the U.S timing of sanctions on the Mohameds was a deliberate action to set in motion its political agenda in the country for the elections. In my view, the US is attempting to reconfigure the political landscape in Guyana, now that the country has become an important Petro-state. As a political observer, after the Mohameds met with the Americans outside of Guyana, their relationship experienced a metamorphosis.
He stopped being a victim of US sanctions and became an active instrument of the US policy in the Guyana elections. To put it another way, a deal was struck which gave the green light for Mohamed to continue his political march. If my assessment is correct, he has become a problem for both the government and the opposition. The question now is what role is assigned to him and the WIN party? I have no way of knowing for sure, but I am not permitted the luxury of not exercising my mind on this matter.
Given Jagdeo/PPP’s attitude to Mohamed, if the Americans had issued a warrant, the PPP and the government would have complied. But the US did not play that card. Why? I have concluded that the US and its Western allies are once again doing as they did that brought about the birth of the AFC, encouraging defections from the major parties in 2006, Khemraj Ramjattan from the PPP, Raphael Trotman from the PNC and Sheila Holder from the WPA, all of whom at the time of defection were members of their respective parties in the parliament. And their initiation took place discreetly outside Guyana.
The US imposition of sanctions on persons close to the government during the 2020 election crisis, before the results were announced, was a flexing of muscles; we know the outcome, the installed PPP regime. I had the opportunity to hear a prominent African cultural and political activist advocate that a hung Parliament is a better solution for Guyana than a coalition. Since this person has important contact with the US and Western political interests, I treated his views as important.
This was long before the AFC announced that it is not interested in a coalition but in working for a hung parliament. When the election bell rang and the AFC declared its position, a piece of the puzzle began to take shape. The ongoing international sponsorship and grooming of young generation politicians for overseas training programs and seminars through the American embassy and other Western organisations for the past three or four years, reveals another piece of this complex political puzzle since these politicians have formed political parties or join the Win party to contest the elections.
It soon became obvious that the defections were concentrated primarily in the opposition camp. The US seems to have found more willing players among the opposition than the ruling party circles. Considering that dilemma, they fell back on Mohamed to achieve their objective of denying the two major parties getting 50 per cent of the vote, ensuring a hung parliament. Mohamed’s role is to exploit a possible Hindu/Muslim divide in the Indian community to deprive the PPP of some Indian votes. But given the control the PPP has on the Indian community, this is not a guaranteed outcome.
The downside of this for the opposition is that Mohamed might also pull votes from opposition constituencies. So, in the context that none of the major parties have been anti-American, the US wants the election to be a contest for the presidency. If the elections had been conducted on a level playing field, the US position might have made some sense, as it stands, it seems to be devoid of a clear way to stop the PPP rigging. Â This could be counterproductive.
In a fair election fight, I am convinced that the APNU coalition could win the plurality. Currently, the only other party that can realistically reach 51% is the PPP and only by manipulating the electoral process, in essence rigging. The effectiveness of the US approach in the election requires them to stop the PPP from rigging. We will know more after September 1st.
To conclude, I sought to unravel the role assigned to Mohamed and his WIN party. It is evident that had the US requested Mohamed’s arrest the PPP would have complied. Jadgeo and the PPP have raised murder charges for Azruddin Mohamed, but like the Americans, have not played their trump (no pun intended) card. Why? They know that, given the role assigned to him, he is protected by the Americans. Or is Jadgeo holding a murder charge as leverage for post-election negotiations? Given the present situation, opposition supporters must realise that a vote for Mohamed is effectively a vote for the PPP.
Yours truly,
Tacuma Ogunseye.
