Silver fox and cubs obstruct justice

THE EDITOR: After years of trying to project themselves as a national party, they build their whole parliamentary agenda round Caroni Ltd, pushing all other critical national interests to the background. This is a throwback to the 1970s when their predecessors were sarcastically referred to as a sugar cane party.

After years of preaching national unity to attract more Africans to the party, the major basis on which they discuss the Caroni Ltd issue is race. They are supporting efforts to block the Caroni VSEP when thousands of sugar workers, their supporters, eagerly want the VSEP. They demand debate on Caroni Ltd but when the government calls their bluff, they are caught with their proverbial pants down. The majority of victims of kidnapping are Indians. This means that statistically it is likely that these are mainly UNC supporters. Yet they refuse to support the Kidnapping Bill that is meant to get tough on kidnappers. They do not seem to mind that their supporters get kidnapped as long as the PNM looks bad.

The Silver Fox has run out of ideas. He is repeating the same 1960s lines, referring to second class citizens, discrimination and alienation: “I’d rather die than live like a second class citizen in my own country.” Yawn. During the 18-18 deadlock they shut down the parliament by obstructing the election of a Speaker. In the process they made a mockery of the parliament. For this obstruction, they are now warming the benches in the wilderness of the opposition. Still, in this new parliament they are obstructing again, threatening to support any legislation that needs their support, national interest or no national interest. They reneged on the Crowne Plaza Accord to force elections. They got elections, which they lost. Yet they are again reneging on another agreement — support for the Police Reform Bill. Some people never learn.

While they rant and rave about Caroni Ltd and make silly allegations about government spying, they fail to recognise that the single biggest fear among citizens is crime, particularly kidnapping. One of these days the man selling nuts on the highway may be kidnapped for ransom. I do not know of anyone who is not afraid of being kidnapped. But the UNC apparently lives on Mars so they aggressively pursue other issues instead of kidnapping. They repeatedly seek to raise trivial issues as matters of urgent public importance in parliament like the boy who cried wolf. So when there is really an urgent matter, they will run out of steam and have little effect.

PETER JAGROOP
Edinburgh Village
Chaguanas