THE Mohameds are playing a game of deceptive and cunning politics. They are manipulating half of the nation into believing they are the victims of government harassment and victimisation. They are not interested in genuine governance, politics, and leadership.
Make no bones about it: they couldn’t care less about sugar workers, fishermen, public servants, housewives, people in difficult circumstances, ‘scrapes,’ black people or Afro-Guyanese, Amerindians, and young people. They could not care less about the parliament and democracy. The Mohameds couldn’t care less about the alleged corruption of elites, the wealthy, and the people with whom they used to rub shoulders.
They only care about themselves and avoiding justice at all costs.
For the Mohameds, the end justifies the means, and they have deliberately duped sections of desperate groups in the population into believing that their ‘end’ will see the backs of the PPP and PNC in power. This is a clever manoeuvre employed by the Mohameds and their intellectual surrogates, but we, who study politics, see right through the façade, pretence and dirty politricks.
Firstly, Azurddin Mohamed is using the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party as a front. It is not a political organisation even though it masquerades as such. It is a party of convenience. It is made up of those politicians who are rejects of the PNC leadership and ‘yes’ men who are loyal not to the Mohameds, but to their wealth.
Through WIN, Mohamed got into politics and parliament. He is using the WIN organisation to try to twist the government and the Speaker of the National Assembly to have him elected as an opposition leader. He wants to avoid being extradited to the US to face the charges.
He also wants to hold the constitutional office so that he can wield more influence and power with the PPP. It is not about representing the poor people or the part of the electorate who voted for him. It never was. It is about power, prestige and privilege for the Mohameds. Do not get it twisted. It’s about selfishness and entitlement.
And Mohamed feels that becoming the opposition leader will shield him or give him immunity from present or future charges. This is wrong, and he is in for a surprise as the PNC/APNU/AFC learned in 2018 – do not underestimate the politics of the PPP. The government knows how to navigate these waters and circumstances.
Secondly, let’s be honest. The constitution is clear. There must be a leader of the opposition, and he/she is elected by the members of the opposition in the legislative branch of the state. The government knows this and has every intention of honouring the constitution.
So, it is astonishing to hear the huge cry from the opposition about democracy in crisis in Guyana. The opposition should be ashamed to even preach to the government about democracy and honouring the constitution, when the APNU+AFC tried to shamelessly rig the elections and cheat the PPP/C. They should be quiet. All of them, including Amanza Walton-Desir who was there, saw and said nothing.
It has been a little over two months that parliament has not met. When the parliament meets, we expect there will be an opposition leader.
But WIN appears to have some ulterior and sinister motive for calling for the opposition leader to be formally chosen and parliament to meet now. They know what is coming. They, like the rest of us, are shaking because of these extradition proceedings in the court.
Thirdly, the Mohameds should select a contingency plan. They should select a co-leader or another person to become leader in Azruddin’s place.
The talk on the street is that Tabitha Sarabo-Halley might be selected or another close parliamentarian. There is confusion and worry among the WIN loyalists.
Party supporters are meeting secretly and whispering behind the Mohameds’ backs. If Sarabo-Halley does succeed Mohamed, then the WPA would take the centre stage in politics again, as her father is David Hinds who is within the APNU/PNC parliamentary configuration.
It makes sense too putting another one of the WIN parliamentarians at the front, like Natasha Singh-Lewis or Dawn Hastings-Williams, but we doubt it because of the selfish nature of the Mohameds.
Thirdly, the Mohameds are making a serious miscalculation of the domestic laws and international law. They are seeking to frustrate the process in court and are utilising every available measure to prolong the inevitable.
Mark our words, the courts will ensure it dispenses justice and fairness. This Mohameds saga will come to a swift end, regardless of how much wealth and power the family wields. Then, Guyana will move past this phase of petty and murky politics. It will be business as usual.
Finally, one can never win when one plays dirty and tricky. Mohamed is playing puerile and murky politics. He and members of his party are seeking to hide behind politics and alleged political persecution.
Never in the history of Guyana and the wider Caribbean has there been a more perplexing, daft, childish, and incompetent opposition figure than Azruddin Mohamed. I am starting to feel that Guyana is not a real place.
I have learned one thing that I have kept close to my chest in my long journalistic career. And that’s politics is a dangerous, risky, and calculating game that only a few good men and women can survive. It is a battle of brilliance, endurance, strategy and tactics. I have come to realise that the end justifies the means once the means can be justified in the end.
I will say it once and for all. The PPP will win and it will be the last political party still standing when the nightmare is over.