UNC writes to President for Vieira's senate appointment to be revoked

THE UNC wrote to both President Paula-Mae Weekes and Senate President Christine Kangaloo on Sunday asking for Anthony Vieira to be relieved of his appointment as an Independent Senator.

Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate Wade Mark made this known during the opposition’s weekly press conference on Sunday, saying the letters had been delivered and received by both parties.

The Senate is set to debate on Tuesday Vieira's motion calling for the censure of Opposition senators for their conduct at the Electoral College meeting and vote on the impeachment motion.

Mark questioned Vieira’s authority to file the motion in the first place.

“We, who are in the opposition, represent the will of the people of TT, so when we speak in the Senate, we speak on behalf of the party led by our leader…we got into the Senate through the votes of over 309,000 people.

“In the case of these nine (independent) senators, they did not come through an electoral process…Nobody voted for them, but we are now being given advice from one member of this group as to what we should say, how we should speak (and) how we should behave. Who (is he) to tell us how to speak?”

The letter to the President, obtained by Newsday said, “Mr Vieira has shown that he is clearly biased towards the government and cannot be described as ‘independent.’ He comes from a bench which now appears to be sympathetic to the government and antagonistic to the opposition.

“In bringing his private motion he is singing word for word from the government’s hymnbook. He represents no discernible interests drawn from the community, save for being a pawn of the party in power.

“Senator Vieira therefore lacks any moral legitimacy to censure anyone or hold himself above others. Having regard to (these matters) we hereby request that Mr Vieira’s appointment, pursuant to Section 40 (2) (c) of the Constitution, be immediately revoked.”

In the letter to Kangaloo, the UNC said, “It is disappointing that a privileges motion, dressed up as a substantive motion, was allowed to be listed, seeking to censure unnamed opposition senators for unspecified utterances, without giving them prior notice to prepare anything in their defence.

“We trust that you, Madam President, will not go down in the history of our parliament democracy as allowing such injustices and censorship to occur under your watch.”