The opposition United National Congress Alliance (UNC-A) launches a series of mass public meetings Monday night to tell its supporters and the nation about what it says is a conspiracy to keep Basdeo Panday out of Parliament and to undermine democracy."They can suspend me from Parliament but they cannot prevent me from speaking to my constituents. I will speak to you anywhere, I don't have to be in Parliament to speak to you," he told members of the party's Youth Arm after a march from his office at the Reinzi complex to Chaguanas.
He claimed that so far he has not been formally advised on the duration of his suspension from the House of Representatives or whether he would be paid. "But who cares", he added.
His suspension as the MP for Couva North doesn't affect his role as Leader of the Opposition. According to constitutional rules, he must "cease" being a member of the House in order to be fired from that post.
That means all monetary matters remain unchanged. The Leader of the Opposition is paid a salary of $23,700, a housing allowance of $9,000 and travelling of $3,500. What is unclear is whether he will receive his MP's salary and allowances.
The Speaker has said that in keeping with the Standing Orders the suspension is until the end of the current Parliamentary session, which is some time in December.
Panday told the party's youth he was suspended as part of a plot to weaken the Opposition, which he described as the strongest that Parliament has ever had. And he promised that he and the party would not take the matter lightly.
He said the series of nightly meetings on the theme "In Defence of Democracy" beginning Monday night at Debe junction would highlight "the arrogant and illegal behaviour of Speaker, Barry Sinanan."
"This is time for mobilisation and very soon the party will be organising marches throughout the country similar to what took place in 1970 during the Black Power demonstrations," Panday said.
That event, also known as the February Revolution, was an attempt to force the country's leadership to address social and economic problems facing people across Trinidad and Tobago, similar to what is happening in Trinidad and Tobago today.
It had started as a student pressure group on the campus of the University of the West Indies in 1968 but grew into a popular uprising that involved the trade union movement.
George Weekes of the powerful Oilfield Workers Trade Union joined forces with other top labour leaders, including Clive Nunez of the Transport Union and Panday, who was at that time a trade union lawyer and political activist. He had faced electoral defeat in 1966 in his first attempt to win a seat in Parliament.
The "revolution" turned ugly when police killed one protester, Basil Davis, on April 6, 1970. One week later A.N.R. Robinson joined the movement after he quit the governing People's National Movement (PNM) and resigned from his Tobago East seat.
At the same time Raffique Shah and Rex Lasalle led a short-lived revolt in the army, taking hostages at the army barracks at Teteron Bay.
Prime Minister Eric Williams declared a state of emergency on April 15 and arrested the top Black Power leaders.
Later Williams addressed the nation seeking to identify himself with the aims of the Black Power movement. He re-shuffled his Cabinet and removed three Ministers, including two white members, and three senators.
He also introduced the infamous Public Order Act which reduced civil liberties in an effort to control protest marches. He withdrew the measures after public pressure. And the architect of the bill, Attorney General Karl Hudson Phillips, offered to resign; Williams refused to accept his resignation.
Williams eventually moved to calm things down with the introduction of a five per cent levy to fund unemployment reduction and later established the first locally-owned commercial bank.
Read more about the 1970 Black Power revolution in Trinidad and Tobago
Read an academic account of the Black Power revolution
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