Latest update March 13th, 2026 12:35 AM
‘Fifteen Years to Be Guyanese’ – Amanza pushes tough citizenship reform amid oil boom, migration surge
(Kaieteur News) – Leader of the Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) and Member of Parliament Amanza Walton-Desir has signalled a major political fight ahead, announcing that her party will press for sweeping reforms to the Guyana Citizenship Act during this Parliament.
At the centre of FGM’s proposal is a dramatic increase in the residency requirement for citizenship—from the current five years to 15.
Speaking during a programme aired on Go Mosely Radio, Walton-Desir expressed concern over the increasing number of non-Guyanese entering the country, warning that this trend could significantly influence Guyana’s policy direction and outcomes in future elections. She emphasised that Guyana’s emergence as an oil-producing nation makes it vital to review and strengthen its citizenship laws.
Leader of Forward Guyana Movement (FGM) and Member of Parliament Amanza Walton-Desir
“One of the things that we will be pursuing aggressively is the reform of the Guyana Citizenship Act. The current requirements are too lenient,” Walton-Desir stated. She noted that Guyana is no longer a “backwater post-colonial country” that needs to maintain relaxed citizenship standards for Commonwealth citizens. “What we are is a country that is embroiled in a dispute for our Essequibo, what we are is an oil producing nation. We are now grappling with migration flows because we have the demand for labour to support this new economy,” she said.
According to Walton-Desir, Guyana’s small population makes it vulnerable to rapid demographic shifts. She argued that such changes are already occurring, claiming that in some parts of Georgetown there are streets with little to no Guyanese presence. “Very easily a demographic shift can happen in Guyana, and very quickly we can be overrun,” she warned.
As a result, Walton-Desir said FGM will be advocating for a 15-year residency requirement before an individual can qualify for naturalisation. “We have got to increase our naturalisation requirement, its five years, we will be pushing for it to be put to 15 years, because you must live here for 15 years , you must establish yourself, you must have a system of vetting that is community-based,” she explained.
Defending the proposed requirement, Walton-Desir emphasised that such requirements can be made possible. “When you look at other countries, for example Bermuda, it has a 15 to 20 year window, you look at what we tout that we are going to be the new Dubai, well you got to be there for a minimum a of 30 years, so in some cases it’s not even possible,” she said.
She clarified that the proposal is not intended to prevent CARICOM nationals or other foreigners from living and working in Guyana, but rather to restrict participation in national elections to Guyanese citizens. “We are saying that you are not going to be participating in our elections, you are not going to determine the course of this country, Guyanese will do that. There are more Guyanese living outside of Guyana than in Guyana at the moment so our focus has to be preserving the privilege of Guyanese citizenship for our children, our children’s children and for those who will come along the line in the future,” Walton-Desir said.
She added that FGM will push for a comprehensive review of the vetting process, including the removal of what she described as excessive ministerial discretion in granting citizenship. “The citizenship process must be rules-based,” Walton-Desir asserted. She argued that the current system allows too much discretion, which she claimed could lead to abuse. “Where there is heavy ministerial discretion, there is a great probability of that being abused, and that is something we will be pushing strenuously to change,” she said. She warned that failure to act could have long-term consequences for Guyana’s identity and security. “If we don’t do that, in two years, what will be the Guyanese identity and culture?” she asked, raising concerns about the potential infiltration of foreign agents into local governance structures. “These things have happened historically in other countries and we will be negligent if we do not look and learn the lesson and bring them and apply them here,” Walton-Desir stated.
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