Panday:UNC not moving on CCJ

OPPOSITION LEADER Basdeo Panday declared that no Caricom initiative will force the United National Congress (UNC) to support the establishment of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) in Trinidad and Tobago. 

Addressing a UNC meeting at the Arima Town Hall on Monday night, Panday was adamant there would be no Opposition support for the CCJ unless the Government initiates constitutional reform in the country.
Addressing People’s National Movement (PNM) supporters in Rio Claro on Saturday, Prime Minister Patrick Manning said Government would welcome Caricom intervention to persuade the UNC to support the CCJ. However the UNC leader insisted Caricom would be wasting its time on that score. “We have not reneged on our position of support for the CCJ. We will still support the CCJ but there is something that is more important and that is constitutional reform. When I saw the way (retired Chief Justice Clinton) Bernard behaved (at the Piarco Commission of Inquiry). When I saw the way (retired Justice Lennox) Deyalsingh behaved. I say we have a constitutional arrangement, a Constitution that allows people like Bernard to become Chief Justice of this country. If the Constitution allows that, something wrong with the Constitution.

If  the Constitution allows people like Deyalsingh to become a High Court judge and to stay there, something wrong with the Constitution. So the Constitution has to change so that you can ensure that people like this does not qualify to be Court of Appeal. The Constitution has to be amended before we support the CCJ,” he declared. Claiming there was nothing to stop Government from appointing either Bernard or Deyalsingh to the CCJ, Panday reiterated: “Constitutional reform first so we could ensure that crazy people, vindictive people and people who have political axe to grind don’t get there.” The UNC leader warned that if this is not done, the PNM “intend to pervert the course of justice at the highest possible level”.  Panday then renewed his ongoing feud with House Speaker Barry Sinanan, accusing Sinanan of gradually eroding the Opposition’s speaking power in Parliament.  “You (Sinanan) get the hell out of that Parliament, nobody elected you,” he declared. The UNC leader added that Sinanan was “the beneficiary of PNM corruption” and is “singing for his supper”.

Panday said Government could manoeuvre as much as it wanted on the issue but “sooner or later I’m going to win this battle for constitutional reform.” The UNC leader slammed Government for planning to bring in Cuban doctors to fill vacancies in the local health sector and claimed it was Cuban doctors who “mashed up Guyana”. Health Minister Colm Imbert announced on Friday that the first batch of Cuban doctors arrive in TT on July 23 while the group to coordinate their activities in the country, arrive on July 10.