PM Manning vs Wade Mark in Senate

UNLIKE his surprise visit to the Senate last Tuesday to announce July 14 as the date for Local Government Elections, Prime Minister Patrick Manning will be no stranger to the Upper House when he returns there on Tuesday to answer questions posed to him by Senate Opposition Leader Wade Mark.

The UNC chairman will ask Manning, in his capacity as Finance Minister, to tell the nation the total sum appropriated to the Revenue Stabilisation Fund as of December 24, 2001, the total sum appropriated to the Fund between December 25, 2001 to the present, the total withdrawn from the Fund from December 25, 2001 to the present and what were the purposes of any such withdrawals. The questions come on the heels of allegations made last Friday in the Lower House by St Joseph MP Gerald Yetming. The former finance minister claimed Government has been tampering with the Fund. Mark will also ask the Prime Minister whether comprehensive legislation regarding the administration and management of the Fund has been drafted for introduction to Parliament. Planning Minister Dr Keith Rowley will also be in the Senate to answer Mark’s question about whether Government has a plan for Port-of-Spain which includes a relocated Parliament, Magistracy and Judiciary.

Normally silent UNC Senator Sadiq Baksh has questions on the Order Paper for Ministers John Rahael, Franklyn Khan and Martin Joseph respectively. Baksh will ask all three Ministers about different aspects of the San Fernando Waterfront Development Project. Despite Baksh’s ministerial portfolios of Works and Housing and his being San Fernando West MP from 2000 to 2002, the project never got off  the ground. The UNC will also ask Public Administration Minister Dr Lenny Saith to say whether or not agreement has been reached for the sale of Trinidad and Tobago Television (TTT) either as part of the National Broadcasting Network and whether the purchaser is a consortium of interests which includes Ambas-sador Extradordinare and Pleni-potentiary Jerry Narace.

Debate will continue on the Anti-Kidnapping Bill as well as Acts to amend the Commissions of Enquiry Act and the Supreme Court of Judiciary Act. Motions by Independent Senators Professors Ramesh Deosaran and Ken Ramchand about live, televised parliamentary debates and a Technical University of Trinidad and Tobago respectively will also come up for debate. Opposition motions on the implementation of Equal Opportunities legislation, Government’s ability to deal with real or perceived terrorist threats, regulating the banking industry and enabling anti-corruption legislation will also be debated. However the UNC’s no-confidence motion against Senate President Dr Linda Baboolal remains “missing in action” from the Senate Order Paper. The motion was withdrawn from the Order Paper in April when the UNC announced that it was not prepared to debate it. To date, the Opposition has been unable to say when the motion would be reintroduced.