Panday slams Mouttet
The business community, particularly Chamber of Commerce President, Christian Mouttet, came in for a stinging attack Monday night from Opposition Leader Basdeo Panday, this time for its "hypocrisy," and its "illogical threats that the 36 MPs of TT do something about crime or else." "They are threatening to up the ante," Panday warned. "I didn’t know it was a poker game." He was speaking at the UNC’s regular Monday Night People’s Forum, at the Diego Martin Secondary School in Diamond Vale. The Opposition Leader, in full flight, first noted that it was ridiculous for Mouttet and the other TT businessmen to call for 36 MPs to act when Parliament — made up of the Lower and the Upper Houses had 67 members, 36 in the Lower House and 31 in the Senate, but he concluded that the group had said "36 MPs" because it and Mr Mouttet "just had to bring the Opposition in." "Imagine Mr Mouttet doesn’t know there are 67 MPs," he joked, much to the amusement of the Diego Martin crowd. As for Mouttet’s call for the Opposition to support the Police Reform Bills, Panday responded that the business group was demanding that the bills be debated, amended and passed simply because business was of the opinion these would solve crime. Mouttet he said cared nothing for the bills, whether they were bad, good or indifferent. He just wanted them passed. "That’s like the judge who tell the fella, ‘I go give you a fair trial, and then I hang you,’" Panday observed. Panday opined it was illogical to blame the Opposition for crime because the UNC could only "go to the House and talk." The Government possessed the resources and the Treasury, not the Opposition, and as such, the PNM had to do the job it was elected to do. He said business was asking the UNC to hold hands with the Government when this was "holding the hands of criminals." "We must deal with crime, but they (the PNM) hugging up criminals," he remarked wryly. He said the basis of Mouttet’s ultimatum was a guilty conscience for Mouttet had according to Panday, "put the PNM there." Panday also said he found it odd that the chamber had suddenly discovered that "enough was enough." This, he said, was because "the cows are coming home." He said the chamber was unconcerned when they were kidnapping people in Chaguanas, even saying, "that doh matter," but now that the kidnappings had reached the rich suburbs of Westmoorings and Goodwood Park, the chamber was saying "we have to do something about crime." He said he had a message for Mr Mouttet: the Opposition was doing its part to fight crime. It was trying to get rid of the PNM.
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"Panday slams Mouttet"