Perverting history is an abuse of power

The effect of those amendments was to change the motion to now assert the claim that it was Kamaludin Mohammed, a PNM government minister and not Arthur N R Robinson, the Member of Parliament for Tobago East in opposition, who had in fact proposed the 1977 parliamentary motion for internal self-government for Tobago. As well-established as it had been otherwise and, despite earlier debates in which such a claim had never been advanced nor denial of the role of Mr Robinson made, here it was that Mr Orville London, Chief Secretary, with the support of every other PNM member in the Assembly for the very first time since the inception of the Assembly in 1980, attempting to rewrite history on the infamy of the PNM towards Tobago, with this outlandish assertion.

Never before have we witnessed such a perversion of our political history. Such action constitutes not only a disservice to Tobago but is evidence of a blatant and deliberate abuse of political power under this PNM-controlled Assembly. To quote the columnist Winford James, whose comments we wish to endorse when he wrote that such action "was not only unnecessary but . . . wretched and insufferable" more so because it was intended "to manipulate the historical record for some recondite political benefit."

Mindful of the PNM’s recent comments on the issue of political morality in public life, we wait to see the extent of Mr London’s political maturity and ethical values in correcting, as he must, such a damnable and outrageous attempt at misrepresenting this island’s political history. If as Chief Secretary, Mr London is so concerned about altering the negative image of the PNM’s history of involvement in Tobago and towards Tobago, then perhaps he and his assemblymen should use their moment in time now, to rid Tobago of its shackles of dependency upon Trinidad, in preference for a relationship of choice based on genuine internal self governance.

CHRISTO G GIFT
Chairman, NAR (Tobago)