Brian Manning gives his mum an early 'birthday gift'

Brian Manning delivered an early birthday gift to his mother on Monday night when he was victorious at the polls.

The San Fernando East MP-elect told Newsday: "Her birthday is today (Tuesday) but she got her present last night. I am not sure how old she is, and I don’t know if she wants me to say it.

"I will take her for lunch over the weekend."

Manning’s mother is Hazel Manning, a former education and local government minister. The mother of two is the widow of former prime minister Patrick Manning who died in July 2016 at 69.

The elder Manning was the longest-serving MP. He held the San Fernando East seat for 44 years (1971-2015).

Manning said he felt his father’s presence "everywhere" while on the campaign trail.

"Many people were profoundly touched by his leadership and the things he did in the constituency. It motivates me to do even more than he did.

"I am motivated to represent the people of San Fernando East in a manner to bring value to their lives," Manning said.

He repeatedly thanked burgesses for having faith and confidence in him to become their MP.

The seat is considered a PNM stronghold, but that did not prevent Manning and his team from fighting a vigorous campaign.

"We did not take it for granted, because we know the economy was challenging. There is a lot of work to be done," Manning said. "I personally walked about 99 per cent of the constituency ,because I wanted to meet with the people to introduce myself. I also wanted them to know that we (PNM) are here and we are serious about finding out and dealing with their issues."

One of his first orders of business, he said, is taking care of his constituency and delivering on the campaign promises.

"From next month, I will be back on the ground. I will be going to the different communities to deal with the various issues," Manning said. "For young people, especially, we will be having community sports and cultural programmes. We have various community centres built in the constituency, and we will use those to try to change lives."