Success is stopping drugs from coming into Guyana- CANU

Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) Director James Singh has stressed that success in Guyana’s fight against illegal drugs cannot be measured solely by seizures, but by preventing narcotics from entering the country.

“Sometimes we view success differently. For CANU, our aim, our mandate, is to stop the flow of narcotics. I would have said this before—standing on 4.4 tonnes is not a success. We found it, but it should not have arrived in the first place,” Singh said, referring to a seizure last year of 4.4 tonnes of cocaine at an illegal airstrip, carried out in collaboration with the Guyana Defence Force Special Forces.

Singh emphasized that the unit continues to strengthen deterrence measures in partnership with local and international agencies. “We continue to work on putting up a strong deterrence that Guyana will not allow the flow of drugs into their country, and that’s why we are working with our international partners,” he added.

When asked about border security, Singh said interagency collaboration remains critical. “Guyana, as a result of our interagency collaborations, is working to strengthen our borders and working with our international partners to ensure [security],” he noted.

Addressing concerns about arrests along the borders, Singh stressed that success cannot be defined only by seizures or apprehensions. “Like the police force, our job is to stop the flow of drugs coming into Guyana and at times we would have held foreigners with large quantities of cocaine and prosecuted them. I’m not going to label and say all Venezuelans or all members from another territory are involved in drugs. What I will say is that the drugs are coming from Venezuela into Guyana,” he said.

Singh’s remarks underscore CANU’s focus on proactive prevention, rather than reactive enforcement, as the core of Guyana’s anti-narcotics strategy.