Georgetown, Guyana – At a packed press conference on Thursday, We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) presidential candidate Azruddin Mohamed stood before supporters and reporters with a bold claim: Guyana doesn’t need to raise taxes or borrow more money to improve lives. It just needs to stop wasting the money it already has.
Mohamed, speaking during the launch of WIN’s 2025 manifesto, pointed to what he described as “billions of dollars” being lost every year to mismanagement, expired supplies, and bloated contracts.
“We went through the 2025 budget and I saw so much wasteful spending,” he said, citing $23 billion in expired drugs and $19.5 billion spent on drainage projects that still failed to prevent flooding.
The message was clear, by cutting out corruption and tightening oversight, the WIN Party believes it can free up as much as 25 to 30 percent of the national budget.
With this year’s budget standing at $1.1 trillion, that could mean more than $250 billion in redirected funds.And the party already has plans for those savings.
Mohamed said a WIN-led government would use the reclaimed money to raise pensions, increase public assistance, boost salaries for public servants, and invest in key services like healthcare and education.
“We are investing the money in the right place,” he said, “in our pensioners, public servants, and persons living with disabilities.”
Behind the numbers were real concerns shared by many Guyanese, low wages, poor public healthcare, limited support for the elderly and vulnerable.
WIN’s strategy, the party argues, offers a practical solution without placing new burdens on taxpayers. Still, questions remain. While Mohamed spoke broadly about overhauling procurement systems and introducing anti-corruption mechanisms, the party did not outline specific tools or legislation.
Officials mentioned a planned audit of regional spending and a broader anti-corruption initiative, but reporters noted the absence of concrete proposals like whistleblower protections, an integrity commission, or forensic audits.When pressed on whether the plan was sustainable, Mohamed was firm.
“We have the money,” he said. “It’s about strong governance and accountability.” For now, the WIN Party is banking on public frustration with inefficiency and corruption, and a belief that the money Guyana needs to grow is already in its coffers, if only someone would spend it wisely.
