Maha Sabha head: President does not have to be a Hindu

PRESIDENT General of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha Krishna Rambally says TT’s next President does not necessarily have to be from the Hindu faith.

On Friday, retired head of the public service Reginald Dumas said while he had no problem with the Prime Minister’s choice for the presidency – Senate President Christine Kangaloo – he felt the time had come for the country to have a person from the Hindu faith as Head of State.

Dr Rowley revealed Kangaloo’s nomination on Friday during a news conference at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann’s, after a meeting between Government and Opposition members.

The Opposition has expressed serious concerns about Kangaloo’s nomination given her close ties to the ruling People’s National Movement.

On Saturday, Rambally, who became president general of the Maha Sabha in 2018, said religious persuasion should not be a factor in selecting nominees for the presidency.

But he insisted the individuals must be held in high regard and be perceived by the majority of citizens as objective.

“You must always select somebody who is objective and who is non-political, not on either side of the fence,” he told Sunday Newsday.

“Wherever that person comes from, they should be patriotic and country must be placed at the top of their priority. That is what will make a good President.

“But I would not say that you must have somebody from the Hindu faith or from the Roman Catholic or from the Presbyterian. No, no, no. I don’t think we should be going down that kind of road.”

Political analyst Dr Bishnu Ragoonath also responded to Dumas’ view that the country’s next President should come from the Hindu faith.

He said the issue does not arise.

“Religion does not matter at this point in time. Yes, we have had persons of all different religious denominations excepting those who have held the office of President,” he told Sunday Newsday.

“It is something that some people would harp on that we need to have a Hindu President. But I do not think that the PNM, in the way that it is structured and in the way that it has carried itself for how many years, have put any emphasis on Hindus being part and parcel of their government. That is a simple fact.”