Young expected to be sworn-in as PM on March 17

ENERGY Minister Stuart Young is expected to be sworn in as prime minister at President's House, St Ann's on March 17, the day after Dr Rowley resigns as PM.

While the PNM is expected to present its candidates at Woodford Square on March 16, it is not clear whether Rowley will use this forum to announce the date for this year's general election or leave that responsibility to Young after he succeeds him.

Rowley is due to return home from California, where he and his wife Sharon are on vacation, on March 9. These were the comments from senior government and PNM officials, speaking under strict condition of anonymity, on March 7.

Government officials said Rowley will demit office from midnight on March 16 and Young will be sworn in the next day.

But they could not say whether it will be Rowley or Young who will announce the election date.

While Rowley has said he will resign as PM and not stand for re-election as Diego Martin West MP, he remains PNM political leader. A government official said this situation is unprecedented in many ways.

March 16 will be the first time the PNM presents its slate of election candidates before the announcement of the election date.

Traditionally, the approval of candidates by the PNM's central executive and the subsequent public presentation happens after the election date is known.

The official said this is also the first time the party and country has an outgoing prime minister before an election is called.

Another official said it would not surprise anyone if there is some kind of legal challenge raised after March 16 regarding the interpretation of Sections 76 (1) (a) and (b) of the Constitution. Section 76 deals with the appointment of a prime minister.

The former subsection concerns who is the MP in the House of Representatives who commands the support of the majority of MPs in the House.

The latter subsection deals with the political party which holds the majority of seats in the House having an undisputed leader.

A third government official said because Rowley is still PNM political leader, some people may use Section 76 (1) (b) to claim he and not Young should be the one to call the election.

This official added a perusal of the Election and Boundaries Commission's (EBC) records will show Rowley is still officially recognised as the PNM's leader.

A fourth government official said Section 76 (1) (a) could be used to argue that since Young commands the majority support of government MPs, he is the prime minister and can call an election.

Rowley announced his decision to retire from electoral politics on January 6.

At a subsequent parliamentary retreat in Tobago, he said Young was selected to succeed him as prime minister.

After a PNM general council meeting in Port of Spain on January 11, party general secretary Foster Cummings said 20 PNM MPs had pledged support to Young as prime minister.

On the same day, it was announced the party would hold its convention on September 28 to decide who will succeed Rowley as political leader. He has held this post since 2010.

A senior party official said the presentation of candidates on March 16 is essentially a special party convention and such occasions do allow for resignations or appointments to be made. This official added if Rowley resigns as PNM leader, it could make any legal interpretation of Section 76 mute.

But another PNM official said the party's opponents may still seek an interpretation simply to create bacchanal.

In a recent newspaper opinion on February 20, attorney Larry Lalla, SC, said because the Constitution has evolved from the 1962 (Independence) to the 1972 version, the interpretation of Section 76 (1) (a) and (b), does not mean Rowley has to resign as PM and PNM political leader for Young to be regarded as the legitimate prime minister.

Lalla, who recently resigned as a member of the Opposition UNC over disagreements about the direction of that party, said this evolution showed the framers of the Constitution clearly envisaged a scenario where "the person holding the office of prime minister could be someone apart from the political leader of the party with the majority of seats in the House of Representatives."

In a commentary on February 16, UWI political scientist Dr Hamid Ghany argued the interpretation of Section 76 meant Young cannot be appointed prime minister while Rowley remains the PNM's leader.

Former House speaker Nizam Mohammed, in a separate opinion piece, agreed with Lalla's view about Section 76 having no relevance to Young being appointed prime minister.

He said the replacement of Rowley as PNM leader rests in the domain of the party and Section 76 has no influence on what happens there.

Government officials also said no legal challenges can be made to the act of President Christine Kangaloo appointing Young as prime minister because the Constitution prevents any such challenges against the President.

Newsday understands a letter with the signatures of the 20 government MPs supporting Young as PM will be sent to Kangaloo on March 17.

On March 7, officials at the Office of the President could not say whether such a letter has been received or if arrangements were being made for a prime ministerial swearing-in. Both Rowley and Young were unavailable for comment.

To date, the PNM has picked 40 candidates with Tabaquite being the only constituency without a candidate. Party sources said a Tabaquite candidate should be selected "very soon."

In January, Rowley said he had certain matters to attend to before he resigned as prime minister.

These included the attending his final Caricom heads of government meeting in Barbados (February 19-21), the official opening of the new Central Block at the Port of Spain General Hospital on March 10, and the official opening of the Arthur NR Robinson International Airport on March 15.

At a ceremony on February 26, for the Works and Transport Ministry's commissioning of the the O’Meara Road upgrade project, Rowley officially announced March 16 as his final day as prime minister.

WHAT SECTION 76 SAYS:

76 (1) (a) The President shall appoint as Prime Minister "a member of the House of Representatives who is the leader in that House of the party that commands the support of the majority of members of that House."

76 (1) (b) The President shall appoint as Prime Minister "where it appears to him that the party does not have an undisputed leader in the House or that no party commands the support of such a majority, the member of the House of Representatives, who in his judgement, is likely to command the support of the majority of members of that House, and who is willing to accept the office of Prime Minister."