Dear Editor,
SINCE taking office four and a half years ago, the PPP/C government led by President, Dr. Irfaan Ali; Prime Minister, Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips; and Vice-President Dr. Bharat Jagdeo has had an extremely extraordinary list of accomplishments in almost every region and every district of the country, including those in the most remote areas of the country.

These achievements are unheard off and unmatched in the first term of any previous government since Guyana attained its independence on May 26, 1966.
Their relentless, persistent and tenacious efforts have resulted in massive socio-economic expansion and growth in such areas as health care, education, especially at the pre-and-post-secondary levels, housing, agriculture, poverty and employment reduction, the gas-to-shore project, and last but not least, the economy.

Under Vice President Jagdeo’s tenure as President, the economy had progressed at a rapid pace, but during the last four years under President Ali’s, the country’s economy accelerated at a pace never seen before in the history of Guyana.
Together, they have also transformed the landscape of Guyana, thus moving it from an underdeveloped country category to a developing and middle-income nation status.
His Excellency’s impressive success at home was replicated on the border controversy with Venezuela shortly after the March 1, 2025, incursion by a Venezuela naval vessel into Guyana’s exclusive economic zone the Liza Destiny, an ExxonMobil oil facility in the county of Essequibo.
President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela request’s to meet with President Ali, ostensibly on recent developments on the border controversy, was strongly and flatly rejected by Guyana’s Head of State.

Needless to say, President Ali’s refusal to meet with President Maduro was proper and correct, mainly because of the Maduro regime’s ruthless, hostile and provocative aggression against Guyana and its citizens.
He made it very clear to President Maduro that Venezuela’s barefaced and un-provoked aggression towards Guyana, its blatant disregard for Guyana’s sovereignty and the flagrant disregard of the Argyle Declaration will not be tolerated.
The Argyle Agreement was a joint declaration signed on Thursday December 14, 2023 in Argyle, Saint Vincent by Guyana and Venezuela, with the pledge to continue dialogue and to not threaten or use force against one another, and promise to resolve their differences through peaceful means.
The truth is President Maduro has never kept his promises or honoured any agreements. The Maduro regime’s escalation in the decades old controversy between the two countries continues unabated and represents a significant escalation of Venezuela’s intimidation and harassment of Guyana’s oil exploration and extraction activities.

Another act of provocation was a statement by the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to conduct elections in the Essequibo region of Guyana in to elect a “Governor” and “Legislative Council.”
These plans by Maduro have not only exposed his reckless, stupid and infantile behaviour, but they also revealed his inept, indecent, crude and unstatesmanlike character.
In a terse and powerful statement, President Ali has rejected the threats by President Maduro to Guyana’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and has made it very clear that Guyana will not be intimidated or coerced.
The Head of State has said his government is open to dialogue and diplomacy on the border controversy, but not under duress, and that its sovereignty is non-negotiable.

President Maduro believes that by having fake talks with President Ali will end his isolation and weaken the support of Guyana’s friends and allies and give him a free rein to continue his aggression, but neither Guyana nor its friends and allies are taken in by his tricks.
President Ali was not alone in condemning Venezuela’s incursion into Guyana’s territory. Support came from the 15-nation CARICOM; Latin America; and several European Union members, but most of all the United States which has reaffirmed its support for Guyana’s territorial integrity, and issued a stern warning that further provocation will result in dire consequences for the Maduro regime. Our leaders are confident that the border controversy will be settled peacefully.
Yours respectfully,
Dr Asquith Rose