"It's time to put UNC back in government": Jack Warner

Jack Warner was defiant Thursday night when he addressed supporters at Gasparillo telling them not to despair because change is coming to the United National Congress Alliance (UNC-A).

And he urged them to join the movement for change "not for my sake but for the sake of your children and your children’s children and even those unborn."

He began with a message of congratulation to the labour movement on the celebration of labour day Friday and reminded them that one of the primary reasons for their success is that they were united. And he urged them not to confine their struggles to labour issues only but to use their unity and strength to help free the country from the clutches of the PNM.

The Chaguanas West MP, who flew 31 hours from South Africa to be at the meeting, said his message Thursday was to "lift the veil of silence that has allowed our Party, the UNC-A, to drift away from the principles of democracy that once defined it."

He was careful to refer to the party as the UNC-A, the political movement that he formed with political colleagues for the 2007 general election. The 15 opposition members of Parliament were elected as UNC-A members, although each is a member of the unitary party, the United National congress (UNC) led by Basdeo Panday.

"I am here tonight to discuss the changes needed to reposition our party, the UNC-A, as the leader in national politics and the champion for the small man in Trinidad and Tobago," he said.

"I am here tonight because I am convinced that you, my people, the true owners of the UNC-A will never allow your Party to degenerate into disrepute and fade into oblivion. It is for these reasons I am here to offer you hope and to remind you that together we can make the wrong things right in our Party and reclaim ownership."

Warner said he has watched with "much pain", the successive defeats of the party at elections. He said that is why he is intent on converting the Rienzi Complex "from a mourning ground to a site of celebration after the next upcoming General Elections."

He noted that the party has two options: "either we trouble the waters and rock the boat into government or we remain silent, toe the Party line and accept once again our sentence into opposition politics." He said the chose the first option because "unless we get the UNC into government the PNM will continue to treat us like second class citizens."

He slammed the UNC executive for dismissing his concerns and branding as him and others who share his views as dissidents, saying their desire to hold on to power became greater than the desire to reform and reposition the Party to take hold of government.

"So it was in this context that we decided after consultation with you the people, that the noise of other people’s opinions should not drown out our message to do what is right, and, rather than be trapped living with the results of other people’s warped thinking, we built this Platform for Change to give the party back to you the people," he said.

The UNC Deputy Leader explained that his "Platform for Change" is not about derailing the UNC or ringing its death knell, but about positioning it "as a valid party on the national landscape."

Warner said if the party is demanding a major overhaul of the PNM Government it must also "clean up our house" and make sure that the UNC is above repute on matters related to finance, transparency, constitutional matters and leadership.

"How can we as a Party talk about adherence to the constitution when we are in violation of our own Party’s constitution?" he asked, in reference the UNC executive's decision to defer internal elections.

"How can we so glibly speak about integrity when as a Party, we have a leadership that is holding on to power contrary to the rules which have been designed to govern us?"

Warner raised questions about the lack of financial accountability within the UNC but was careful to state that he was not casting aspersions on anyone. However he said given the state of the UNC he wonders "which corporate citizen will want to invest in our UNC as it is and provide financial support when there is no audited financial statement."

Warner picked up on Panday's advice to "Hit the Road Jack" and declared that he has been doing that for quite some time. "That is why we were in Fyzabad last week and in Tabaquite this week and in Mayaro next week and so on and so on...We are openly holding public meetings, like this one, throughout the country culminating, in time, with one massive meeting in Aranguez. Stay tuned!" he promised.

"Some people will change when they see the light; others will change when they feel the heat. But I guarantee you my people, change they will," he said.

He added, "Our concerns are too grave to be ignored and if we do not make a statement that seeks to reform and reposition the UNC as a political Party, we will be sending a strong signal to the undecided voters that ours is a spineless Party that should never be trusted in government."

He urged everyone to read and discuss the Manifesto for Change and offer their views by July 31. "Let us reform the UNC from within. Let us speak out against the Party's wrongdoings. Let your voices be heard."

He urged them to be courageous and in spite of the consequences. "Let us work together to put our Party, the UNC, on an even keel to win the next General Elections."

He said it is time to put the UNC back into government and closed with the words of George Bernard Shaw: "Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their thinking, cannot change anything.”