Tweets from U.S lawmakers must be taken seriously – Nandlall

Attorney General Anil Nandlall has pushed back strongly against suggestions that recent tweets by two US Congress members criticising political developments in Guyana are frivolous or orchestrated.

Speaking Tuesday night, Nandlall argued that social media posts from senior US lawmakers carry weight and reflect serious policy positions, not random commentary.

His comments come after Florida Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar posted on X (formerly Twitter) that Guyana deserves leaders who “respect democratic values” and that “individuals sanctioned for illicit activities must not be allowed to jeopardise this vital relationship”.

Similarly, Congressman Carlos Gimenez accused Venezuela’s regime of trying to interfere in Guyana’s politics through a “pro-Maduro puppet candidate”, businessman Azruddin Mohamed, who is sanctioned by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Nandlall told reporters that such posts should not be dismissed or trivialised. “We have had experiences here in Guyana where US officials of the highest rank have used social media to announce significant policy positions,” he said, recalling statements made on X by then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during Guyana’s 2020 election crisis.

“President Trump practically popularised Twitter for global diplomacy. It is now an accepted platform for governments and lawmakers to state official positions,” Nandlall argued. He added that US Congress members “don’t just post anything handed to them — they take informed positions based on intelligence and investigations.”

He took aim at sections of the local media and opposition figures who, he said, are suggesting that the tweets are part of a political plot by the Guyana government. “Are they implying that US Congress men and women have no integrity? That they are just rubber stamps to post anything given to them? That is shocking,” Nandlall said.

He added: “I would think these are accomplished men and women. If they say something like this, it must come from credible sources. You don’t think Congressman Gimenez would have done his own work before calling out an OFAC-sanctioned individual?”

The Attorney General urged the public and the media to focus on the substance of what was said rather than “attacking the messengers”.