Kamla: Tobago bills will give dependency, not autonomy

OPPOSITION Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar has said the People’s National Movement (PNM) does not want to give Tobago autonomy, as it is claiming.

She said the notion of greater autonomy is nothing more than a fallacy and advocated for the people of Tobago to determine the way they want to govern themselves.

“The bill being debated will not give Tobago greater autonomy – it will make Tobago more dependent on Trinidad.

“These new bills they are boasting about will put a chokehold on the people of Tobago, just as they have been doing for Trinidad. They would stymie the development of Tobago.

“They come forward with legislation in an attempt to direct the future of Tobago as they see fit. This is going to be Cabinet government from a central government which is the PNM Government.”

On the United National Congress (UNC) virtual platform on Monday night she questioned the rush of the legislation, which will cause constitutional changes, especially during a pandemic, lockdown and curfew.

She denied PNM accusations that the UNC was blocking the bills or that she had no love for Tobago, as charged by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi.

“No love for Tobago. You would not even listen to them. If you really love the people of Tobago, listen to them instead of pontificating in the Parliament that you know what is best for Tobago.”

She recalled it was a UNC/NAR Government, of which she was a part, which made major legislative changes to govern Tobago, questioning the PNM’s track record.

“What did you give them?” she asked, accusing the Prime Minister, an “ah we boy,” of being out of touch with Tobago.

In 2013-14 she reminded him, her Government brought legislation for greater self-governance for Tobago. Although she said it was rejected, “I heard one of the Tobago leaders say it was better than the one the PNM has brought in 2021.”

She said the removal of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Fund from the Constitution by the “stroke of a PNM golden pen," in a simple majority bill will leave it open for irrational changes.

She said the THA Fund was placed in the Constitution in 1996 under the Basdeo Panday coalition government along with the late ANR Robinson to provide revenue for running Tobago.

“These bills have removed that fund from being inside the Constitution. It places it under a simple majority bill, which means that tomorrow you could come and change it, if they get vex, like when (the late PM Dr Eric) Williams got vex and abolished the Minister of Tobago Affairs when they did not vote for him.

“It is rather disingenuous that the PNM has opted to make this major change to our Constitution and they are doing it during a lockdown and a SoE.”

Denying what she said was the assumption by Planning Minister Camille Robinson-Regis that the UNC had never put up a candidate in Tobago, she explained, “Jearlean John was a UNC candidate and Beverly Ramsey-Moore was also a UNC candidate.

“Yes, we have not put any candidates in Tobago because we respect the right of the people of Tobago to determine their political arrangements.

“But as a centrist party being run out of Trinidad, you want to dictate to the people of Tobago,” she countered.

“Today the main focus of our citizens is their survival and economic recovery. In the midst of this pandemic, in the midst of this lockdown, you bring a major piece of legislation that seriously attempts to alter the Constitution of our Republic and you do it without any proper adequate consultation.”

Although Robinson-Regis said copies of the proposal were placed at the airport, sea ports, restaurants and places of work, Persad-Bissessar reminded her that the country is shut down and all those places are closed.