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US-sanctioned PPP member, Mae Thomas, will not be a candidate for elections, says VP Jagdeo
Disgraced Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and member of the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C), Mae Thomas
Kaieteur News – Disgraced Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and member of the People’s Progressive Party, Mae Thomas, will not be on the PPP’s list of candidates for the upcoming elections slated to be held on September 1, 2025.
This is according to Vice President and PPP General Secretary, Bharrat Jagdeo. “Mae Thomas- we have not put out our list of candidates as yet…” he said at his press conference on Thursday. When asked if she is eligible, Jagdeo declined to answer, noting, “I’m not gonna enter into that debate, wait on our list…”
However, when pressed further, the GS said, “The way I see it, I don’t know. I don’t think she wants to be on the list, but the way I personally see it, no, she will not be on the list, that’s how I see it personally.”
He added that the party has not debated such matters as yet. Further, the Vice President pleaded that the focus should not be on Thomas. He said, “Please don’t make Mae the issue here, you have a big sanctioned man for 10,000 kilograms of gold that caused Mae to get sanctioned, and he- now is poor Mae you going after.”
Vice President and PPP General Secretary, Bharrat Jagdeo.
In June 2024, Thomas resigned as a member of the PPP’s Central Committee after she was sanctioned by the United States Government, specifically the US Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), for allegedly taking bribes to facilitate the award of government contracts, passports and gun licences to sanctioned Guyanese businessmen Nazar and Azruddin Mohamed.
At one of his press conferences in September 2024, Jagdeo revealed that Thomas remained on paid leave. She had proceeded on leave after the sanctions were imposed.
OFAC, in a statement, said that as Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs from October 2020 through August 2023, Thomas allegedly used her position to offer benefits to Mohamed’s Enterprise and Azruddin, among others, in exchange for cash payments and high-value gifts. It was stated, “Thomas misused her position to influence the award of official contract bids and the approval processes for weapons’ permits and passports on behalf of Mohamed’s Enterprise. A corrupt Permanent Secretary could manipulate procurement processes to suit their preferred bidder by providing inside information at the early stages of evaluation. Access to a Permanent Secretary of any Ministry could afford contractors insight into upcoming projects and bid values. Permanent Secretaries can act as the legal authority to sign contracts on behalf of their ministry.”
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- 2025 General Elections., Azruddin Mohamed, Bharrat Jagdeo, Mae Thomas, People's Progressive Party, PPPC, US sanctions
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