Don’t Trust, Verify: Maya Parbhoe, “The Next Bitcoin President of Suriname”

Dear Bitcoin community,

I was in Suriname a few weeks ago with a goal in mind: to meet the local BTC community and, hopefully, the "presidential candidate" Maya Parbhoe. This was my experience.

While planning the trip, I reached out to Maya via her Telegram channel to explore the possibility of meeting. I was quickly referred to her “assistant” Terance, who responded promptly and told me to reach out once I arrived. Okay, fair enough — who am I to demand time from someone “running for president”? (At the time, I didn’t yet know she was pregnant.) After all, I’m not a famous Bitcoin celebrity. But I am a prominent figure in Curaçao’s booming Bitcoin community and had raised a considerable amount of funds for her campaign.

A few days before my arrival, I checked in again — same story. When I finally landed and reached out while strolling through Paramaribo — a city I hadn’t visited in over a decade — I couldn’t help but notice the drastic economic change. The exchange rate had gone from 1 USD = 3.5 SRD during my last visit to 1 USD = 35 SRD now.

Terance replied quickly and said he was at a café with another foreign guest (apologies, I forgot the person’s name and nationality). I took the opportunity and met them right away. I was warmly welcomed and treated with genuine Surinamese hospitality. We talked for over an hour about our lives, Bitcoin journeys, and ambitions.

Over the next few days, I met up with Terance again and had the pleasure of attending a lecture/course hosted by the local BTC Sranan community — held above what I’m told is Maya’s business (a parcel freight forwarding service from the U.S. to Suriname). I had drinks and met various local merchants. The lecture was given by an American missionary who moved to Suriname years ago to teach and decided to stay. His dedication and patience were truly inspiring — every educator should take note. I’m extremely grateful for his efforts and for all of BTC Sranan’s work toward merchant adoption and Bitcoin awareness.

Now, to the topic of this post: Maya Parbhoe

First and foremost, I’m not in the business of destroying reputations. I’m in the business of protecting ours — the true Bitcoiners. I want there to be a “next Bitcoin president,” and Suriname certainly deserves one.

But red flags were immediately raised when I asked the local Bitcoiners about Maya — they didn’t want to talk about her. Strange, right? You’d expect someone running for office under the Bitcoin banner to be a welcomed topic. But perhaps it’s better — and probably for the best — to separate the local Bitcoin community from one person’s political ambitions. Or so I thought.

While there, I dug deeper into her so-called “political campaign” and asked a variety of locals — from taxi drivers to businesspeople — about Maya. Not a single one (outside of Bitcoin circles) had heard of her. When I brought up her political party, the NPS, the general response was that it’s a minor, insignificant party with no real chance of winning.

A quick note on Surinamese politics: I won’t go too deep here, as I’m not intimately familiar with all the parties and political drama of past decades. But it’s important to know that Suriname is a parliamentary democracy. Voters elect a party, not a candidate, to represent them in parliament (the legislative branch). Generally, the winning party chooses the Minister-President (Prime Minister) to lead the government. Maya is listed as #21 (wink-wink) on the NPS candidate list.

Additionally, I could not find any mention of Bitcoin in the official communications from the NPS. So clearly, this isn’t an official stance of the party. Red flag.

So, her claim that she’s “running for president of Suriname” is, to put it mildly, a massive stretch. Furthermore, this narrative is only pushed to her international audience — through X, Nostr, podcasts, and events. Her local messaging (mainly via Facebook and local media) is entirely different. Another red flag.

Now, Suriname is known for corruption — and for serious threats to individuals who oppose power. Maya’s father was murdered in 2001, reportedly connected to a money laundering and trafficking case, where he had served as a whistleblower. I confirmed this through archived articles. So, potential threats to her life should be taken seriously, given the history and the current security climate.

That said, she had already begun claiming that there were threats against her — possibly based on the above. But during my stay, a new controversy arose: she was summoned to testify in a human trafficking case involving the import of people from India to Suriname. Odd. She claims this is an attack by authorities aligned with the ruling party. That might be true — but who really knows?

Also, she was pregnant. Not the most ideal timing to begin a presidential campaign — especially your first child. Red flag?

Then came a flood of claims about threats, political interference, and safety concerns — which, to be fair, is part of politics. But again, the narratives were drastically different depending on the audience — local vs. foreign. Just compare her Facebook posts to what she shares on X/Nostr. Red flag?

As I was leaving the country, the "security situation" escalated. She claimed to have hired 24/7 armed security — probably funded by international donations. If true, I’d consider that an unfortunate but understandable expense.

But things got weirder. I won’t repeat all the well-documented incidents — from cryptic social media posts to the bizarre “SOS” X-Space. At one point, she hired a professional security firm, which quickly dropped her. According to a reliable source, the CEO bluntly stated they stopped working with her and warned others against doing so.

Then she made the outrageous claim that she was being protected by the U.S. Secret Service (or some equivalent). This was so absurd it caught local media attention. When questioned, she said she made the post while “medicated” to ease pregnancy pains. Huge red flag.

Clearly, the way she has raised international funds is, to say the least, misleading. And if she truly believes in government transparency, Maya must start by being transparent herself. Justify where the donations went. Proof of funds, please.

I — and I suspect many of us — let wishful thinking get ahead of us.

Don’t trust. Verify.