Kublalsingh to Kamla: Please listen to the people

Although members of the Highway Re-route Movement staged a sit-in protest outside Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s St Clair office yesterday, the PM was not there to receive a letter they brought for her. The weekly Cabinet meeting has been taking place at the PM’s St Clair Avenue office in the last few months. But yesterday it was “re-routed” to the Diplomatic Centre in St Ann’s instead. A spokesman for the Office of the Prime Minister said the decision had nothing to do with the protest. He said it had been decided since Wednesday to hold the Cabinet session at the Diplomatic Centre in St Ann’s and they were unaware of any protest being held outside the St Clair office. He pointed out that yesterday was the first session of the new, larger Cabinet.

Protest leader Dr Wayne Kublalsingh, who led the sit-in outside the St Clair office, however, said: “We’ll be staying here until 4 pm and we’ll be back tomorrow (today). “If there is one message to send to the Prime Minister, we’d like to say: Please listen to the people, Ma’am.” Kublalsingh said the camp which was rooted out of its Debe site by army and police officers on Wednesday would be moving to Port-of-Spain. The group began a peaceful protest yesterday morning on the pavement a few feet away from the entrance to the PM’s office. Initially, there were about 20 people, but other people, including union activists, arrived after 10 am.

There was no visible police presence early in the morning although a state helicopter flew overhead around 8.30 am. The women of the group sat silently on plastic sheeting on the pavement. Kublalsingh said they had begun fasting in support of their calls for the  Pt Fortin Highway to be re-routed. Members are also concerned about National Security Minister Jack Warner’s move to lead a security detail which evicted them from the site on Wednesday. Among members was COP activist Nalini Dial, who bore a large sign stating: “Insensitive, Uncaring, Cold-hearted, Reckless, Disgusting! Warner is a Disgrace!”