Pandering to Panday

Panday has been properly acknowledged as the founder of the UNC, child of the several predecessor efforts he consolidated over the decades in his successful quest for the grail of political power.

It is Panday the man whom the masses revere despite his human frailties.

The UNC has come too far along the road of plurality to succumb to religious diktat. Panday has properly declined the vestment of religious leadership and defined his position as a secular one.

It is Panday’s transcending of religious bias in national leadership which commands my respect.

When his people expected that his rule would be given to partiality, he disappointed them. If they believe that Dookeran has any hope of mass support, they have ruined it by offering him as a Hindu leader.

The fringe support their candidate will receive is doomed to political oblivion and Dookeran will not even have the opportunity of disappointing them as an even handed ruler.

The national political tapestry is far from defined. While the UNC seems inept, the PNM is seen as dangerously close to an inefficient dictatorship of an increasingly criminal society.

The 28 percent electorate that is not committed to tribalism may turn out to be again a potent segment in tipping the scales. Panday is wise enough to recognise his own legal constraints. But he is well aware of his personal political power and charisma.

He is now perched upon an opportunity to lead from the back seat as Williams had hoped. If his disciples listen well, they may walk the corridors of power again in new wardrobes.

If Dookeran would like to be transformed into tomorrow’s frontline, he should try a diet of humble pie.

MFRahman

Mfr1@tstt.net.tt