PM’s laryngitis highly contagious

Prime Minister Patrick Manning’s sudden bouts of voicelessness (laryngitis) at the weekend has become the talk of the town. Several people responding to Newsday’s “People in the Street” recommended that he try Diana’s Power Mints. Dennis “Sprangalang” Hall, who has come to be known as the man behind the popularity of Diana Power mints through television advertisements commented in his usual way: “Me eh feel that (Diana Power mints) will help. I don’t feel is the throat that need help, I feel is the mind! And I don’t feel Diana Power Mints could un-hoarse your mind. It eh make no difference with me you know. Politicians have a way that only what them say, right.”

However when Ronald Grosberg Jnr, General Manager of Diana Power Mints, was asked how he felt that his product was being recommended as a cure for the Prime Minister’s ailment, he laughingly said: “I am very happy. Diana Power Mints are very useful, and is a very good product. It is very good for sore throat. As a matter of fact, I too have a sore throat right now so I am going to have one, and I too will recommend it very highly to everybody with sore throat.” Meanwhile, laryngitis appears to be highly contagious as many of the usually talkative local talk show radio hosts were often barely audible while on the air yesterday morning, as they spoke of the Prime Minister’s see-saw laryngitis incidents over the weekend.

On Saturday night, after speaking at the awards ceremony of the network of non-governmental organisations of Trinidad and Tobago for the Advancement of Women at the Crowne Plaza,  Manning got an instant bout of laryngitis when asked for a comment on the resignation of his Labour Minister, Larry Achong. The following day in San Fernando, Manning again managed to catch another bout of laryngitis after addressing a CEPEP rally at Skinner Park, San Fernando. Once again, the question of  Achong’s resignation happened to make the Prime Minister’s laryngitis worse. This caused great concern for the public and they have since called for a good dose of Diana Power Mints to remedy Manning’s laryngitis.