PNM members face disciplinary charges for not supporting UNC

Four People's National Movement (PNM) councillors are in trouble for defying their party's instructions to maintain the status quo in the opposition-controlled Rio Claro Corporation.

A directive from PNM secretary Martin Joseph advised the four PNM councillors to support the nominee of the United National Congress (UNC) for the post of chairman of the corporation.

The PNM councillors refused and nominated their own candidate but in the end the UNC won the vote and kept control of the corporation.

UNC deputy leader Jack Warner said last week it was part of a deal between UNC leader Basdeo Panday and PNM leader Patrick Manning to spite the MP for the areas, Winston "Gypsy" Peters, who is an ally of Warner in his campaign for change in the UNC.

Warner himself has been accused of being in collusion with the PNM. Panday accused him of that after he voted twice with the PNM in Parliament and then enlisted PNM support to oust Chaguanas mayor Suruj Rambachan one week ago.

A PNM spokesman denied that there was a deal with the UNC, saying the directive was given because the delay in implementing local government reforms means that the existing systems remain in place.

In that context, the spokesman told the Trinidad Guardian, the party has asked its members to maintain the status quo.

Now PNM councillors Matthew Pierre, Fitzroy Ottley, Dansam Dhansook and alderman Avind Moonan may face disciplinary action, which could lead to their expulsion from the party.

The directive from Joseph had made it clear that if they didn't follow the instructions to allow the UNC candidate to win they would have to resign from the party.

The the PNM is adamant that the instruction was not part of any prior arrangement with the opposition. “There was no deal between Manning and Panday as people have claimed,” the spokesman told the paper.

“Mr Manning had made it clear during debate on the bill to postpone local government elections recently that it made no sense to go to local government polls with the reform system incomplete and that everything would remain in place until the exercise was finished," the spokesman added.

The PNm said the party was clear that there would be no changes in personnel in local government.

The explanation appears to contradict what happened in Chagunas last Monday. Two PNM members of the Chaguanas Borough Corporation voted with three "dissident" UNC councillors to expel Suruj Rambachan as an alderman and deny him the opportunity to continue in his role as mayor.

Instead, they helped elect Natasha Navas, 30, as a new alderman and she became mayor.

The councillors who voted out Rambachan are not facing disciplinary charges but the four who defied the party in Rio Claro could be expelled. So far none of the four has resigned but the next PNM General Council could kick them out.

They explained to the Guardian that it was important to try to get control of the Rio Claro corporation in PNM hands. “Mayaro as a general election constituency is already in UNC’s hands," councillor Mathhew Pierre told the paper. "We needed to get control of the corporation if we really have to reinforce PNM’s support around here.”

The councillors said they disagreed with the concept of putting a chairman of an opposite party in control of a corporation, saying "that cannot be right".