"Let us stop the hate. We have been hurting each other for too long!" Jack Warner

Jack Warner told supporters in St. Helena in central Trinidad Tuesday night the United National Congress (UNC) plans to drag him and his colleague, Tabaquite MP Ramesh L. Maharaj, before a joint meeting of the Parliamentary Caucus of the Party and the National Executive Wednesday, in a bogus 'trial'. And he used the occasion to mount a defence of charges against himself and Maharaj while pleading for unity.

Both men have been summoned to the meeting to explain:

• the continued flouting of and disregard for the constitution, rules and directives of the Party that the internal affairs of the Party ought not to be discussed publicly and/or in public so as to bring the Party into hatred, ridicule and contempt but instead should be raised internally in the organs of the Party within the confines of the Party.
• inciting violence against Party members at the Party’s National Congress held at the Rienzi Complex on Sunday, March 22, 2009.
• threat of further demonstration/disruptions at UNC meetings

Warner said the body of men and four women have prejudged the matter. He charged that members have written and have been circulating "some of the most damaging e-mails against us" that one cannot dream possible.

"What constitution, rules and directives of the Party have we flouted by discussing the problems of the Party with you the membership in public? What constitution, rules and directives have we flouted?" he asked.

The UNC Deputy Leader and MP for Chaguanas West spoke about his pet grouse: the failure of the party to hold internal elections.

"Are we the ones who have not held any internal elections in the Party for the last five years when they should have been held every two years?

"Are we the ones who have presided over a Party where there has been no audited financial report of the Party’s accounts for the last 20 years?

"Have we lost six elections in the Party and yet held on to office?"

Warner wondered what ridicule and contempt he and Maharaj have brought upon the Party since neither has been arrested, tried in the courts and jailed, an obvious reference to UNC Political leader Basdeo Panday.

"Even as we stand here tonight, do we have several cases before the courts? Have we ever been suspended from Parliament? Or have we ever walked out from Parliament en masse when one of our own members has been speaking?

"Were we the ones who prevented over 1200 Party members from attending the Party’s National Congress at Rienzi Complex on Sunday, March 22? Were we the ones who damaged a 9-year-old child's hand? Were we the ones who called for violence? What violence did we incite when we walked away peacefully with our 1200 plus observers?" he asked.

"We have assembled tonight because we have recognized the need for a platform of change that is unified and echoes the sentiments of you the people...we have recognized that we need to live together like brothers and sisters or we will die separately like fools", he said.

He told his audience the government's disdain for the people and its indifference to their hurt and pain is reason enough to remove the governing People's National Movement (PNM) but "to have a change of government we have to first have change in the UNC."

The MP noted that the party's performance in the Nov. 2007 election shows that the UNC is losing ground among its own supporters. "More than 100,000 people who voted for our party in 2007 refused to vote for us in 2007. That is a serious indictment on our Party and sends a clear signal that our supporters are demanding change. You told us then that it cannot be business as usual", he said.

He said he and his colleagues are raising these issues to steer the party in the direction that would make it relevant to the people of Trinidad and Tobago and capable of challenging the ruling party at the next elections.

"Let them condemn the messengers and not recognize the truth of our message. Let them jealously guard the past and foolishly disregard the present and the future. Let them gang up to try and expel us tomorrow and believe that it will bring an end to the Party’s problems the next day," he said.

And he served notice that neither he nor Maharaj are afraid of Wednesday's meeting "and its attempt to discipline or even castigate us."

He said, "If I am found guilty it will not matter. I have already been tried by all of them and found guilty" adding that he is proud that "we have raised the consciousness of the members to the injustices and illegalities in the Party."

He said if the crime committed is that he has questioned the relevance of the current state of the party and expressed the desire to see the UNC-A shift from opposition politics to government "then I do wish to assure you that we shall do it again and again and again."

Warner said the current politics within the UNC is one of hate and divisiveness and the Party is fast losing its appeal as a valid alternative to the party in power.

"If we want to see a more caring government then as a people and a Party we have to become more caring. If we want to see a government that is more accountable to the people they serve, then as a Party we have to model higher standards of accountability than we anticipate. If we want to see a more democratic approach to governance then in our party we must provide an honest and just platform for dissenting views," he said.

"We cannot be acrimonious and bitter. I am laying down the gauntlet here tonight. Let us stop the hate. We have been hurting each other for too long! Let us get back with a united agenda. This platform of change is also one of unity and love," he said.