The United National Congress embarked on a People’s Revolution beginning in October, inside and outside of Parliament. The purpose is to Restore and Rebuild Democracy in Trinidad and Tobago in the face of a sustained assault by Keith Rowley and the PNM.
The Time is Now to Remove the Darkness!
In making this call to the people of Trinidad and Tobago, the Leader of Opposition, Hon. Kamla Persad-Bissessar, SC, has raised important issues that all right thinking persons in the society should be concerned about, regardless of their political affiliations.
These include:
- The death of democracy
- The parallel economy and our parallel state
- The Police Service Commission crisis
- The Constitution
- People’s Revolution
Keith Rowley has crossed a dangerous line in his illegal effort to get rid of the former Police Commissioner.
PM Rowley does not appear to care about the law or the Constitution. He has taken our country to a dangerous point.
This crisis has kept Gary Griffith from remaining as COP today. Next time it could be about you, any one of you, not getting the promotion you deserve in your job, or getting fired for political reasons.
Next time it could be about:
- Government taking away your property;
- being arrested for posting something on social media that a Minister didn’t like;
- the Government imposing hardship after hardship on you illegally and with no recourse, in order to give to their friends, family, and financiers.
We will not let the PNM silence us. We will not let them get away with creating a dictatorship in Trinidad and Tobago,
- where the Prime Minister can do what he wants to choose a Commissioner of Police one that he likes, regardless of the law;
- where a President and Police Service Commission can withdraw a list without following any proper procedure, because the Prime Minister did not like what was on that list.
Once they reach this point, there is nothing that they will stop at.
Our independent institutions risk being nothing more than facades, they already compromised.
1. THE DEATH OF DEMOCRACY
It has famously been said that “Democracy dies in the darkness”
To the great disgrace of our country, both Houses of Parliament, the House of Representatives and the Senate, voted to keep you in the dark over the questions relating to interference in our independent institutions.
For whatever reason, the Government and Independent Senators voted to keep you in the Dark as to:
- why the President did not submit the Police Service Commission’s Merit List to Parliament as she was required by our law.
- why for the first time in our history, we do not have a Police Commissioner or Acting Commissioner in place. Nor do we have an independent Police Service Commission which can appoint a Police Commissioner.
- whether all this interference occurred.
However, as important as this particular issue is, the vote was about much more than this.
It was a vote about ensuring the sacred principles of our constitution remain intact. If we as a country allow Rowley to get away with this, if we allow him to cross this line and don’t restrain him to the constitution, he will interfere in everything and with everyone, without any limits or restraints.
We have a sacred principle that we wish to defend. That is the idea that Governments must serve the people, and not the other way around.
The Constitution has these principles enshrined within it. PM Rowley and the PNM want to ignore those aspects of the Constitution that do not serve them.
No one is above the rule of law. Not the Opposition Leader, not the Prime Minister and not Her Excellency the President. No one is above the law.
2. PARALLEL ECONOMY/ PARALLEL STATE
Lately we have heard lots of talk about the parallel economy which exists beneath our formal banking structures.
The events of the last few weeks have uncovered the operations of a parallel State. The actors in this parallel State operate above and beyond the reach of the Parliament and the Constitution. They are accountable to no one or so they think.
In order to keep this parallel State hidden, these actors shut down any debate or public discussion, and declare those that want answers as “disgraceful” and “disrespectful”.
So, we will continue to expose this parallel State now in operation.
We will continue to unmask the network of operatives who have hijacked our Constitution and killed our democracy.
When a government would use the resources of the state to find out the personal details of someone who made a negative comment about him and use a press conference to attack that person, our democracy is being undermined.
When an Attorney General will refuse to comment on children looking like his, illegally handling huge guns, they sweep it under the carpet, our democracy is being undermined. This illegal act was not prosecuted up to today.
When that same AG will brazenly lie to the Parliament, our democracy is being undermined.
When a Member of Parliament will bring fake emails to the Parliament making wild and unsubstantiated claims of a conspiracy to commit murder, claims I believe he knew to be a lie which is why he did not report it to the police for months, but instead brought it to Parliament…our democracy is being undermined.
Rowley knew those emails were fake, because one of the players in that conspiracy that you attempted to expose was Gary Griffith. Gary Griffith, in a conspiracy to murder a reporter, and you come thereafter and appoint Gary Griffith as Commissioner of Police. So he knew they were fake.
When an entire Cabinet refuses to call an election for a Local Government seat in Debe South for the last 8 months, depriving thousands of residents of their democratic right of representation, our democracy is being undermined.
When Cabinet members recuse themselves over 200 times because some business they or their families are involved in is to be discussed and decided upon in the Cabinet so their friends and colleagues could approve the deals, our democracy is being undermined.
When a Prime Minister will breach Covid regulations and hold a secret meeting with Oil Barons from Venezuela and then lie about it, our democracy is being undermined.
