Michael Kozak, acting Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of Western Affairs of the U.S. State Department has congratulated newly appointed President Dr Irfaan Ali.
“Democracy rules in Guyana!” Kozak said in a statement on Twitter.
He added: “Today, Mohamed Irfaan Ali was sworn in as president, reflecting the will of the Guyanese people.
“We congratulate President Ali & look forward to working with all to support Guyana’s development for the benefit of all its people.”
Last Thursday Kozak announced a new set of visa sanctions against “senior officials” here he said were responsible for or complicit in undermining democracy.
The U.S. first announced visa sanctions on July 15.
Following his announcement, Kozak took to Twitter to pile further pressure on David Granger and his Coalition to accept that they have lost the elections and should step aside and allow the swearing-in of the PPP’s Irfaan Ali.
In a tweet, Kozak stated Thursday night: “The U.S. will not stand by as the Granger administration continues to defy the will of the Guyanese people.
In announcing further visa sanctions last Thursday, he had said that the Granger administration and its allies continue to defy the will of the Guyanese people by refusing to accept the vote count.
He vowed that the United States and the rest of the Western hemisphere will not go along with the farce and “will continue to act until the Granger administration accepts the will of Guyanese voters.”
On Sunday, the President accepted the declaration of the Guyana Elections Commission that Irfaan Ali won the elections.
Thank you USA, you were not the only one that stood for democracy but probably the most important one. Anyway you owed us for supporting the not so great Kabaka in the cold war era. But the right thing was done this time around and we as a nation are grateful. Your Ambassador is a gem and she is joined by her peers and the Caricom/OAS/Commonwealth Leaders .