Rickford Burke, President of the Caribbean Guyana Institute for Democracy (CGID) and an organiser of New York’s Guyana 60th Independence Anniversary Jubilee celebrations, has raised concerns about what he describes as the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government’s treatment of the Guyanese diaspora, particularly African-Guyanese leaders living overseas.

In a social media post, Burke argued that the government’s reaction to the June 7 Independence parade in New York reflected what he called a “palpable and visceral” dislike for sections of the diaspora.

“The PPP government’s official position is that the epic Guyana Diamond Jubilee Independence parade in New York, on June 7, 2026, which attracted about 20K Guyanese, was an anti-PPP parade,” Burke wrote.