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What Does The Trinidad General Elections 2010 Portend For CARICOM?

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Patrick Manning (l), PNM Kamla Persad-Bissessar, PP

In the North, we have the ongoing unrest in Jamaica which some say has the potential to derail its tourist oriented economy.  Some go further to explain that the chickens have come home to roost because of all the backroom deals done between the upright citizen and the criminal.

In the Southern Caribbean, Trinidad is hosting a General Election today. Running for office is the People’s National Movement (PNM) headed by Patrick Manning and challenging is the People’s Partnership (PP) which represents a coalition of the United National Congress (UNC), Congress of the People (COP), Tobago Organisation of the People (TOP) headed by Kamla Persaud-Bissessar.

Traditionally support for the two main parties has been along racial lines, Blacks for the PNM and Indo – Trinidadians for the UNC. This time around both the PNM and the PP will have to attract significant support from across racial segments to win the government. When the final result is known late tonight or early tomorrow,  it should make for interesting commentary. All reports scientific or not indicate it will be a close result.


Many across the region will be monitoring events in Jamaica and Trinidad very closely. There is a foreboding view that recurring experiences in Jamaica and Trinidad can be used as a barometer to reflect what will eventually occur in the smaller islands sandwiched  between them. Negative aspects of Jamaica’s dancehall music along with the drug culture has been adopted with telling effect in neighbouring islands. In Trinidad the issues of race and corruption continue to be destabilizers. An Integrity Commission has been established with little impact. Given the CSME project underway there is a lot for the other small CARICOM islands to ponder.

Whichever way Caribbean people cut it, the unravelling Jamaica Dudus matter or a  T&T government which may be led by a tenuous coalition places the region at the crossroads. Kamla has done well to marshall a group (PP) thirsty to defeat Manning and the PNM but that maybe the easy part of the job. Managing a coalition in T&T with Jack Warner in the house will make for interesting theatre.

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26 responses to “What Does The Trinidad General Elections 2010 Portend For CARICOM?”

  1. David Avatar
    David

    Can’t understand for the love of mike why Manning would call the elections 2 years before they are constitutionally due. We have heard all the argument posited from all sides, what are we missing?

  2. JC Avatar
    JC

    I don’t know or understand how he could, seems like political suicide………….

  3. Avatar
    Anonymous

    The reason PM Manning called for elections is the Calder Hart crisis. You may recall Calder Hart was the man in charge of UDECOT and he bilked the company of millions of dollars. Calder Hart and his wife stole millions from Trinidad and Tobago. The Calder Hart situation was a serious blow to Mr. Manning, the Gov of T&T came to a standstill as there were calls for investigations and so on. I just heard on the news that Kamla is poised to win the elections. It appears the Caribbean in crisis, with Jamaica and the Dudus crisis, and then PM Thompson not well and now Kamla in T&T, the three major Caribbean nations have problems.

  4. David Avatar
    David

    @Anonymous

    Heard that explanation on the election trail. Did he expect the matter would not be dealt with on the platform?

  5. The People's Democratic Congress Avatar
    The People’s Democratic Congress

    David,

    We think this is our last post for the evening.

    Any how, before we sign off we wish to draw to your attention that a mistake has been made in the above lead thread.

    The above lead thread suggests, in part, that New National Vision (NNV) is part of the People’s Partnership that is headed by Kamla Persaud-Bissessar of the United National Congress, and that also includes the same United National Congress (UNC), the Congress of the People ( COP), and the Tobago Organization of the People (TOP ).

    That is a mistake.

    Whereas, the New National Vision ( NNV) is in fact headed by Mr. Yasi Abu Bakr and has as its political leader, Fuad Abu Bakr – the son of Yasim Abu Bakr.

    The same Mr. Yasin Abu Bakr of the Jamaat al-Muslimeen organization in Trinidad and Tobago.

    The New National Vision is NOT part of the People Partnership that is made up of the above three mentioned parties.

    So, there you go.

    PDC

  6. David Avatar
    David

    @PDC

    Thanks, you are correct of course.

  7. Crusoe Avatar
    Crusoe

    ‘now Kamla in T&T’

    Why is this a bad thing, a change from Manning should be good, not bad.

    Kamla must be given a chance.

  8. Crusoe Avatar
    Crusoe

    Logically, Manning recently had apparently serious surgery. Maybe he is not confident of being very strong in two years, thus go for it when he is still relatively vibrant?

    A risk surely, but just maybe he thought it was worth the risk with Panday still giving strife to the Opposition?

    Most probably, in two years Panday would have been fully retired giving whomever is leading then a strong hand, thus, made some sense to go for it now.

    We also have the impact of the world recession coming in strong, which could have made a loss a virtual certainty, as opposed to a 50/50 chance now.

  9. David Avatar
    David

    Looks at this stage we should congratulate Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

  10. Mike Samuel Avatar
    Mike Samuel

    Manning lost…stupid afros in T&T voted UNCOP.

  11. Avatar
    Anonymous

    David, I really don’t know what Mr. Manning was thinking.

  12. Sapidillo Avatar
    Sapidillo

    Well, times-a-changing. People are sending clear messages to their Leaders and Politicians.

  13. David Avatar
    David

    Will repeat our earlier position, why for the love of mike did Manning call elections 2 years out? Yes he had the Calder Hart crisis at UDECOT which is all the more reason he should have used the 2 years to do damage control. Part of the damage control would have been to toss up another leader to give the impression of charge.

