Kamla: UNC gets 24 aldermen

OPPOSITION Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the UNC has been allocated 24 aldermen after the August 14 local government elections.

She made the announcement in a statement on Thursday.

"The EBC (Elections and Boundaries Commission) has made no allocation for aldermen in the Arima Borough and Princes Town Regional Corporation pending the final results."

A second recount in the Arima Northeast district, resulted in the PNM winning the district. This gives the PNM all seven seats in the Arima Borough Corporation.

The UNC has taken the EBC to court after a second recount in the Lengua/Indian Walk district, failed to break an electoral tie there between the PNM and UNC.

The UNC is claiming that a vote in that district, deemed invalid by the commission, should be validated and it will resolve the tie in the UNC's favour. The PNM initially won the district, which falls under the Princes Town Regional Corporation, on August 14.

The UNC's coalition partner, the National Transformation Alliance (NTA), received one alderman.

Persad-Bissessar said UNC general secretary Peter Kanhai had submitted the names of the UNC appointees as aldermen to the commission, in accordance with the rules and procedures set out by the law.

Persad-Bissessar looked forward to the swearing in of aldermen and the election of mayors and/or chairmen in the seven local government corporations that the UNC retained in the August 14 local government elections.

Ten days after the elections ended, no mayors, chairmen or aldermen have been appointed in any of the 14 local government corporations.

The elections ended with the PNM and UNC each gaining control of seven corporations.

To date, councillors have been sworn in at the San Fernando City, Point Fortin Borough, Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional, Chaguanas Borough, Siparia Borough, Rio Claro/Mayaro Regional, Princes Town Regional and Penal/Debe Regional Corporations.

Councillors at the Port of Spain City, Diego Martin Borough and Sangre Grande Regional Corporations are scheduled to be sworn in on Friday.

The swearing in of councillors and aldermen at corporations is performed either by the CEO or deputy CEO of those corporations, once they receive confirmation from the EBC on the alderman lists.