APNU calls for overhaul of national security, immigration policies

Nov 03, 2025 News

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─ after gas station bombing

(Kaieteur News) – Chairman of the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and leader of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) Aubrey Norton, on Friday called for an overhaul of the national security and immigration policies in Guyana, following the recent gas station explosion.

Speaking at the party’s weekly press conference, he extended the party’s condolences to the mother of six-year-old Soraya Bourne, who died as a result of the recent explosion, at the Mobil Gas Station on Regent and King Streets.

According to Norton, the current environment requires the protection of all Guyanese.  In this regard, he stressed that there is need for credible leadership of the GPF to restore its trust and confidence.

“Given the current and recent events involving explosives allegedly placed by foreign nationals, immigration and national security issues have surfaced again in a negative light. Many Guyanese are understandably anxious and the APNU will continue to represent and highlight citizens’ concerns in a responsible way. The APNU is prepared to work with all stakeholders, both in and out of parliament, to build a national safety infrastructure that will keep Guyanese safe and restore public confidence in the nation’s security systems,” he said.

Furthermore, he said the APNU is well aware that the events have a foreign policy dimension, therefore it is urging the government to address these “as both national security and foreign policy issues. Government therefore needs to factor in the foreign policy element and respond appropriately.”

Reminding reporters that the recent explosion has caused many Guyanese to live in fear, the political leader believes that in light of the information released by police, the national conversation on national security and immigration remains of utmost importance.

“It is in this context that we add our voice to augment citizens’ concerns about the failures in our national security system. The APNU consistently raised this issue in the national assembly and therefore we call on the government to engage with APNU’s often-stated positions regarding immigration and national security,” he added.

The party has recommended that heavy focus be placed on counteracting illegal immigration. It has advised that the government adopts policies that will ensure citizens are secure and immigrants are screened and documented in the appropriate manner upon entry.

“We understand the initial humanitarian dynamic posed by issues within Venezuela’s economy that launched an exodus to Guyana.  However, the extant territorial controversy with Venezuela occasions the need for change so that our responses need to be agile, comprehensive and strategic. We wish to remind the government that the life of every citizen is of paramount importance and our security is non-negotiable and transcends political partisanship,” Norton added.

He stressed that the national security agencies require adequate funding, technical resources and staffing along with stronger coordination and strategic deployment of uniformed and other personnel to safeguard the nation.

Moreover, he said Guyana’s oil resources must be utilised to modernise and reinforce the security framework. He reminded the government that the search for solutions must be inclusive, as no single administration holds a monopoly on ideas for protecting Guyanese citizens.

The deafening blast, which echoed across the capital around 7:30 p.m., on Sunday, October 26, shattered windows of nearby buildings, damaged vehicles, and sent debris raining down over the area. When Kaieteur News arrived on the scene, a mangled car lay amid twisted metal and shattered glass. A Toyota Fielder wagon parked nearby was also badly wrecked.

A cage filled with propane bottles was completely destroyed and the glass walls of the supermarket section was also shattered with part of the walls caving in.

An emergency response team along with crime scene investigators was also on the ground. One of the officials with the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) said that they received a call about the explosion around 19:30 hrs.

“Four persons were transported to the hospital … the three were children out of the three children that were transported, one would have succumbed to the injuries he said”.

Kaieteur News later learnt at the scene that child who died was identified as a six-year-old girl, Soraya Bourne. Eyewitnesses claimed that a total of six persons were injured. The children were reportedly in the car that suffered the brunt of the explosion and the two surviving children are reportedly in critical condition.

Among the injured was the driver of the fielder wagon that was parked nearby when the explosion occurred. Reports are he was sitting inside when his vehicle lifted into the air before falling back down.

Two days later on October 29 this publication reported that the main suspect in the deadly gas station bombing, Daniel Alexander Ramirez Peodomo, confessed to travelling from Venezuela to Guyana illegally with the explosive device.

Peodomo reportedly confessed to the crime telling investigators that he arrived in Guyana at around 08:00h on Sunday via boat, hours before the deadly bombing. The Venezuelan national and eight other accomplices, including four Guyanese have been arrested.

Blanhum told reporters at a press conference held at the Ministry of Home Affairs that Peodomo and a Venezuelan accomplice [who entered Guyana illegally with him] have some affiliation with a “gang in Venezuela known as ‘R’” which is linked to the Sindicato gang.

The Sindicato gang has been linked to several violent cross-border crimes. The Crime Chief said investigators learned that the explosive device was activated moments after the main suspect exited a car and walked into the Mobil Gas Station at Regent and King Streets, Georgetown.

Norton said, “It is quite saddening to see any loss of life. We affirm our concern and advocacy for the welfare of all affected families and demand that every needed state resource goes to their aid. We honor the instinctive role played by Ms. Shondell Smith in thwarting a more catastrophic event. Ms. Shondell Smith is an unsung hero,” Norton said

He expressed appreciation to the Guyana Police Force (GPF) for having several persons in custody and implored that they leave no stone unturned, fully exploring the scope of this dynamic situation and tectonic even in Guyana’s national security.

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• APNU, Aubrey Norton, gas station bombing, immigration policies, national security, Soraya Bourne

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