President Irfaan Ali criticizes Transparency International’s corruption ranking for Guyana

President Irfaan Ali has strongly criticized the latest Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) report from Transparency International, questioning the methodology used to assess Guyana’s ranking. The President, speaking at an event at the Guyana Defence Force’s Headquarters in Georgetown on Thursday, suggested that political bias may have influenced the findings, which showed a slight decline in Guyana’s score from 40 points in 2023 to 39 in 2024.

This resulted in the country ranking 92nd out of 180 nations on the global corruption scale.

Transparency International’s report, released on Tuesday, highlighted concerns over the state of Guyana’s governance, accusing the country of being “captured by economic and political elites.” The report alleged that this has fostered resource misappropriation, illicit enrichment, and environmental crimes. It also pointed out that while anti-corruption institutions and laws have been established in Guyana, there remain low levels of transparency, weak law enforcement, and increasing attacks on dissenting voices, activists, and journalists.

President Ali rejected these assertions, particularly the claim that law enforcement against corruption is weak in Guyana. He countered, stating, “Well, I don’t know that enforcement is low. I know we have the best enforcement in the region.” He also criticized the lack of transparency in the creation of Transparency International’s report, questioning who the organization interviews and suggesting political bias in its assessments. “There’s a serious political bias for these… we have to bring accountability to these indicators,” the President said. “If you are interviewing someone with a bias, with a political motive or agenda, what do you expect to get?”