When a political leader of a party resigns, it is a clear indicator that something somewhere is wrong. Recently, we saw Lyndira Oudit resign as political leader of the ILP but her reason was something that resonated in my mind for some time after I read the article in the newspaper.
She said she felt "overshadowed by Jack Warner" and that people have always seen "the ILP as Jack Warner and Jack Warner as the ILP," which I interpreted to mean that the ILP was basically a one-man show and Jack has always been calling the shots despite the face at the helm. Can this be healthy for any party or organisation? The answer is of course, no.
As a woman, I would like to see more women involved in politics, but not under such circumstances. Women must be strong minded, able to make tough decisions and stand firm on their principles, much like Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar who I greatly admire.
I can imagine firing errant ministers cannot be an easy decision to make if your political career is to be taken into consideration. But when the PM can go ahead and fire them anyway without thinking about her political career, that has earned my admiration.
Lyndira Oudit has admitted that she has always been seen as a political leader with just a title and this cannot be healthy for the development of women's involvement in politics. No woman should be a "political puppet" which is basically what she said she was in a very diplomatic manner. T&T's political landscape has come too far for us to even think about accommodating this. It simply cannot be done.
Sita Balliram
Caroni