People’s National Movement party groups in the Toco-Sangre Grande constituency were said to be feeling a sense of relief after alderman Roger Munro was chosen as the candidate for the forthcoming general elections.
Munro was selected after the Toco-Sangre Grande executive was asked to vote via secret ballot to choose a candidate during the screening on Sunday, PNM officials said.
However, party sources said Munro was the best choice since he is seen as the person who can pull together areas—including Northwest—where the PNM slipped in the 2019 Local Government polls.
Toco officials said councillor Terry Rondon, who was among several nominees, received four votes out of 14 from the executive members. However, he was asked by screening team member Colm Imbert about his health. Rondon was under doctor’s supervision recently but subsequently said his doctors had given him the approval to seek nomination.
The constituency was asked to select new candidates after the screening committee’s original choice former West Indies cricket Mervyn Dillon prompted protests from both the executive and party members.
The PNM now has 40 prospective candidates, Balisier House confirmed.
The last constituency to be concluded is La Brea, whose executive is now searching for a third time for nominees and is likely to finally have a candidate by next Thursday.
After the PNM’s leadership addressed the executive last Saturday night—and spoke to the executive about their initial choice of former minister Robert Le Hunte—members of the executive said they were satisfied the unit will move on and find new nominees. That included members who strongly supported Le Hunte last week.