Gail Alexander
Three unsuccessful candidates from the PNM's internal elections have defended Prime Minister Keith Rowley against UNC MP Barry Padarath's name-calling on Monday.
And one of the PNMites–Abdon Mason–yesterday demanded Padarath to offer an unreserved apology to the Prime Minister. "The same respect you'd want for your leader should be afforded to others also," he said.
Unsuccessful PNM candidates Mason, Dane Wilson and Eber Steele-Attong commented on Padarath's attack on Rowley.
Wilson was defeated by Kwasi Robinson for the post of Social Media Officer. Steele-Attong lost his bid for Operations Officer to incumbent Irene Hinds. Mason lost his effort to retain the post of Field Officer to Terrance Beepath.
At UNC's Monday forum, Padarath had criticised Rowley's statements at last Sunday's PNM convention that UNC speakers held weekly forums and only talked obscenities. Padarath showed a video of OWTU head Ancil Roget calling Rowley a "lazy SOB". Padarath said Roget had "aptly described that lazy SOB who's been missing while T&T is sunk in flood waters...that lazy SOB." Padarath's words caused "Oooohs!" from the UNC audience.
Padarath continued, "When you want to see contempt, hate, malice, look at that SOB Keith Christopher Rowley...that lazy SOB for five days couldn't be found in T&T, but on Saturday he found himself on the golf course..."
Neither PNM's new Public Relations Officer Faris Al-Rawi nor PNM's General Secretary Foster Cummings replied to Guardian Media's queries on Padarath's attacks.
Mason said, "(Padarath's) attack was unwarranted. Citizens have to demand that certain offices be treated with respect. Far too often people look at things too glibly and that can destroy a country.
"The office of Prime Minister commands certain respect and failure to observe those protocols does a disservice to a country and its people who look to MPs to set examples... If you do that, you're guilty of contributing to destroying T&T the same way other culprits are. Padarath should apologise unreservedly."
Wilson said, "It's typical of the UNC to use obscenities, vulgarity and racism on their platforms and nobody in the population challenges them for fear they'll be attacked. But (Padarath) proved Dr Rowley 100 per cent correct in his statements of what UNC can only talk about –obscenities.
"That's in keeping with the type of behaviour from them. All they offer T&T is doom and gloom, hoping the population forgets all the wrong they did while in office." Wilson said he hoped the PNM's Social Media Officer deals with it since UNC uses social media to rile up the population.
Steele-Attong said, "Politics has descended to such a despicable low that people wouldn't have respect for politicians whose both sides run T&T's affairs. If you were in a house with a child, would you say such things? Politicians need to take responsibility for their actions and words and must lead by example. If we continue the way Padarath did, T&T will get nowhere. There'll be continued ridicule and a downward spiral.
"Look at how ministers who went to flood-hit areas were insulted, yet now some people are praising them. But the public in such high-tension moments like the flooding will only remember the insults, not the praises after. So the damage was done."
