Decked in a Military-style field cap and a Mao suit, President Irfaan Ali, on Friday night addressed residents of Essequibo and assured them and the rest of Guyana that the Government will not be surrendering an inch of Guyana’s territory to Venezuela.

Venezuela has been continuing its claims of Guyana’s Essequibo region and has planned a referendum to officially make Essequibo a new Venezuelan state. 

The plan has received widespread international condemnation and has been fully rejected by Guyana.

During his address at the Essequibo expo on Friday night, the President Ali said the Guyana Government and Opposition remain united against the threats from Venezuela. He assured that the government will be seeking no other means of settlement to the controversy other than the International Court of Justice.

“This Essequibo is ours, every square inch of it. The 1899 arbitral award made it clear that it was a full and final settlement, the Geneva agreement provided for the UN Secretary General to take this controversy raised by Venezuela to the ICJ and we respect international law. We are a lawful and peaceful people. We respect international law and that is where this controversy by Venezuela must be settled. There must be no other place but, in the realms of the International Court of Justice, as was assigned by the United Nations Secretary General,” the President said.

With the Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force, Brigadier Omar Khan standing just behind him, President Ali hailed the role of the Guyana Defence Force in assessing the current situation with Venezuela. He expressed his confidence in the GDF’s role in securing and safeguarding the nation.

“I have expressed tremendous trust and confidence in the Chief of Staff and our men and women in uniform and I can assure you that they are committed to duty. And they are committed to service and your President is tremendously focus and be assured that we stand strong and committed and focus of our duty as your government and leaders across Guyana,” the President told the residents of Essequibo.

The President said Guyana is committed to peace and will not use or support aggression to address this longstanding border issue. But at the same time, he said Guyana is committed to safeguarding its territory.

“And I want to assure you that Brigadier Khan (Chief of Staff) and the men and women in Uniform are actively ensuring that the safety, honor and happiness of every Guyanese of every square inch of our country is assured and protected,” the President said.

The Government and Opposition will return to the National Assembly in the coming week for an extraordinary sitting on the Venezuela controversy.

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