Dennis: PNM performance beats old talk

PNM supporters listen to speakers at a PNM Tobago Council meeting on Tuesday.
PNM supporters listen to speakers at a PNM Tobago Council meeting on Tuesday.

Electoral Representative for Buccoo/ Mt Pleasant Ancil Dennis has taken a swipe at critics of the PNM as he declared the party is currently in election mode.

Speaking at a PNM Tobago Council meeting at the Hampden/Lowlands Multipurpose Facility on Tuesday, Dennis said he is already feeling the political fever and is getting excited.

He said, “I don’t know about you but whenever I mount a political platform, whether it’s a year before elections, two years before, two nights or the night before an election, I am tremendously excited. As a matter of fact, I am more excited that any other time, I am more excited that when I am in the house, I am more excited that when I am at functions, because I understand the importance of elections and I understand that I am part of a great party called the PNM.”

Dennis, who serves as an Assistant Secretary in the Office of the Chief Secretary, called on Tobagonians to look at the strides made under the PNM.

He said prior to the meeting he sat and reflected on the performance of the party for the past 18 years.

“Tobago has come a tremendously long way under the PNM. During the London era of 2001 to 2017, Tobago was significantly transformed, and I want to suggest as well that under the Kelvin Charles era from 2017, and hopefully until 16 more years, Tobago will be reformed. The PNM is not only about transformation, but we are also about reformation.”

Dennis said Tobago was not in a healthy state prior to PNM coming into office in 2001.

“Of course, prior to 2001, Tobago was in serious trouble. We lacked important facilities such as a General Hospital, we lacked community facilities, we lacked sporting facilities, we lacked persons – in terms of persons with degrees and other levels of tertiary education. Tobago was in fact in a difficult place but of course in the year 2001 God smiled on Tobago and the PNM came into office…Between 2001 to 2017, the London administration transformed Tobago and transformed Tobago significantly.”

Dennis said he was heartened during last weekend’s retreat of the Executive Council in Chaguaramas, as it was only then that he realised “the administration in its first two years in office delivered on over 50 per cent according to its manifesto.”

Dennis said although the PNM has its critics, people must pay close attention to what the detractors are saying.

“Within recent time some interesting persons are coming forward offering themselves as an alternative to the PNM…Within recent times, a million-dollar man, and I wouldn’t say much more than that than to tell you that all of us went to school and all of us can count. Therefore, to give each Tobagonian $1 million, you need at least $40 billion, and even if you want to do it in parts as he suggested, $200,000 a year for five years, that is still $8 billion per year. I’m saying when you do the math, that figure is $5 billion in excess of Tobago’s allocation. Yuh big and yuh have sense.

“And within recent time, you have the PVR party – Pumpkin, Visine and Ringbang – and all of a sudden they want to talk with one voice, all of a sudden they are saying that Tobagonians should speak with one voice, but I want to remind allyuh because allyuh does forget sometime, do the necessary reflections, think back around 2017, and for those of you who were around prior to 2001, think back on the performance on the PNM, think back on what this administration continues to do. As a matter of fact, don’t even think, get in your car and drive and I guarantee you that you would see that this administration under the leadership of Kelvin Charles is performing and performing well.”

Comments

"Dennis: PNM performance beats old talk"

More in this section