US Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot, today expressed her Government’s concerns over the political aspirations of Presidential Candidate, Azruddin Mohamed, who remains under US Government sanctions.

The Ambassador said his election to Government or the National Assembly could effectively cause the United States Government to change the way it conducts business with Guyana.

Mr. Mohamed, along with his father and their businesses were sanctioned by the US Government last year over tax evasion and gold under-declaration. But Azruddin Mohamed has thrown his hat into the political ring, launching his We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party and jumping the hurdles to compete in Guyana’s upcoming elections.

But the US Ambassador to Guyana today said his candidacy is concerning.

“We are concerned, anytime  the US Department of Treasury, OFAC- sanctioned individual has the potential to become a Member of Government, that is concerning for us, that is problematic in multiple ways, because the way that we as the U.S Government can interact with the Government, we have to be very careful, if that person is involved, let us say he is on a certain Committee, we would have to ensure that when we work with that committee we don’t work with him specifically”,  the US Ambassador told reporters on the sidelines of an event this morning.

Following the sanctions against The Mohameds and Government Permanent Secretary Mae Thomas last year, the US Government has been quiet on the issue, but Guyana Government officials, including Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo, have repeatedly said that the US and Guyana Governments are consistently involved in information sharing on the Mohameds, who once shared a chummy relationship with the current Government.

The US and Guyana have a number of partnerships in place for Defence, Security, and Trade relations among others.

The US Ambassador said the greatest concern is that private investment by US companies to Guyana can be slowed down should Mohamed get anywhere close to the seat of Government.

“The other things that concerns me more however, is that when you see an OFAC sanctioned individual become an official within a government, it sends concerns through the private sector in the United States will start rethinking their relationships within the country, we saw it in Afghanistan and other countries, they sometime tend to de-risk or cut ties with the country,” the Ambassador noted.

The Ambassador described the upcoming elections as extremely important for Guyana and the United States to maintain peace and stability in the region.

The US Government through the local embassy will be among the observers at the upcoming elections. The WIN party, which is led by Mohamed, has been whipping up support across the country.

Related posts:

Azruddin Mohamed’s WIN party unveils Jaguar as party symbol US Ambassador says visa cancellations and revocations very different from sanctions Jagdeo says Government will not put country at risk by doing business with the Mohameds Two and a half year US investigation led to sanctions against Mohameds and PS Mae Thomas -says US Ambassador