The air of sadness which pervaded the Opposition PNM in the past week and the PP Government-to some extent-appeared somewhat dissipated despite yesterday's Black Friday Lower House session. The cloud that surrounded eulogising of late MP Ken Valley lingered as long as tributes did. Then it was back to work:
• Government putting PNM leader Keith Rowley on equal footing with his former leader regarding Privileges Committee issues.
• Ex-PNM leader Patrick Manning pushing for High Court action in his Privileges matter.
• $83 million cost for laptops; $56 million to build two Port-of-Spain primary schools.
• Minister Suruj Rambachan striking back on criticism of the Prime Minister's travelling costs by detailing Manning's.
But a point Manning made during his tribute to late PNM MP Ken Valley might have struck a note with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar for one in a certain regard. Recalling that Valley didn't agree with Manning cutting him from PNM's 2007 candidates, Manning said, "Eventually I did as a political leader had to do. I did it without fear or favour, without affection or ill will-and so be it." Just as Manning endured questions following the removal of Valley, so has Persad-Bissessar and her administration following Tuesday's firing of former Planning Minister Mary King for alleged "improper action" in the issue of a $100,000 contract award from the ministry to a King family firm. Following questions about all sides involved in that issue, further allegations from Government's agents-including HDC's Jearlene John-have risen against King on other matters and are likely to compound the situation for the ex-minister.
Attorney General Office officials could not confirm yesterday if John's complaints would be part of the Integrity Commission probe against King. King would have been a minister for five months when the contract award arose last October. Known as a passionate anti-corruption campaigner, the main question has been how King's alleged "improper action" and failure to declare her interest in the company could have come to pass on her part. Answers which have flowed on this, however, have led to queries regarding the level of responsibility of others involved in the issue. For instance, if the links between King and the company were officially discovered in January by ministry officials, why wasn't the situation dealt with since then?
Why the Permanent Secretary's concern about "strained relations" with King (cited in her statement) should constrain management? Why didn't other officers, legal and otherwise, in the issue act? What exactly occurred regarding conversations, documents and final words which passed from the Attorney General and Prime Minister to King when they met her on the issue last October-and "everything seemed above board," according to the AG? How exactly did the situation move from that status to now? And what would have transpired if "efforts" were not made to extend the contract around Easter, which Government claims was among main reasons which caused ministry "rumbling" and spurred action against King, prior to her reported comments recently?
More issues to probe
King, the oldest member of the 27-member Cabinet, was the first to be cut from the year-old team on the eve of the PP's first anniversary-on May 24-and ahead of next month's Cabinet realignment. Persad-Bissessar sees the move as a wake-up call for the rest of her team. If the PP has been floundering in management of national issues-as myriad matters indicate-the coalition has attempted in the last week at least to ensure the credibility of its manifesto promise regarding delivery. And that includes on its anti-corruption stance.
Persad-Bissessar spent recent days traversing T&T opening roads and other projects and is scheduled to continue next week including in Tobago. Persad-Bissessar's remarks confirmed her knowledge of how the first dismissal from the Cabinet being a female minister might be perceived and its implications for her own post as a female leader.
Government's speed to jettison King, in the same way Reshmi Ramnarine and Nizam Mohammed were dealt with, may be perceived in the PP's favour in view of the populist platform on anti-corruption Government sailed into office upon. And the Partnership's controlling UNC majority has an easy "out" regarding corruption accusations since King was a COP nominee-mitigating against COP leader Winston Dookeran's stocks-and lacking in the Cabinet support some ministers have. Still, King's firing will bring closer scrutiny to Government and has already prompted a welter of talk about other ministries. The Auditor General's report laid in the Senate recently- so far undebated-noted, for instance, irregularities in the PP's new Tobago Development Ministry (regarding consultants' hiring procedures) and in the Ministry of the People and Social Development (also on hiring issues).
Works Minister Jack Warner's Fifa affiliation has also catapulted him into the spotlight with brib-ery allegations in the UK Parliament. Warner's statement that the timing was curious may or may not have to do with next month's Fifa elections. It remains to be seen how the allegations-and the overall repercussions- are handled locally. That the restructuring is necessary after only a year in office is testimony enough to the ill-fit of the current formation for governance, apart from the various issues from labour and health to agriculture and housing which plague Government. How portfolios will be realigned has included questions about the future of Ministers Vasant Bharath Errol McLeod and those in Health, Education and other ministries.
