Paray throwing caution to the wind

THE EDITOR: Without question Mayaro MP Rushton Paray has thrown caution to the wind by challenging his political leader’s slate of candidates with his own in Saturday’s UNC national executive elections.

While the results, one way or another, would not unseat the political leader, it signals a divided political party offering itself to lead our nation. Say what you will – this is a divided party.

Five incumbent MPs are opposed to the political leader and by extension the leader of the opposition. The only place they appear to be united is in Parliament. And even there you can cut the tension with a knife. And they want to govern this country! It is the making of a recipe for chaos.

I cannot predict what will happen on Saturday. However, the records suggest history is not on Paray’s side. He may be destined to join a cabal of popular aspirants such as Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, Jack Warner, Dr Roodal Moonilal and others who fought and lost in their bid to lead the UNC.

The UNC's internal election machinery is geared to protecting incumbency. The 2010 experience was an aberration supported by a core of solid, committed, and zealous people supported by women of the party. They circled the wagons to support Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

They also did it in 2016 and thereafter. Conventional wisdom tells us that they will do it again on Saturday.

This is not to say that Paray does not have a good slate. In fact, his slate of candidates seems more prepared to provide the UNC with a dynamic national executive. On the other hand, the Star Team is populated with old hands with heavy baggage and dull as dishwater.

It was almost the same team that was there for two years and did nothing to improve the organisational structure of the party. What became of the promise of a UNC headquarters made by both Kamla and Roodal when they were campaigning on opposite sides in the 2016 internals?

Internal elections in the UNC, whether leadership or national executive, are always divisive.

As far back as 1991 a rift developed after Kelvin Ramnath led a slate in the internal elections for the national executive. That slate did not meet the approval of the political leader Basdeo Panday, who never supported any slate for internal polls.

However, while Panday did not object to working with the Ramnath executive, he placed several roadblocks in its way to frustrate functioning. This led to a collapse of the executive, forcing Ramnath and his team to abandon Panday.

The campaigning in the 2024 internal elections, though vitriolic, is mild compared to what took place in 2001.

In that year all the heavyweights in the UNC were battling it out for 21 seats on the national executive. There was a three-way fight for the sole position of deputy political leader, with Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj leading the Team Unity slate; Carlos John leading the All Inclusive slate and Mrs Persad-Bissessar leading four candidates in Team UNC.

A total of 45 people were nominated to contest the ten positions of floor members on the executive.

It was rumoured that Panday was backing Carlos John. However, Maharaj’s Team Unity captured 19 of the 21 seats. He polled 10,983 votes.

Campaigning was so intense and scandalous that it evoked reports of threats of violence against party members. In fact, a Team Unity strategist, Prakash Maharaj, was gunned down by an unknown assailant while campaigning in Tobago in May 2001.

It is significant to note that the results of this internal poll led to irreconcilable differences in the leadership and the eventual collapse of the Panday Government in 2001.

The challenge by Paray and his colleagues to Kamla’s leadership in this internal poll will have consequences. We will wait and see.

HARRY PARTAP

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