WIN targets diaspora vote through New York chapter

Last Updated on Sunday, 30 August 2026, 21:31 by Writer

Guyana’s main opposition We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) is setting its eyes on votes from Guyanese in New York where that party formally opened a chapter.

WIN leader Azruddin Mohamed appealed to overseas-based Guyanese to support him and his party in the 2031 general and regional elections.

He urged supporters to organise now rather than await the election season and return to Guyana to coincide with election campaigning.

“Plan your trips around the election period. Make arrangements early because Guyana’s future is too important for any Guyanese whether at home or abroad to say ‘that is not my business'”, he said in a pre-recorded video address to attendees.

Mr Mohamed cannot travel to the United States (US) where he and his father, Nazar Mohamed, are wanted for alleged financial crimes and both are fighting bitterly to stave off extradition.

“Now to all of you in the diaspora. I cannot do this alone,” he said, adding that work for the next elections begins now.

The Opposition Leader said his WIN party, which won 16 parliamentary seats in general and regional elections one year ago, would continue its anti-corruption campaign.

“We are willing to confront corruption wherever we may find it. We are willing to expose wrongdoing and we are willing to say what ordinary Guyanese are thinking but are afraid to say,” he said.

He repeated several allegations of corruption against the President and a number ministers, charges they have vehemently denied during the past several months. He also said the millions of United States dollars being earned from the oil sector was not reaching ordinary Guyanese because of squander mania and mismanagement.

“My position is simple: Guyana’s oil must not create a new political oligarch, it must not enrich a small circle of politically connected families when the people, who own the resource, are left behind,” he said.

He added that his aim was not to build a Guyana where success belongs to friends and the wealthiest politicians.

He envisions a Guyana where wealth is shared and corruption is punished

Mr Mohamed challenged WIN-New York to become more than a subdivision of his party but as a centre for Guyanese professionals, entrepreneurs and skilled persons who are prepared to help rebuild Guyana.

“When we take leadership of this country, we will need you. We will need your skills, we will need your experience,” he said.

WIN executive member Vishnu Panday said, in apparent reference to the turnout which was not shown on the Facebook Live stream, “this is what you call quality and strength, in this context, is not measured by quantity; it is measured by quality.”

“The audience that we have here tonight is not a mammoth crowd; it is a quality crowd,” he added.