‘Vote for whoever you want to’ – Glenn Lall

Jul 28, 2025 News

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…urges Guyanese to reject US Ambassador’s comments on Mohamed

Kaieteur News – Businessman and social media commentator, Glenn Lall has raised concerns over recent comments made by US Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot who said last week that Washington would be uneasy if Azruddin Mohamed wins the upcoming elections or is elected to parliament.

Last year, Mohamed, his father Nazar “Shell” Mohamed, their businesses, and government official Mae Thomas were sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). The Mohameds were sanctioned for alleged gold smuggling. When it announced the sanction OFAC said: “Today’s action underscores our commitment to holding accountable those who seek to exploit Guyana’s underdeveloped gold sector for personal gain,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson. It added” These actions were conducted in coordination with Homeland Security Investigations New York Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Strike Force, Diplomatic Security Service, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Intelligence – New York Operations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Miami Field Office, with assistance from HSI Miami, CBP Miami and New York Field Offices, New York City Police Department Intelligence Bureau, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.”

According to OFAC gold is one of Guyana’s main exports, but it remains a highly fractured industry with small-scale gold mining operations in Guyana occupying a majority share of the country’s gold production. “These small, family-owned businesses have informal relationships with larger purchasers and traders like Mohamed’s Enterprise. Once mined, Guyanese gold is sold and traded throughout international markets, including the United States, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, and the European Union,” OFAC had said.

In June 2025, Mohamed launched his political party, We Invest in Nationhood (WIN), which is one of six parties set to contest the General and Regional Elections on September 1. “Yes, 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,” Ambassador Theriot told reporters last week.  Mohamed’s party has gained traction among Guyanese and would likely pose a big challenge to the PPP/C and the APNU.

In one of his recent social media commentaries, Lall referenced that the current US President, Donald Trump was convicted on 34 felony charges and yet he was elected by his country. “Not accused, not sanctioned, convicted in a court of law for fraud. Yet with all that, he ran for President and won,” Lall noted. He added: “President Lula of Brazil was jailed for corruption, released, ran for elections, and won. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi was once sanctioned by the U.S, he still ran for elections and won by a landslide.”

Lall even mentioned current President, Irfaan Ali, who he noted that before becoming President of Guyana, faced 19 criminal fraud charges tied to land giveaways under Jagdeo. “He ran for office; the U.S. Embassy didn’t say a word back then. But, Azruddin Mohamed, who hasn’t been charged, never been convicted of any crime in or out of Guyana, was simply sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department, not a court and suddenly, the U.S. Ambassador to Guyana has a problem with him possibly sitting in parliament. Problem for who?  Because it sure isn’t a problem for the Guyanese people who never got a vote on the decisions being made in this country.”

“So, let’s get this straight: a convicted felon like Trump? No problem. A president with 19 fraud charges? No objection, a businessman with no conviction? suddenly, he’s too dangerous to sit in the National Assembly.?  Wake up, Guyana. This isn’t about ethics, fair play or Justice—it’s about control,” Lall declared.

He noted that Ambassador Theriot, like those before her, “clearly doesn’t want any new political force rising in this land—unless it wears red, green, or yellow.  Why?” “Because those three parties are controllable, already compromised. They have signed away our oil, our gold, our lands, and our future—and in return, what they get to hand Guyanese, a cash grant and to keep their visa intact. And anyone who dares to challenge that arrangement becomes a threat. A problem, and a danger to their plan.”  Lall added that Theriot even went further to say, the American Private Sector would have to rethink doing business with Guyana. “The truth is, the American private sector isn’t here out of love for me and you, Guyana. They are here to take control of every sector Guyanese should own—from oil and gas, to supply and construction. They’re not here to help you and me. They’re here to help themselves. And with that statement, she has made her position clear: She doesn’t stand with you, she stands with those who make it easier to extract, exploit, and enslave us,” Lall said.

He added: “She stands with the sellouts who smile for the cameras and sign away your future while the people of this land remain hungry, poor, and powerless. And anyone who threatens that plunder, that kind of theft, anyone bold enough to say “enough of that, becomes the enemy.  That’s what Azruddin Mohamed has become- a threat to the robbery they are carrying out on us.  And they are trembling. So come September 1st, vote for whoever you want to,” Lall urged.

The ambassador’s comments had come days after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio instructed U.S. diplomats worldwide not to comment on the fairness or integrity of elections conducted by foreign countries, according to an internal note that was seen by Reuters. The news agency said that Rubio’s memo was a significant departure from Washington’s traditional approach of promoting free and fair elections overseas. The order, sent to all U.S. diplomatic posts in a July 17 internal State Department cable, says the Department will no longer issue election-related statements or social media posts from Washington unless there is a “clear and compelling” foreign policy interest. “When it is appropriate to comment on a foreign election, our message should be brief, focused on congratulating the winning candidate and, when appropriate, noting shared foreign policy interests,” said the cable, which was marked as “sensitive” but not classified.

“Messages should avoid opining on the fairness or integrity of an electoral process, its legitimacy, or the democratic values of the country in question,” it said. U.S.  It added that election-related messages should come from either the Secretary himself or the Department spokesperson and it barred U.S. diplomats from issuing such statements without explicit approval from the agency’s senior leadership. The cable referenced President Donald Trump’s May 13 speech in Riyadh when he criticized what he called “Western interventionists” telling Middle Eastern countries how to govern their own affairs, saying that was no longer Washington’s business and it was looking to forge partnerships. “While the United States will hold firm to its own democratic values and celebrate those values when other countries choose a similar path, the President made clear that the United States will pursue partnerships with countries wherever our strategic interests align,” the directive said.

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• Azruddin Mohamed, Glenn Lall, Guyana Elections, Nicole Theriot

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