Kamla heads committee to judge Jack & Ramesh

The United National Congress (UNC) on Wednesday appointed Siparia MP and former Attorney General Kamla Persad Bissessar to head a disciplinary committee to determine whether her parliamentary colleagues Jack Warner and Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj should be suspended or expelled from the party.

The party took a decision at its retreat on Sunday to let a disciplinary committee consider the future of the two "dissident" MPs who have been accused of "bringing the party into disrepute".

Related: No retreat: UNC to discipline Warner and Maharaj

Both Warner and Maharaj have been expecting this development and have said they are not afraid of what the party might decide. Maharaj presented a comprehensive report to the retreat in which he outlined a plan for change in the party to prepare it for victory in an election. Members who attended ignored the plan and opted instead to deal with discipline as its top priority.

Related: Ignore change at your own peril

Warner, who did not attend the retreat due to a previous international commitment, responded by saying he would take the message of change to the people. He lamented the fact that instead of preparing itself for a snap general election "the UNC preoccupies itself with finding treacherous ways of getting rid of its members who dare to call for change and internal elections which are overdue by several years".

Related: Warner vow to go to the people...

Sunday's retreat discussed two other agenda items: preparation for local government elections, which are long overdue and expected by the middle of this year, and opposition unity.

The executive decided Wednesday to also hand Persad Bissessar the responsibility for exploring unity among all opposition forces. She will lead a high-powered committee to communicate the unity message to all parties opposed to the governing People's National Movement (PNM).

Warner and Maharaj have also been reaching out to the opposition groups seeking a united force to oppose the PNM. Now they are facing the UNC's disciplinary body to answer charges that include reaching out to the nation with a message of change and unity.

UNC Leader Basdeo Panday has always been an advocate for unity and he told the media earlier this month his appointment of COP member Dr Sharon Gopaul-McNicol as an opposition senator, is aimed at achieving unity. He said throughout the country, people want the opposition forces to unite.

But embracing McNichol is having the reverse effect. Her party reacted to Panday's move by firing her from her post of deputy political leader and announced that she will speak for herself in the Senate, not the Congress of the People (COP) or its membership.

COP has turned down every offer from Panday for unity, insisting that it would never work with the UNC with Panday as its leader. This is the biggest hurdle for the UNC to cross in its attempt to unite the opposition since COP commands strong support within the UNC heartland.

In the 2007 election it won 148,000 votes, mainly from disenchanted UNC supporters. In that election the UNC lost more than 100,000 votes from people who supported the party in the 2002 election.

Persad Bissessar said on Wednesday she will begin her unity assignment immediately by meeting with committee members to formulate a plan of action.

St Augustine MP Vasant Bharath, who is a member of the committee, said he will be writing to the various political parties, including the COP, to set up meetings with them.

Read the commentary: UNC bickering presents opportunity for change