WIKKI CALCUNI, BERBICE RIVER — A political firestorm erupted over the weekend in a quiet Indigenous village when Wikki Calcuni Toshao Kevin Seegolam was caught on camera stomping on the WIN party flag during a heated standoff with presidential hopeful Azruddin Mohamed.
The now-viral video has ignited fierce debate across Guyana, with accusations flying from both sides over who disrespected whom, and whether the fiery exchange amounts to political bullying or justified self-defense of village autonomy.
According to eyewitnesses and footage circulating online, Seegolam, a known People’s Progressive Party (PPP) supporter, confronted Mohamed and his entourage during a public sports day in the village. Tensions quickly escalated when Seegolam snatched the WIN flag from one of Mohamed’s supporters and crushed it underfoot, triggering gasps from onlookers.
Mohamed’s camp says he was simply there to greet supporters and mingle with villagers, but was met with hostility and political obstruction. “This is pure hooliganism,” one supporter said. “Every party deserves the right to campaign freely without intimidation. What we saw was an open attempt to silence WIN’s presence.”
But the Toshao has fired back, accusing Mohamed of forcing his way into the community without clearance from the Village Council, a violation, he says, of the Amerindian Act of 2006.
“They were not invited. I asked them to leave,they refused,” Seegolam told the News Room in a blunt interview Sunday night. “They came here to push their agenda and ignored our rules.”
The Amerindian Act requires political figures to formally request and receive permission from village authorities before engaging in any political activity in Indigenous communities.
“He never sought permission, never got permission, and still refused to leave when told,” Seegolam stressed. “It wasn’t our people, they brought in outsiders. If you want to campaign here, respect us. Seek permission and follow the law.”
The flag-stomping moment, which many viewed as symbolic and inflammatory, was explained by Seegolam as a reaction to an aggressive supporter who was “waving the flag in [his] face.”
But critics argue that the act crossed a line.
“No matter the provocation, stamping on a party’s symbol like that, it sends a dangerous message about intolerance,” said a political analyst. “This wasn’t just about village rules. It turned into something much more divisive.”
The incident has exposed deep political fault lines ahead of the upcoming elections, with questions now swirling around campaign ethics, Indigenous rights, and whether certain communities are being used as political battlegrounds.
As of Monday morning, neither Mohamed nor the WIN party had issued an official statement responding to the accusations, though supporters online continue to rally in his defense.
Whether this clash becomes a mere footnote or a defining moment in the election season remains to be seen, but for the residents of Wikki Calcuni, Sunday’s showdown is unlikely to be forgotten anytime soon.
