Message of Divali has glimmer of hope for political unity

Divali is having a uniting effect on politicians in Trinidad and Tobago, especially opposition politicians.

They have been sharing "face time" and religious stages, with one of the more significant events planned for Sunday when Chaguanas West MP Jack Warner will embrace COP leader Winston Dookeran at a Divali function in Felicity.

Warner invited Dookeran to a "home coming" in the constituency he once held in Parliament and Dookeran readily accepted the offer, which includes delivering the feature address.

Read the story: Warner, Dookeran keep unity flame ablaze
During Divali week other politicians have celebrated the conquest of light over darkness, with what appears to be clear signals that reconiliation is part of their Divali messsage.

Dookeran's deputy, Prakash Ramadhar, was in Siparia earlier this week to celebrate Divali with Kamla Persad-Bissessar. The UNC Deputy Leader and siparia MP told the media she invited Ramadhar as a personal friend of long standing.

In her Divali speech, the former education minister said, "There is lot of darkness... but if we light one or two deyas it won’t dispel the darkness. Nor would it, if we light thousands and they are scattered."

She took her message another step. "So we have to light deyas together and unite them all so we can make a great light to remove the darkness."

Persad-Bissessar heads a UNC team trying to unite all political groups opposed to the People's National Movement. In pursuit of that, she got the blessing of UNC Leader, Basdeo Panday, to attend a COP congress in June which turned out to be an anti-Panday show.

She spoke about unity, but when she mentioned her leader's name the COP crowd shouted, "No Panday". COP quickly apologized.

Read the story: Kamla gets apology from COP

But Panday has not held that against COP and the UNC continues to try to court Dookeran while Warner, who has formed his own unity movement, is doing the same.

UNC vice chairman Vasant Bharath confirmed to the Guardian that the UNC has formally invited Dookeran to speak at the party's October 26 Congress, which Warner says if illegal.

Warner wants to take this new found camaraderie further and has proposed a political round table for November 15 to discuss political unity. Warner said that would be his immediate move on his return home from Egypt. He said the plan is to call all party leaders and UNC MPs and invited them to the talks.

"Reconciliation is long overdue, but Mr Panday is the obstacle...I’m prepared to work around, under and over him, but unity, like the waves on the shore, can’t be stopped. We’ll use all methods, including the Divali celebrations, to achieve it,” Warner told the Trinidad Guardian in an interview from Cairo, where he is on FIFA business.

He is on his way home for Sunday's celebration in his constituency where he and Dookeran will share the platform.

Commenting on the unity moves and specifically on Warner's initiative, Panday told the Guardian he is no "political Dr Kevorkian to advise people how to commit suicide", adding that people have a right "to commit suicide in their own way politically or otherwise."

He said people are still free to join a party of their choice or appear on platforms of their choice. "I agree with those freedoms, so people are entitled to do what they want," he said.

Bharath did not reject Warner's inititaive outright. He told the paper, "The UNC initiated all the ‘reaching out’ currently occurring. But all initiatives must go to our executive."

He said he cannot accept an invitation from another party to speak on their platform or attend a round table without first consulting the party.