Hypocrisy has no place in calls for accountability, the Attorney General Anil Nandlall warned on Friday as he tore into the frail anti-corruption campaign being led by Opposition Leader, Azruddin Mohamed.
During his contribution to the 2026 budget debates in the National Assembly, Nandlall reminded that it is the same Mohamed who is currently fighting extradition to the United States of America to face federal indictments. As such, he urged the opposition leader to first practice what he preaches.
He said the Leader of the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) Party, in seeking to hold a most virtuous and pious platform, should know that accountability is not a one-way street. He said Mohamed should honour the very principle he wants to champion by first explaining to the National Assembly why he was sanctioned by the United States’ Office of Foreign Assets Control.
“In his capacity as a member of this House, he should explain to the people of Guyana and this House why he’s unwilling to surrender to go to the U.S., face his accusers and vindicate his innocence. I call upon him to do so,” said Nandlall.
Quoting the words of a WIN Parliamentarian, Janelle Sweatnam, “Accountability is not optional.”
In referencing the tax evasion charges levelled against Mohamed by the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), the attorney general said the tax agency has assessed that he owes $190 billion in taxes. Expounding on the magnitude of this sum, Nandlall said, “When I entered the National Assembly for the first time in my first debate 20 years ago, the national budget of this country was $90.5 billion. The comrade cart away two and a half times that amount. The whole national budget of the country.”
Turning to the 2026 Budget, Nandlall said the allocation for the Guyana Sugar Corporation is $13.4 billion, making the point that the taxes owed by Mohamed are 15 times that sum.
In light of this, Nandlall said the WIN leader should cease pretending that he has the moral high ground to scrutinise the government, adding that he must first face his own charges of corruption.