PSA head Duke: I won't abandon my members

Public Services Association president Watson Duke has said he isn’t prepared to completely abandon public service workers to focus solely on serving as a secretary in the Tobago House of Assembly.

Duke's party, the Progressive Democratic Patriots, celebrated a 14-one victory in the THA elections on Monday night, breaking the PNM’s 21-year, five-term hold over the assembly.

The new assemblymen will be sworn in on Thursday.

The PSA leader was given an ultimatum – choose between becoming a THA secretary or remaining in the PSA – by deputy political leader of the PPD Farley Augustine.

Augustine, who is next in line for the chief secretary position, said on the TTT morning show on Tuesday, “Duke cannot remain as PSA president, on the payroll of the PSA, and simultaneously be a member of the executive. The rules do not allow for that. So there is no need to worry about Mr Duke’s role.”

Hours later, the PSA executive published a notice of a unanimous decision to withdraw all benefits and remuneration assigned to Duke for the remainder of his term.

“However, the president would continue to carry out his constitutional duties in keeping with the PSA constitution,” the release added.

But Duke told Newsday on Wednesday, “I am still the president of the PSA, and I have chosen to do so, as I have chosen to relinquish all my remuneration and benefits associated with the position. So I am working for free as the PSA president, working for the 80,000 public servants for this country.

“My job as the supervisor and to ensure things within the PSA operates in a manner that promotes and protects the interest and welfare of the membership.

"I’m not one to abandon my people at any point in time. So I continue to be president of PSA.”

Ravindra Nanga, chairman of the Water and Sewerage Authority, Duke's official employer, when contacted for comment, said it had nothing to do with WASA.

“As far as we are aware, Mr Duke has been seconded to the union in order to perform his duties for the PSA. As long as he continues to do that, and we are aware of (it), the other things have nothing to do with WASA. We don’t have a view on that. It's really for Duke to decide."

But he added, “Speaking as an attorney, I’m not familiar with the PSA constitution, so the reference I'll draw is, for example, where somebody is elected to the House of Representatives, if they do not have a ministerial portfolio, they can continue doing their private work.

"I would not be able to comment beyond that without having sight of the PSC constitution.”

Curtis Cuffie, a former PSA member, said the executive had acted unlawfully in announcing Duke would carry on with his work as PSA president.

“There is no part of the constitution of the PSA that allows for that, and the PSA executive does not have the authority to make such a decision. For something like this to happen there, the first move must be to host a general council (meeting) and there a motion will be moved to take it before the conference for them to amend the constitution to allow for that.

“Duke has a serious decision to make, because he cannot continue as the PSA president and hold a secretary position in the THA. He could hold his position as an assemblyman, which is not a full-time position. it’s a part-time position.

"But once he wants to hold office in the THA, he has to resign as the PSA president. “