Moonilal marks 20 years in Parliament

UNC Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal has reached the milestone of serving 20 years as a parliamentarian.

In a statement posted on Facebook, the Oropouche East constituency said, "Congratulations to our MP Dr Roodal Moonilal who today commemorates 20 unbroken years of public service in the Parliament of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. God's blessings for many more years of dedicated and selfless service to the people."

The statement was accompanied by a copy of the TT Gazette of February 14, 2001, when then president Arthur NR Robinson appointed Moonilal as a government senator.

He later served as minister in the Labour Ministry from March 5 to October 1, 2001, and then as communications and information technology, from October 2 to December 24, 2001. Moonilal was first elected as Oropouche East MP on April 5, 2002, when the UNC was in opposiiton.

He has retained that constituency for the UNC up to now, being re-elected last August. In the former UNC led-People's Partnership coalition government, Moonilal served as housing and urban development minister. He was also leader of government business in the House of Representatives under that administration.

Moonilal now joins an elite group of politicians who have been parliamentarians for 20 years and more. They include the Prime Minister, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar and former prime minister, the late Patrick Manning.