Karim left positive mark in public life

THE EDITOR: I read of Fazal Karim’s passing while I was in Suriname a couple days after I left Trinidad. It is a huge loss for the country. The sadness of his death spread across the diaspora very quickly, and this was so because of his reputation.

He served the country in several capacities. He was widely respected. He touched the lives of many at home and in the diaspora and even among non-Trinis with whom he developed an acquaintance. He left a positive mark in public life.

My association with Karim went back to the early 1990s when he was very close with Basdeo Panday. Unfortunately, his relationship with Panday fell apart after the internal election of January 2010. I was aware of skulduggery involving several characters, an episode in UNC politics that I prefer not to rehash.

He supported Kamla Persad-Bissessar in 2010 and knew, as I did, that she would win the leadership. I do not know if he ever repaired his relationship with Panday.

Karim had enormous respect for me and I for him. He was always a very humble gentleman who asked questions and listened to the responses. He rarely offered his views, preferring to listen to those of others on how to improve his representation and that of the party.

He had faith in my polling, a new concept for the UNC that was introduced by NACTA, and complimented me repeatedly for my work. He would always query my poll findings. He did not think the UNC would do as well as it did in the election of November 1995 when the poll projected a tie 17-17-2. He commended NACTA for spot-on findings of elections.

From 2002 onwards, he was concerned about the politics and the future of the UNC. He supported reconciliation between Panday and Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, which he recognised was needed in order for the UNC to win in 2002. It was rejected and the UNC lost. He urged several people to bring the two together after that election.

A group met in Mumbai in January 2004 and brought Panday and Maharaj together, and they agreed to rebuild the UNC to make it electable. The split in the UNC with the Winston Dookeran and Panday factions deprived the party of a victory in October 2007.

Karim backed Persad-Bissessar after the UNC defeat and she won the party leadership in 2010 and the election in May. He was rewarded with a ministry and a seat in 2015. He had a fallout with Persad-Bissessar after the UNC defeat as he did not think it could win without an accommodation and internal reform.

Karim would be remembered by those who knew of his commitment to politics and his work.

DR VISHNU BISRAM

via e-mail