Kamla tells Bharath: Stop washing your mouth on UNC members

AS the United National Congress (UNC) gets ready for internal elections later this year, the party’s leader, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, has singled out one of her former challengers, Vasant Bharath, calling on him to “Stop washing your mouth on the rank and file members.”

She also asserted that she has "purged" the UNC of caste and class, dynasty politics, segregation and discrimination.

She said some people feel they are entitled or privileged to lead the party because of their upbringing and family connections, but people will lead on the basis of hard work, meritocracy and discipline.

“I state categorically to those people who have been rejected by the rank and file of the UNC, in their attempts to lead, that there would be no caste system in the UNC as long as I am your leader.

“There will be no class system in the UNC as long as I am the leader. There would be no family dynasties in the UNC as long as I am your leader and there will be no discrimination as long as I am your leader. There will be no segregation in the UNC, as we say ‘all ah we is one family.”

Pointing out that MP Dave Tancoo's father was a taxi driver and MP Saddam Hosein's parents run a roti shop, she said nothing was wrong with that.

“You believe your father was an MP and you must be an MP. No, it doesn’t work like that. Vasant.

"Stop washing your mouth on the rank-and-file members of our great party."

Bharath’s role in a clash between members of the UNC women’s arm who demonstrated at the Divali Nagar site last Sunday and ex-Caroni workers was questioned by MP David Lee.

Bharath has denied any involvement in that fracas, but from the UNC virtual platform on Monday night, Persad-Bissessar lashed out at the “stalkers,” abusive men she said had been verbally and physically attacking UNC women at legitimate demonstrations.

She said people rejected by the UNC’s rank and file are pushing the ex-Caroni workers to engage the UNC women, but vowed the women would not be intimidated or bullied.

She described last Sunday’s clash, in which placards were destroyed, as despicable and very concerning.

“In a nation where women are attacked and killed every day, these hideous, horrid, abusive men are coming to physically attack women of the UNC.

“What kind of men are you? You call yourself a man? How much lower can you go?

“If our detractors have political ambitions, I want to tell you, sending these despicable lowlifes, lochos, to beat and abuse UNC women, will not intimidate us.

“They will stand up and fight – for issues, not physically. Violence is not our way. These abusive men, detractors, are being sent there deliberately because they were rejected by our membership.

“You think we don’t know? You think we were born yesterday? You think we stupid and dotish like you, that we would stand up and cuss the UNC membership, when you say you want to be prime minister but in the same breath is calling the UNC membership sycophants?”

She advised that person, if he wants to lead the UNC or the country, he should be kind and work with the people to build together and earn their support.

“He say, 'Support country before party.' Well, go to hell. Go to hell, because if you cannot be loyal to your party, how are you going to be loyal to your country?”

Persad-Bissessar repeated her call for detractors to put aside selfish pride and return to the party to push a new generation forward.

“Let us push the children from the UNC rank and file into the leadership position. Let us repay the support given to us by the parents and grandparents of this younger generation. We must repay our debt to the older generation of the UNC supporters by returning that support to their children and grandchildren.

“If you choose to be selfish and hateful to the same rank-and-file members who supported you before to give you high positions, then you should get your own permission to march. Don’t come and trespass (against) my members, who had permission to march.:

She called on the police to do their job and protect the women who are fighting for change as they continue to live in fear, like prisoners in their homes, owing to rising crime.

“But even then, criminals are coming into your homes. We are sitting ducks, at the mercy of criminals, under this government.

“Until things change, women of the UNC will continue to fight. But there are some guys out there just waiting to stalk the UNC women.”