  14. zion1971 Avatar
    zion1971

    I think the government of jamaica should seriouslty contemplate after this crisis to move the capital to another parish. Kinston is only 10sqmiles, the smallest of all parishes but all the three consituencies that make up the parish are 90% garrison. After reading the JA news today, I think Pm Golding should use a bulldozer- style approach to these crime infetsed areas. Mr Dudus is only the symptom, because there are many more waiting to take his place.Urban warefare with criminals using civillians as human shield and attacking the security apparatus ……that is terrorism to me. This might sound harsh but jamaica needs a smart- Hiati -type- earthquake to flatten those slums.

    I was hoping for PNM to be victorious. Mr Manning gamble and lost. I just hope T&T does to become another ethnocracy like Guyana.

  15. the hood Avatar
    the hood

    I would like t extend heartfelt congratulations to the new PM (and I don’t mean project manager!), Mrs. Persad- Bissessar and the People’s Partnership on their success at the polls in T&T tonight.

  16. the hood Avatar
    the hood

    @ David
    Thanks for the correction @11:21. The comment at 11:32 could therefore be now removed.

  17. David Avatar
    David

    Not a problem Hoodie, let us see how Kamla performs. She should know any hint of race based politics will be out given the nature of her coalition.

  18. the hood Avatar
    the hood

    David,

    I sense a strong humility emanating from her and I believe she means whats she says.

  19. Avatar
    Anonymous

    I just heard that His Excellency Prime Minister Patrick Manning has conceded the elections to Mrs. Kamla Persad Bissessar.

  20. Crusoe Avatar
    Crusoe

    Well done to the new T&T Government and Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

  21. Carson C. Cadogan Avatar
    Carson C. Cadogan

    I am glad that Manning was removed from office.

    He refused to sign a fishing agreement with Barbados

  22. crisom Avatar
    crisom

    To Mark Samuel
    This is a victory and i’m so proud of the people who went and vote and put their x by the rising sun
    However they are not stupid u are and have no common sense ur should pay property tax because ur stupid

  23. POOPSTER Avatar
    POOPSTER

    I give this coalition two(2) months

  24. alpha Avatar
    alpha

    de ——- in T&T gine now get grind!
    de ——- doan care bout anybody but ——
    de ——- pretend them trying to embrace evrybody else, but evrybody else grinding them!

    what a shame!

  25. Royalrumble Avatar
    Royalrumble

    There is no doubt in the minds of the political students and enthusiasts in the region that these are very interesting times in the body politics of the region.

    In three of the major economies of the region the Governing parties are on the defense from inappropriate conduct while in office. The governments of Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica are all facing a credibility crisis.

    What is historic and politically interesting about the state of affairs in the three countries is the militancy of the opposition parties, which, incidentally are being led by three of the region’s most formidable and intellectually sharp women.

    In the case of Trinidad and Tobago, Patrick Manning was under fire for allegedly using state land and funds from the Urban Development Corporation of T&T (UDECOTT) to construct a church for a female pastor he had publicly identified as his “spiritual advisor”.

    Opposition Leader, Kamla Persad-Bissessar was adamant in her charge that the Prime Minister’s actions were questionable and she has promised make all relevant documents available to the DPP and Police Commissioner for investigation in accordance with the country’s anti-corruption laws.

    The election results reflect the level to which Manning and the PNM had lost favour with the electorate. It is expected that the new Prime Minister will carry out her election promise to make the documents on the UDECOTT matter available to the DPP for review. She must do this at the earliest convenience to avoid credibility crisis into which the Thompson led DLP has now fallen following their election charges of corruption within the BLP. After two years in office not a thread of evidence has been provided to support their claims.

    That to date Thompson has not declared his assets nor introduced his much promised integrity and freedom of information legislations and the code of conduct for ministers is evidence of the level of political dishonesty and treachery that attended the DLP’s bid to govern the affairs of this country.

    In Jamaica, business and civic organizations have supported the opposition party’s called for Prime Minister Bruce Golding to resigned over his admission in Parliament that he had misled the people of Jamaica by an earlier denial of he and his party’s involvement in recruiting a United States law firm to lobby against an extradition request made by the US authority for an alleged major dealer in nacro-trafficking and gun-running – Christopher “Dudus” Coke. Mr. Coke is known to be a very staunch supporter of the Prime Minister’s JLP party.

    In spite of Mr. Golding’s apology to the Jamaican people, Opposition Leader Portia Simpson-Miller has remained steadfast in her call for his resignation. In the face of such strong national outcry for Mr. Golding’s resignation I don’t see how in the name of political decency he can remain in office.

    In Barbados the politically astute Opposition Leader, Mia Mottley has the Thompson administration on the back foot on its lack of management of the economy and the Clico issue. Ms. Motley has been successful in convincing Barbadians that the PM’s economic policies have made a bad economic problem worse.

    All across the country the evidence of job loses, struggling and failing businesses, the increase in crime, a falling standard of living are all so clear to see. The Government’s long and questionable association with Clico and its full-blooded defense of the company during the 2009 no-confidence motion now places the entire DLP in a very compromising position in light of Ms. Mottley’s public pronouncement on the failings of Clico.

    It will be an impossible task for the DLP in the next election to convince the electorate that they have fulfilled their 2008 election promise of change and is worthy of re-election.

    The upcoming general election is the BLP’s to lose.

  26. GeorgePThomas Avatar
    GeorgePThomas

    You can give seats to 29 out of 41 politicians,
    but you can’t give them class.

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