By: Javone Vickerie
Georgetown, Guyana – September 5, 2025 – The already tense 2025 recount has exploded into a war of words, with Minister Kwame McCoy accusing the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) Party of spreading dangerous misinformation, while WIN insists it is exposing serious irregularities that threaten Guyana’s democracy.
At the center of the storm is Haddiyyah Mohamed, sister of WIN’s presidential candidate, Azruddin Mohamed. Earlier this week, she posted a video of ballot boxes arriving for recount in Region Four’s Sub-District Four, alleging that some were tampered with and others missing official seals. The footage spread rapidly online, igniting outrage among opposition supporters and fueling fresh doubts about the electoral process.
McCoy, however, was quick to condemn what he called a “reckless campaign” by WIN to destabilize the country. “It is abundantly clear that Hadiyyah Mohamed and WIN have chosen a path of deliberate misinformation, aimed at stoking fear, sowing mischief, and inciting public disorder,” the minister declared. He said the recount has been “peaceful, transparent, and credible,” and dismissed the tampering claims as baseless fabrications.
He also pointed to WIN’s controversial record, noting that its leader Azruddin Mohamed remains under U.S. sanctions for alleged gold smuggling, tax evasion, and corruption. “When individuals already discredited and sanctioned attempt to smear the process, their intent becomes transparent,” McCoy said, describing WIN’s actions as driven by a “hustler’s mentality” born of mistrust and self-interest.
WIN, for its part, has doubled down. Azruddin Mohamed has alleged widespread irregularities across the country’s elections, from ballot box tampering to missing Statements of Poll, intimidation at polling stations, and even ineligible voters casting ballots. The party has also pointed to incidents inside the recount hall itself, where agents argued heatedly that ballots marked outside the designated box were wrongly counted as valid votes. WIN insists these disputes, along with reports of broken or absent seals on boxes, prove their concerns are real. “These are grave matters that undermine the pillars of our democracy,” Mohamed said in a recent video statement.
The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) and the Guyana Police Force have both stepped in to try to cool the flames. GECOM blasted Haddiyyah Mohamed’s video as a violation of recount protocols and warned against misinformation that could erode public trust. The Police Force reminded the public that the recount is taking place under “tight security” and cautioned that any attempt to incite unrest would be met with swift action.
Still, the competing narratives have left Guyanese citizens caught between sharply divided camps: a government confident the recount is a display of transparency, and a surging opposition movement convinced the system is being manipulated against them.
With APNU also securing recounts in Regions Four and Five, and WIN fighting to legitimize itself as the country’s new main opposition after claiming over 100,000 votes, the battle over ballots has become more than a procedural step. It is now a fight for credibility, legitimacy, and the trust of a nation watching nervously from the sidelines.
