Woman power in THA race

And the January 23 Tobago House of Assembly (THA) election, just days away, is no exception.

Of the 39 candidates contesting the election, 14 are women.

The ruling People’s National Movement (PNM) has three candidates, two of whom are first-timers in the election race, while the Christlyn-Mooreled Tobago Forwards and the fledgling Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP), each have four women on their respective slates. The Movement for Transformation (MFT), led by former PNM minister and Tobago East MP Eudine Job-Davis, also has a slate of three women.

More than an attempt to make up numbers in the 12 electoral districts up for grabs in the poll, women comprise more than one-quarter of the slates in the respective political parties - a reality, they feel, reflects a need to play a more significant role in the island’s development.

“Women carry a political organisation, yet they have always been afraid to come forward,” said Beverly Ramsey-Moore, the Tobago Forwards candidate for Black Rock/Whim/Spring Garden. “But, I want to commend all of the women who have given of themselves to public service.” Ramsey-Moore said the number of women in the political fray this time around suggests a desire to have their voices heard.

For her part, though, it is an opportunity to continue the work she began years ago.

“My campaign has been going really well because people are aware of my track record of service to people and communities throughout Tobago,” she said.

No stranger to politics, Ramsey- Moore served as the representative for what was then known as Black Rock/Whim in the THA, between 1992 and 2000. Despite the misgivings of many, she said women have a tremendous role to play in politics on the island.

“It (politics) has never been as easy for us as it has been for the men,” she observed. “You have to be thick-skinned and able to withstand the personal attacks and the way some men treat women generally. That is perhaps the reason why many women have shied away from politics, But, I really want to commend those who have offered themselves.” Ramsey-Moore, manager of the Black Rock-based Katzenjammers Steel Orchestra, said a return to the THA, would give her an opportunity to be “closer” to its resources to assist the less fortunate and build stronger, more dynamic communities.

She told Sunday Newsday: “We need to provide support to our families because they are the bedrock of our society and if we want to rekindle that love and move Tobago forward, we need dynamic women to play a more powerful role.” Ramsey-Moore praised Tobago Forwards political leader Christlyn Moore, whom she said, was brave to take up the mantle of the party’s leadership.

“We have never had a woman in charge of the THA and I think that Moore is special. She is a brilliant lawyer and very grassroots - a woman of substance who needs to be given an opportunity to lead Tobago as Chief Secretary,” she said.

Asked if she was inspired by any of the female politicians on the island, Ramsey-Moore said former Tobago MP Pamela Nicholson was her mentor.

“I admired her fighting spirit,” she said of Nicholson. “Sister Pam carried Tobago on her head. When she spoke and passed through your community, you saw that she really cared about people and she made an impact in sport, community development and the youth.” The Tobago East MP from 1981 to 2000, Nicholson, a teacher by profession, was the first Tobago woman to be appointed as a government minister and the first MP to represent both Tobago East and West. The Charlotteville-born politician, now maintaining a low profile, was among a small core of women who, through their involvement in Tobago’s politics, helped advance the quality of life for the island’s citizens over the years.

These include another former PNM Tobago East MP Eudine Job-Davis, now leader of the newly-formed MFT, which is contesting just three seats in the election, and attorney Deborah Moore-Miggins, who, for over two decades, was part of various political groupings, including the now defunct Democratic Action Congress (DAC), the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) and more recently, the Tobago Organisation of the People (TOP). The latter is not contesting the THA election. During her stint in the THA, Moore-Miggins also had served as minority leader with her own People’s Empowerment Party. Others who have been part of the Tobago political scene include Cynthia Alfred, a one-time Deputy THA Chief Secretary and representative for Bacolet/Mt St George; Claudia Groome-Duke, outgoing Secretary for Health and Social Services, and Secretary for Community Development and Culture Dr Denise Tsoi-a-Fatt- Angus, who, last July, was one of the candidates in the PNM Tobago Council leadership race.

Tr a c e y - D a v i d - son-Celestine, outgoing representative for Parlatuvier/L’Anse Fourmi/Speyside and Secretary for Tourism and Transportation, had also contested the leadership of the PNM’s Tobago Council.

But there is a new generation of women keen on taking the baton from those who have gone before. One such woman is Sparkle Taylor, the Tobago Forwards candidate for Parlatuvier/Lanse Fourmi.

At 28, Taylor is hoping to tackle issues relating to the youth, women and the elderly if elected as the representative for her area in the THA.

“Women can impact children’s rights and gender-sensitive issues, things that men may not look at in a particular way.

We have to be part of the decision-making process,” Taylor said before the start of a walkabout in Speyside, Tobago East. The Castara native, who has worked extensively in social services, said people were crying out for help in all facets of life and needed change.

“I can’t get away from it. I often see about people before myself,” she joked.

However, the former Roxborough Secondary student, who regarded Ramsey-Moore as one of her mentors, observed that many young people have not expressed an interest in voting.

“I have to capture them, not through speeches on platforms but by walking through the communities,” she said.

Looking ahead, Taylor wants Tobago to ultimately feed itself. She also called for greater respect for fishermen, whom she insisted, must be treated as professionals. Tobagonians, she said, must be able to live off the tourism sector.

For consultant Dr Faith B Yisrael, the PDP’s candidate for Belle Garden/Goodwood, it was Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley’s perceivably dismissive attitude to questions about the government’s proposed Sandals project which encouraged her to enter politics.

She told Sunday Newsday: “It was prompted by the utter disrespect of the prime minister on Sandals.

The people kept asking for information on it but instead, he said other islands had already accepted it, insinuating that Tobagonians were stupid and should stop asking questions. That was the final nail in the coffin.” Yisrael, who holds a doctoral degree in Public Health, said her move to enter politics, was also triggered by the absence of concise data in the THA.

“I have worked in the THA for several years and I realized that many of the final decisions made were not based on data and correct information but were taken haphazardly,” she said.

“So, I said instead of complaining, I should be part of the solution.” Yisrael, who teaches at COSTAAT, said women have long been involved in the decision- making process.

“We have been at the backbone in all spheres of life-making decisions, so politics is just about taking that to the next level,” said Yisrael, who is in her late 30s. She added that the Watson Dukeled PDP’s mandate going forward was informed by the “bowels of the people on the ground.” “That is why it is a mandate and not a manifesto,” she said.

On the hustings, Yisrael said, people have been complaining about bias in employment opportunities and the distribution of services.

“They simply want that to end,” she said.

Although pleased with the number of women who have offered themselves as candidates in the election, Marisha Osmond, PNM aspirant for Golden Lane/ Plymouth, said there was still lots of room in the inn.

“It is still not enough but I am glad that women are coming to the fore to have a greater say in governance and the in the lives of people,” she said. “It shows that they are no longer timid and are willing to offer themselves for public scrutiny.” A teacher at St Andrew’s Anglican School, Osmond, who contested the Plymouth/ Golden Lane seat in the 2001 THA election, said a restructuring of the village councils throughout the island was high on her agenda.

“They have not functioned as they should because of the absence of proper channels and systems,” she said. Osmond said she also was interested in developing mechanisms to bridge the gap between average Tobagonians and their respective representatives in the THA.

“Too often people complain about not seeing the people they put in power and people can really become saturated by their (THA) Divisions. So, proper structures need to be put in place,” she said.

Osmond, who was involved in party groups as a young girl, regarded the PNM as the only entity to lead the THA.

“I love their policies and structures. It shows that it is much more than a party. The PNM is an organization,” she said.