As scripture teaches us – I repeat – what is done in the dark will soon come to light. He could run but he cannot hide!
3. THE POLICE SERVICE COMMISSION CRISIS
There are questions that STILL need answers. These are:
1. Why did the President first say she received a merit list from the Police Service Commission but now saying a list was submitted and then withdrawn?
2. Who withdrew this list and why?
3. Was the list withdrawn on instructions from Rowley?
4. Why did the entire Police service commission resign in chaos?
5. Why was Rowley writing to the Police Service Commission last year trying to influence the re-selection of Gary Griffth as Commissioner of Police?
6. Is the reason Keith Rowley lost confidence in Gary Griffth was because of the fact that Gary locked up Stuart’s daughter and was going after DSS and a certain MP from that area. And the fact that the TTPS is investigating Credit Card Camille for bank deposits?
7. Is the reason Rowley lost confidence in Gary is because Gary is more popular than Rowley in the polls?
8. On what Constitutional authority did the President return the merit list to the former Chairman Bliss Seepersad?
9. Why did the President not disclose this information to the Court?
As a former Court of Appeal judge she knows of the rules of FULL DISCLOSURE.
10. Why did the President breach S.123(4) of the Constitution by not forwarding to Parliament the list for Acting COP for its consideration as she is constitutionally mandated to do?
11. Who was the unnamed high public official mentioned in ROGER KAWALSINGH’S resignation letter who allegedly unlawfully interfered in the business of the POLSC at President’s House on August 11or 12 ?
Again the stories keep coming and they keep changing
12. Why are there so many different versions about the events and dates when events transpired? Which version is true?
4. CONSTITUTION
Our Constitution contains provisions which govern the process for removing a President from office. You cannot deny also the right of Opposition Members of Parliament to trigger those provisions, as we had done.
We have tested the Constitution and some of the reactions to that exercise have been very telling.
People are suddenly aware of the practical realities of in-built government majorities in the Senate, the calculated and impossible 2/3 requirement of the Electoral College, the relevance of so-called Independent Senators, the role of the Speaker and the deliberate secrecy of a President who is not elected by the people.
Regrettably, we appear to have never moved beyond the plantation society; we have only replaced the Governor’s Mansion with the President’s House.
The Constitution was tested last week, many things were demonstrated.
The short point is that the government in power can do almost anything and get away with it. Those who protest are told to shut up and are branded disgraceful.
We need Constitutional Reform because the structures are colonial structures designed to keep people under pressure. Designed to have the Government have their knee to the necks of the ordinary people.
People’s Revolution
We see the People’s Revolution as something we must do as we battle this Rowley dictatorship.
This is not a revolution of violence, of ill-will or any malice to destabilise our nation.
The United National Congress was named after the uniting of Mahatma Gandhi’s Indian National Congress and Nelson Mandela’s African National Congress. They fought for the freedom of their people and inspired the world. We strive to follow in their footsteps and fight for the freedom and emancipation of the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
Like the October Revolution in another country, we are here to fight against the abusive power by would-be Kings, Queens, Czars, and Czarinas. We are fighting for a democratic Republic, against the PNM and Rowley dictatorship.
We will continue to engage in parliamentary action, but we will also take action with our loyal and trusted supporters, and with all other people who love freedom and democracy in Trinidad and Tobago and do not want to be ruled over by a Rowley dictatorship.
We will be engaging in on the ground mobilisation of party members, public education and participation, international outreach, and outreach to non-traditional voters.
PM Rowley will not get away with destroying our institutions in order for him to get his own way.
The People’s Revolution will save Trinidad and Tobago. It is a movement, local, national and international, to build a modern Parliamentary democracy in Trinidad and Tobago built upon the foundation of the Constitution and the law!
Our revolution will be of united strength to stand up to those in our nation who believe they have the divine rights of Kings and Queens.
Our revolution would be a peaceful one united in purpose aimed at politically demolishing those forces which prevent the citizens of our nation from enjoying the standard of living they deserve and preventing our citizens from accomplishing the goals they have and prevent them from progressing.
The corruption, neglect and mismanagement of the Rowley regime have spread like a virus to every public institution of our nation plunging us into a national crisis.
For too long they have burdened you with high taxes without equitable returns in our own lives.
For too long they have abandoned the issues we need to live, such as your right to proper roads, jobs, affordable food, addressing crime and even education for our children.
No longer can the people of this nation exist in these perilous conditions.
No longer can the people of our nation prosper in a society when the Highest office has been tainted by possible political bias.
We see all across the country citizens have been rising up demanding better from this Government which does nothing but squander and pocket their taxes.
I say to the citizens of T&T, join the revolution for if we do not fight for a better tomorrow, no one else will. We cannot sit and wait for better days.
We must act. Let us transform this nation into one that truly serves the people.