Guyana’s naturalisation system needs urgent reform and greater transparency, according to We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) Shadow Minister of Home Affairs Toshana Famey Corlette, who is calling for the government to publish comprehensive figures on the number of foreigners being granted Guyanese citizenship.
Corlette told Kiskadee Watch on Saturday that the Government owes the public a clear account of how the naturalisation system is being administered, particularly given the level of ministerial discretion involved in granting citizenship. “The Government has the information. Where are the comprehensive 2025 and 2026 to date figures?” she asked.
She said she has observed that there has been a change in the People’s Progressive Party/Civic’s position on naturalisation since it moved from Opposition into Government. While in Opposition, she recalled that the party had strongly criticised the APNU+AFC administration over the naturalisation process and demanded information on how foreigners were being granted Guyanese citizenship.
She referred specifically to concerns raised by then Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo in 2019, but said that by 2023, with the PPP/C in Government, there was a “blackout” on current naturalisation figures despite requests for information from then Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn.
“This is the problem I have with our politics: the standard seems to change depending on who is sitting in Government,” Corlette expressed. “You cannot demand transparency when you are in Opposition and then become comfortable with secrecy when you get into office.”
She is now demanding the publication of annual statistics showing how many people applied for naturalisation, how many applications were approved or rejected, how many remain pending and how many people received citizenship through ministerial discretion. She has also questioned why such information should only become available when politicians ask questions or journalists investigate the matter.
“Why should Guyanese have to wait for a politician to ask a question or a newspaper to investigate before we get basic information about who is being granted citizenship?” she asked.
She noted that greater transparency is particularly important because the naturalisation process allows for ministerial discretion. “When you have a system where a Minister has significant discretion over naturalisation, a lack of transparency becomes even more concerning,” she observed, noting that that discretion without adequate oversight could create opportunities for “political favouritism, abuse and corruption.”
Corlette, however, stressed that the concerns should not be interpreted as opposition to immigration or to foreigners becoming Guyanese. “I have no problem with a Venezuelan, Cuban, Brazilian, Indian, American, Nigerian or anyone else becoming Guyanese if they meet the requirements and genuinely want to make Guyana their home. But the same rules must apply to everyone.”
Corlette is calling for stronger safeguards around the naturalisation process, including proper identity verification, immigration checks, criminal and security vetting, and verification of supporting documents. She also wants any exercise of ministerial discretion to be accompanied by a written justification and a documented legal basis where an applicant is granted an exception to the ordinary requirements.
At the same time, she said annual statistics could be published without compromising applicants’ privacy. “This is not anti-immigrant. The issue is whether Guyanese citizenship is being protected from abuse, political favouritism and corruption.”
Corlette is also proposing independent oversight of the naturalisation process, clear eligibility criteria and measures to reduce opportunities for arbitrary decisions. The Government, she said, should “open the books” on the naturalisation system and provide the public with evidence that citizenship is being granted through a fair, transparent and secure process. “Citizenship is too important for Guyana to operate on a ‘trust us’ basis.”
Just recently, Shadow Minister of Home Affairs for A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) Sherod Duncan shared some of the same sentiments that Guyana’s naturalisation system requires major reforms to make the process more transparent and accountable, including clearer eligibility criteria, documented reasons for ministerial decisions, stronger security vetting and independent oversight.
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