Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo called on supporters of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) to ensure a strong voter turnout and deliver a resounding victory at the September 1 polls.
Addressing a packed rally at Kitty Market Square for the official campaign launch, Dr Jagdeo highlighted the government’s key achievements since taking office in 2020, including job creation, education access, and tax relief.
“We have put over 60,000 people back to work,” he said. “Nearly 40,000 are now studying at the tertiary level, and we’ve made university free. This is what progress looks like.”
Dr Jagdeo emphasised that while the PPP/C enjoys wide support, complacency would be dangerous. “The massive victory I spoke of will be inevitable only if you do the work that is necessary between now and Election Day,” he said. “The internet doesn’t vote. People do.”
The former president also took direct aim at the main opposition and emerging political challengers, mocking their rally turnout and campaign platforms. He criticised PNC leader Aubrey Norton’s campaign launch and dismissed newcomer Azruddin Mohammed’s movement as lacking credibility and policy substance.
“Norton had 1,200 persons and called it a green wave. Mohammed had 300, half of whom he paid, and called it a blue wave,” he said. “If they had a wave, this is a tsunami touching Guyana.”
Dr Jagdeo also outlined a list of measures implemented by the PPP/C government over the past five years. These include the distribution of 50,000 house lots, the return of the children’s school cash grant, the doubling of old-age pensions, and the removal of over $50 billion in taxes.
He said public servants have seen wages and salaries increase by over $120 billion annually, while sugar workers, rice farmers, miners, and Amerindian communities have all received targeted support.
“Every group of Guyanese has been helped,” Dr Jagdeo said.
The rally drew a large crowd clad in red, with party activists distributing flyers and merchandise.
Dr Jagdeo concluded with a call for unity and mobilisation across the country. “We’re going to every community — Essequibo, Berbice, the hinterland. Just wait for us. You’ll see the strength of this party across Guyana.”
