GUYANA-Outspoken politician wanted by police for race-baiting and other “serious offenses.”

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – The Guyana Police Force (GPF) on Thursday issued a wanted bulletin for the executive member of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) Tacuma Ogunseye for “attempting to excite hostility or ill-will on the ground of race.”

However, the WPA has declared that Ogunseye, whose controversial remarks at a public meeting on March 9, 2023, in Buxton prompted the police action, is not going into hiding.

According to the police bulletin, the grassroots politician is wanted for “several serious offenses and attempting to excite hostility or ill-will on the ground of race,” contravening the Racial Hostility Act.

Ogunseye had made several claims about the ruling People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) using the GPF and the Guyana Defence Force in the past to “execute” persons of African descent. He further stated that treating people in this ethnic group is unjust and must be acted upon as early as possible.

“The first objective is to get the African team in a state of battle readiness… the Afro-Guyanese police and soldiers… would stand with Afro-Guyanese in resisting mainly Indo-Guyanese supporting the PPP/C,” he had said.

At a press conference held after the wanted bulletin was issued, WPA Executive Member Dr. David Hinds said Ogunseye had chaired the party’s executive meeting earlier in the day, and police had made no effort to contact him.

“He is not going to go into hiding, and he is not going to roll over and die,” he said. “He is ready to go down the road. He will not roll over and die and hide from the police or anybody.”

Dr. Hinds also accused the PPP/C General Secretary and Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo and Attorney General Anil Nandlall of influencing police action against Ogunseye.

“We intend to make the charges against Ogunseye a test of whether this government is a democratic government committed to all the tenets of democracy or is it a government that is prepared to govern by fear by muzzling those who come out in the open space and speak and trying to bully the opposition,” he said.