The United National Congress (UNC) is warning the public that Energy Minister Stuart Young is not a man of the people, despite Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley recently revealing that Young hails from Lalbeharry Trace in Penal.
UNC deputy political leader Jearlean John mocked Young, at one point referring to him as “Stuart Lal Beharry” and “Stuart Rajesh Young.”
John was reading the feature address prepared for political leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar at the UNC Cottage Meeting at the Chaguanas South Secondary School. She explained that Persad-Bissessar was absent due to a “very important business meeting.”
UNC Senator Wade Mark also condemned Young, claiming he was “born with a golden spoon.”
“How can Stuart Young represent us? How can Stuart Young represent you? How can Stuart Young represent the people of T&T? We have a sister, a leader, a visionary, a grassroots figure who understands you, who understands your cries, your pains, your sorrows, your dreams, your aspirations,” Mark said, referring to Persad-Bissessar.
“She understands poverty, she understands inequality, she understands victimisation, discrimination. You need somebody who has been in the crucible of struggle and understands your situation. Not a man who has been born with a golden spoon in his mouth. Stuart Young came into this world, he eh know, he eh want to know, everything was provided for him,” he added.
Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal also rejected the notion that Young, whose East Indian mother Priscilla nee Hosein is from Lalbeharry Trace, Penal/Debe, had roots in the community. Moonilal argued that Young’s father, a first-generation Trinidad-born Chinese, further removed Young from any connection to the rural community of Penal/Debe.
“In all these years, Stuart Young in executive office, he never sent one hamper, one toy, fixed one road in Lalbeharry Trace. The only roots it has in Lalbeharry Trace is in the road where grass is growing. So, don’t get caught up in that kind of schupidness.”
Playing to eager supporters, John said that her standing in for Persad-Bissessar was the UNC’s version of misrepresenting the population.
“I know you’re probably a little confused. You expected our honourable political leader, an Indian woman from Siparia. Instead, you get a black woman from Charlotteville. That is Stuart Lal Beharry, UNC-style,” she said to a laughing audience.
She then rejected the Government’s “insult” of claiming Young was from a community he had no ties to. John referred to the minister as “Stuart Rajesh Young” and his brother as “Angus Ramesh Young.”
“If you’re from Charlotteville, you could come here proudly and say you’re from Charlotteville. If you’re from Barataria, you could say you’re from Barataria in the UNC. If you’re from Cuchawan Trace, Dr Moonilal, you could say proudly that you’re from Cuchawan Trace. You don’t use where you’re from for expediency. We think that is the biggest of insults, the cruellest kind,” she said.
‘Move away from mudslinging’
Commenting on the issue, Political analyst Dr Bishnu Ragoonath stated that race relations have always been a point of contention in T&T politics and he does not expect this to change. He also believes the People’s National Movement (PNM) baited the UNC when they first indicated Young had connections to South Trinidad.
“It was interesting, however, that the UNC took the approach of not focusing on the fact that Young is of Chinese origin, knowing full well he represents the PNM, which is not Chinese-majority but rather Afro-Trinbagonian majority. But they avoided making it an overt racial issue—Afro versus Chinese—and instead framed it as Chinese-Indian versus Indian,” Ragoonath said.
Nevertheless, he emphasised that the population should demand the kind of political representation it wants.
“It is still the genuine hope that Trinidad and Tobago will, at some point, move away from character assassination, personality mudslinging, and so on, and shift toward discussing issues on the political hustings rather than anything else,” he said.
Attempts to contact Young were unsuccessful yestereday.
