ATTORNEY GENERAL (AG) and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall SC, on Tuesday evening, expressed his rebuke for what he described as “outlandish messages” and “incredulous promises” being made by political parties in the lead up to the 2025 elections and urged voters to hold leaders accountable at the polls.

Nandlall was at the time speaking during his weekly show “Issues in the News” during which he criticised the quality and credibility of statements made on the campaign trail, noting that some of the utterances show a disregard for the electorate’s intelligence.

He said the public must recognise the difference between what is credible and what is deliberately deceptive, noting that voters should no longer accept empty rhetoric or tolerate what he called “mental abuse” from politicians who appear to think they are smarter than the people they address.

According to Nandlall, such politicians are either attempting to deceive the public or believe voters are incapable of discerning truth from fiction, both of which, he noted, are equally insulting.
To this end, he noted that the most effective response would be at the polls, stating, “An electorate has the most effective way to react, and that is not to vote for a politician who continues to insult their intelligence.”

It was then that the attorney-general called out remarks made by APNU presidential candidate, Aubrey Norton, during a recent event where Norton reportedly told EU observers that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) would not be allowed to rig the upcoming elections.

Nandlall dismissed the statement as absurd, providing historical context in relation to electoral fraud that all pointed to the People’s National Congress/Reform (PNC/R), the main party from which Norton hails, which forms the APNU.

The Attorney General listed a series of rigged elections from 1968 to 1985, along with the attempted manipulation of the 2020 results, and further questioned why Norton would make such a statement in the face of “Volumes of incontrovertible evidence.”

Further to this, the AG took the time to respond to the APNU and other opposition parties’ promises to investigate “extra-judicial killings.”
He pointed out that prior to the 2015 elections, they pledged to launch commissions of inquiry within 100 days into various killings; however, no such action was taken when that party entered office.

Instead, he noted, former President David Granger had publicly stated that inquiries were not held into the killing of persons following the 2002 jailbreak and the ensuing crime wave, due to a lack of evidence and witnesses, a contradiction Nandlall cited as evidence of “rank dotishness” and political dishonesty.

He noted that the party continuously invoke the names of persons who were killed to create some level of unease, despite some of these cases already being taken before the country’s justice system.

“The justice system is delivering, but these political fraudsters who want to exploit these unfortunate tragedies are making it political narratives now and using it as ammunition… that is what they’re doing,” he said.

With this, he urged voters to use the upcoming general election on September 1 to demand a higher standard of political discourse, one that focuses on developmental issues such as job creation and poverty reduction.

“Politicians must stop this level of reason stupidity,” Nandlall said, adding that only the electorate has the power to bring about change by refusing to reward dishonesty and disrespect with their votes.