Blame the citizens

THE EDITOR: IF people insist on laying blame for the position the country is in now, they must start with themselves. In the PNM, supporters must blame themselves for buying into racism and an attempt to dominate and in the UNC, many must blame themselves for walking away because they believed the propaganda the PNM so successfully dished out. For the record, I too am to blame.

Further, even at the risk of taps running dry, jobs being lost, becoming the victims of crimes in all of its forms, discriminatory practice, racist policies and real corruption, many chose to work towards their Trinidad and Tobago being restored to a Afro-Christian-dominated society which is a view long held by PNM supporters who could not bear the thought of an East Indian, Hindu Prime Minister. When people say that it was Basdeo Panday who brought about the sharpest racial divisions in politics, they can only be right insofar as they are willing to admit that they themselves are racist and are of the view that Trinidad and Tobago can only be ruled by Afro-Christian leaders. To them, Panday or any other East Indian had no right to become Prime Minister. Dr Eric Williams ensured that such a belief was not only driven down the throats of his own generation of party faithful, but that it was a belief that would be passed on and rigidly upheld.

Today, supporters of the PNM are coming out of the honeymoon. They are seeing the division they allowed themselves to be swept up in and are realising that a lack of water, a lack of jobs and a lack of security and a lack of equity knows no race. And the leadership of the PNM has come up with a response —  the UNC is to blame. This after almost 18 months in office. The Prime Minister has gone so far as to say that the CEPEP programme was instituted to correct an historical imbalance. Translation — Indians made money in business for too long and now, we are making sure that you have an unfair advantage over them. Is that a statement for a Prime Minister to make?

The Prime Minister went further to say that the Opposition and by extension their supporters are irrelevant to the politics of Trinidad and Tobago. But he blames the UNC’s refusal to support them at the level of the legislature for his Government’s failure. He also said the PNM would pursue constitution reform with or without the Opposition, but blames the belligerence of the UNC for his Government's inability to act. Morvant, Laventille and Belmont have become the joint crime capitals of the country and the PNM solution is to embrace the criminal element. Mark Guerra had the attention of the Prime Minister, yet desperate workers, facing joblessness and poverty, were ignored by a smug Patrick Manning who quickly entered his car to escape their protest.

Are journalists asleep? Is there no one in our media brave enough to question the PM’s foolish contradictions and point out to him that if he is in control then he is the one to be blamed for failure? More than that, is the media still so unbending in its mission to support the PNM that it cannot tell the Prime Minister that he is speaking out of two sides of his mouth? And that he is sugar coating racist statements in what he thinks is a clever and intelligent manner? Is there no one who would point out to the National Security Minister that he is the man who should sleep the least comfortably at night because of the responsibility he has? Has the country just gone mad?

Is there no one who would question the reason for the PNM pursuing housing programmes in two constituencies where they managed to win by very narrow margins? This when the homes of others in safe Opposition constituencies are being bulldozed. The PNM has even taken to stage-managing a response to the WASA chief executive remuneration scandal. The Prime Minister has gotten involved and the Public Utilities Minister is now saying that he was following the precedent set by the former UNC administration, so if that Government was so corrupt, how the hell can you allow yourself to operate within structures that they operated?

It is clear that the PNM had no real intention to address corruption as they need the freedom to corrupt every process and institution in order to operate the way it wants too. The claims of corruption against the UNC will soon die out, even with the best efforts of PNM faithful in the media. And yet again, the PNM,  through its leader, would have foolishly thrown away its opportunity to cement its position in the Government. It is clear that the PNM cares little for what happens in the future. If everything collapses, they would have no problem as long as they are still in charge. I would advise the PM and his ministers that the next time they go abroad, they should take note of those around them, are others smiling with them, or laughing at them?

BF Rambally
Arima