Bhoe-new Cabinet dynamic
King's exit opened the way for the entry of veteran politician, academic and business expert Dr Bhoe Tewarie, 63, a background UNC/COP figure over recent years. Tewarie has not been openly aligned to the UNC, or the COP, though his son Nirad worked closely with Dookeran. Top UNC officials confirmed Tewarie had talks with Panday several years ago about the party's leadership, but that never got off the ground. From NAR government 20 years ago, Tewarie is back to sharing a Cabinet with former NARites Dookeran and Persad-Bissessar. He may be the most qualified mix in terms of academic, political, business finessing in the Cabinet and though this augers well for the team-and national development -how Tewarie will fit in with PP personalities remains to be seen.
Tewarie can count few among them as his peers save Dookeran, McLeod (in his own field), Warner (ditto) and Persad-Bissessar regarding politics. Moonilal, whom Persad-Bis-sessar once dubbed her successor and Warner, described by her as a performer, were both at Tewarie's swearing-in when he went over and warmly shook their hand. That Tewarie is cognisant of challenges was evidenced in his remark that he would work cohesively "with colleagues." After being sworn in, he was also immediately braced by a media question about his former directorship with CL Financial which went belly-up. "I was expecting that," Tewarie replied. Tewarie is expected to buttress Persad-Bissessar's leadership, given his statement of wanting to support her "to be a high-achieving Prime Minister." He brings a new dynamic to the fledgling PP Cabinet, clearly floundering, evidenced by the need for realignment and the low energy investment climate which Government hopes to kick-start with next month's Caribbean Business Forum.
Given his background on various fronts, Tewarie will likely play a major part in that. By then, the Cabinet realignment is expected to shift the Gender Affairs aspect elsewhere from his Planning Ministry and reorganise the portfolio. Tewarie has said he will examine the "extent of the connectedness between Planning and the other ministries." This could see his ministry playing a more pivotal role-whether leading or not-with those. It remains to be seen whether Tewarie's presence can raise PP's operational bar and see it appropriately met. Or otherwise.
Anil takes COP council by storm tomorrow
In the Senate on Tuesday, news of King's dismissal seemed to hit home.Government senators including David Abdulah and John Sandy huddled at the top of the front bench softly talking. It was not without irony that Finance Minister Winston Dookeran-leader of the COP to which King belongs-took her former seat when he arrived in the Senate to answer a question on inflation. If Dookeran's COP has been held up to condemnation for King's alleged misdeeds, his presence in the seat seemed an acknowledgement of responsibility, though Dookeran supported King's view that she should have been properly heard before being politically hit. The COP's misfortune with King is the second concerning its nominees to high-level Partnership posts in the last two months following the removal of Nizam Mohammed.
King's situation, climaxing this, has fuelled division of views in the party, providing a convenient platform for COP MP Anil Roberts to launch his bid against Dookeran for leadership. Election for the post is July 3.
Tomorrow's COP National Council, expected be to "hot" due to the King issue, will likely be hotter due to attendance by Roberts and a posse of supporters. "I suggest you come and bring a cameraman-you won't be disappointed," Roberts hinted. Roberts, who has lobbied COP groups all over T&T, has made King's matter a direct indictment on Dookeran's leadership and regarding COP status within the Partnership. Chairman Joseph Toney said he had seen Roberts at only one parliamentary caucus before Carnival and none last year.
On Roberts' public views, Toney said the party has a forum for members including tomorrow's. "We welcome Anil on Sunday." On whether the executive will be taking up Roberts' perceived indiscipline, Toney said, "We'd expect members to abide by executive decisions."
Dookeran has dismissively remarked, "Roberts has his own party." Apart from MP Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan's acknowledgement of the split in COP caused by Roberts' actions, the COP is experiencing splits affiliated and otherwise. COP's defeated Diego Martin candidate, Rocky Garcia, is estranged from his brother Ricky, COP's La Puerta councillor, regarding Ricky's call for removal of UNC corporation chairman Anthony Sammy. Sibling political rivalry apart, COP deputy chairman Roberts Mayers acknowledged COP's entire DM region-a COP stronghold-has issues. DM West chairman Satu Ramcharan, whose unit supports Ricky Garcia, said Rocky is non-functional and "will be dealing with that" (sic). She said the unit will be discussing its call for Sammy's removal at tomorrow's council. Ramcharan added, "Anil Roberts, who doesn't attend meetings, is part of COP's problem so he cannot be part of the solution."
Patos makes his peace
If PNM's Manning felt the need to attend Valley's funeral with bodyguards on Thursday and accept the indirect criticism he heard in one eulogy about Valley's "unceremonious exit from politics," yesterday's House tribute lent Manning the opening to make his peace-publicly-with the issue. After that, it remains to unfold how further peace will be made in the Opposition, where various issues-apart from Manning-still simmer. After Valley's demise, PNMites are also monitoring former chairman John Donaldson who's been ailing and whose father John D senior died 50 years ago today.