Disenchanted UNC members form new party
Senior Political Reporter
An agreement has been struck to form “a new third party,” according to a post on a Facebook page titled United and Proud, which has, since its inception, been opposed to United National Congress leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar and her team.
The information came in an unsigned post on the page on Saturday.
And UNC Mayaro MP Rushton Paray, who led the United Patriots slate in UNC’s June executive elections, has, among comments about the post, said T&T’s ready for a fresh start and he wasn’t surprised “at the level of discussion on the table of many…”
The UaP page, described as a “community organisation” (allegedly run by an East businessperson) since inception a couple years ago, has been critical of Persad- Bissessar and the majority of her parliamentary team. That included the Star team she supported in UNC’s executive elections.
The site has carried information on Paray and his United Patriots slate which challenged the Star team, but information has been complimentary of MPs and others supporting Paray’s UP team.
Paray and the four UNC MPs supporting him were not part of UNC’s recent Budget consultations.
The post about a “new party” emerged after news that former UNC councillor Jason Ali had defected to the People’s National Movement (PNM). The site carried PNM’s official document on its nominees for nine constituencies, including Ali.
Titled “Unity in Diversity: A new political era is on the horizon,” the post stated, “As a result of the UNC leadership’s failure to unite the party following the internal elections, as well as the deliberate omission of MPs from UNC budget consultations, word of a new political era is on the horizon.
“At a convention held today among alienated young professionals, and members of other disaffected groups, an agreement has been struck to form a new third party. A constitution is being drafted, and a head office has been identified. A symbol has been selected that best represents the ethos of this new movement.”
The party’s abbreviated name is expected to be UPTT and a logo accompanied the post.
The statement added, “The common theme of all speakers was the need for a political movement to focus on earning the trust of the population, to be based soundly on good policy and not race, ethnicity, gender, or class, and, above all, to ensure that its representatives conduct themselves with absolute integrity in dealing with public affairs.
“If we consider that 30 per cent of the votes in the just concluded internal election were cast against the incumbent leader, and the leadership’s petty approach to unity, we can conclude that this move will be more detrimental to the party than a few people defecting to the PNM. Will this new entity have an impact on the electorate in 2025? Only time will tell.”
Paray was yesterday contacted by the T&T Guardian on the UaP and UPTT move, and whether he was affiliated with the post and the plan.
Paray said, “All I can say at this time, during the campaign of the United Patriots, I made it clear that our (the UNC) route to success at the polls hinge heavily on being open to dialogue with everyone (as I put it the good, the bad and the mad).
“The country is ready for a fresh start and I am not surprised at the level of discussion on the table of many! This can only auger well for the benefit of citizens.”
He added, “Interesting times ahead! I look forward to a front row ticket!”
Two of Paray’s UP slate mates recently resigned from the UNC—councillor Ali, now with the PNM, and Jairzinho Rigsby, whose political direction wasn’t given. Other UP MPs didn’t respond to queries on the UaP/UPTT post.
UNC officials said they had “no idea” who the U&P group was but found the name “curious”.
They added, “It’s election season—all kinda things will come out of the woodwork seeking their interest. UNC’s too busy with T&T’s interest for that.”
A HOPE spokesman said HOPE wasn’t connected to “any such third party.”
PEP gives UNC conditions for its support
Progressive Empowerment Party leader Phillip Alexander yesterday announced conditions he will have for supporting the United National Congress for the next general elections.
He said the PEP is in “multiples of conversations at multiples of levels and it’s time to pin down it’s terms and conditions.”
In a post, Alexander said the conditions are:
• That UNC are opposed to the dictates of and membership in the World Economic Forum;
• That they agree to exit all WHO pandemic and other sovereignty undermining health treaties entered into by the PNM;
• That they are categorically opposed to the notion of a cashless society;
• That they agree to commission an enquiry into the administration of justice in T&T and act on the recommendations; and
• That they agree to commission an enquiry into the narcotics trade in and through T&T and act on the recommendations.
Alexander added, “While there is much more I would like to request, these are non-negotiable. If they agree to these conditions, they can rely on my full support. If they refuse, we will raise a political army to fight both PNM and UNC in as many constituencies as possible and let the chips fall where they may.”
He added, “The PNM is the devil we know. The UNC needs to guarantee by agreement that they are not the same kind of evil, or they will be treated by us as one and the same.”
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