Devant bids for UNC leadership

THERE is now officially a three-way race for the leadership of the United National Congress (UNC).

Former minister in the Kamla Persad-Bissessar Cabinet Devant Maharaj has kept his promise to mount a challenge for the top position.

Another former minister, Vasant Bharath, has already started his campaign.

Asked if his participating would weaken Bharath’s chances, Maharaj, who had been using his social media platforms to assist Bharath, said he will continue doing PR for him.

“I will help anybody opposed to Kamla Persad-Bissessar. The more the merrier. One of us bound to win.”

No one in the leadership of the UNC, including chairman Peter Khanhai, deputy political leader David Lee or former general secretary Devendranath Tancoo, could be reached for comment on Maharaj's challenge.

Maharaj, who has been one of the most vociferous critics of the party leader, told the Newsday the faux pas of blatant plagiarism by the UNC of the congratulatory message the British Labour Party sent to US President-elect Joe Biden spurred him on to save the party from further embarrassment.

“You know me, I am a rebel. When I saw the plagiarism, the shame and scorn heaped on UNC members, that speaks to the malaise and general laziness of the UNC.

“The kind of bogus and weak excuse in response to that reprehensible act pushed me to stand up and be counted. I felt I had to show the rest of TT that not everybody in the UNC so lazy, so dotish and so immoral.”

Maharaj said he has collected his nomination form and will submit it on or before the November 15 deadline.

The party will elect a new executive on December 6. All positions are up for grabs.

Both Maharaj and Bharath have raised concerns about the transparency of the process, including the composition of the elections committee.

Since August ,when he began a public campaign for Persad-Bissessar to resign after losing the general election, Maharaj has been advocating for party elections, which he said were overdue. He also called for external observers to witness them.

He said in keeping with the party’s constitution, elected MPs cannot hold certain positions, including those of general secretary and public relations officer.

Maharaj said although MP Davendranath Tancoo, who previously held the general secretary post, said he no longer held the position, Tancoo could not tell him who had succeeded him in the post.

“Yet applications for new membership are being approved without a general secretary. Are all these new members being registered just to pad votes?” Maharaj asked.

“This is why the elections committee needs to be transparent and have people other than those chosen by the political leader.”