Duke steps down as PSA president from December 31

Watson Duke has resigned as president of the Public Services Association, with effect from December 31.

He submitted his resignation on Monday.

Duke is the leader of the Progressive Democratic Patriots, who won the Tobago House of Assembly elections on December 6 by 14 seats to one, breaking the PNM’s 20-year hold. He was re-elected for the district of Roxborough/Argyle.

He said at first that he intended to remain head of the PSA as well as taking up a position as a secretary in the THA.

But questions were raised about the legality and ethics of this situation. In an attempt to resolve it, Duke announced he would stop accepting his PSA salary.

But his party’s deputy leader and THA Chief Secretary, Farley Augustine, gave him an ultimatum.

Although he is deputy chief secretary, Duke has not been given a specific portfolio in the THA and Augustine told him he had to choose between such a position and remaining head of the PSA.

Duke said last week that he would withdraw from the PSA on a phased basis over three months.

Instead, in his letter to the conference of delegates of the PSA, dated December 13, he announced:

“I, Watson Solomon Duke, President of the Public Services Association of Trinidad and Tobago, herby offer my resignation for acceptance by the Conference of Delegates to be effective from December 31st 2021.”

He went on to list some of what he saw as his achievements since being elected in 2009, when, he wrote, public officers had no access to HDC homes, a poor health plan, no job security, small salaries, and were “being exploited by politicians.”

But during his presidency, he said, he was able among other things to “stop the destruction of the Civil Service by halting the TT Revenue Authority, Passport Authority, Forestry Authority and Licensing Authority.”

He acknowledged that there remained “political problems” which he said he would now dedicate himself to solving “for citizens of our country” as deputy chief secretary of the THA.

These were the fact that public servants have had no salary increase for nine years; failure to fill vacancies, which he blamed on the Finance Minister; and failure to adjust allowances.

He ended by saying he hoped his resignation would be accepted so that he could commit himself to the same work “albeit at a different level.”