Rowley wants to break PNM mold of corruption

Diego Martin West MP Keith Rowley is on the warpath. And his focus is Patrick Manning, political leader of the governing People's National Movement (PNM).

Both men have never been close ever since Rowley challenged Manning for the leadership of the party. And when Manning fired Rowley from cabinet over the UDeCOTT affair (Manning says it was for Rowley's "wajang" behaviour) the rift became public.

But Rowley was determined to stay within his party, saying the PNM nurtured him and made him who he is. And it is as a member of the PNM that he is going after Manning, demanding accountability.

Manning even tried to taint Rowley with corruption by claiming in Parliament that something was wrong with a housing project at Arima that was started under Rowley's watch as housing minister. Manning said $10 million was missing and asked Rowley to explain.

The relevant ministry cleared Rowley and showed no money was missing, but Manning never backed down on that. And Rowley has been demanding that the Uff commission investigate the Cleaver heights housing project so that he could clear his name.

In Parliament Monday, he was at it again and going after Manning, painting his leader with a corruption brush, claiming that the UDeCOTT scandal was even worse that the Piarco Airport affair, which Manning has claimed was the most corrupt project ever undertaken by the former UNC administration.

The former cabinet minister warned that the UDeCOTT issue and PNM corruption would loom big in the next general election.

Rowley was speaking on the validation bill to legitimise the Uff Commission. He appealed to his PNM colleagues to "do the right thing" and save the party from being tainted by the UDeCOTT scandal.

"There are strong forces that are making it their duty to make sure this Commission of Inquiry does not succeed," he charged. He said by passing a validation bill "we are validating the hope to save the PNM. We of the PNM, other than anybody else in this country, have a particular interest in this matter...the PNM is on trial!"

In a clear reference to Manning, Rowley said those PNM members who bear the corruption stain the late John O’Halloran could not take the view that the UDeCOTT Commission of Inquiry was mere "old talk".

"Mr Speaker, this country has to understand that sometimes you have to break the mold to make a new shape. And I am breaking the mold! I am breaking the mold!

"I’m breaking it on behalf of all the PNM people, who in 1986, when we went to campaign in my area, I was there, I don’t know who else was there, I was there and you are going door to door and they are slamming doors in your face in Westmoorings, in Glencoe, in Bayshore and all they telling you about is, O’Halloran," Rowley said.

He said Dr Eric Williams never publicly defended O’Halloran in the face of corruption allegations.

"Right now, I am saying to my colleagues that what this Commission of Inquiry is looking at, is ten times worse than what happened in Piarco Airport. It’s even more brazen. I cannot believe they could have been so bold," he said.

"Why should people be sacrificed to allow others, wrongdoers, to prosper? That is what we are being called upon to do, colleagues.

"Those of you who think I am being obstructionist, what we are being called on to do, by a small clique of people in the country, is to support wrongdoing...pretend that we know nothing and see if we can ride it out. We are not going to ride this out!" Rowley declared.

Rowley again demanded that the Government fire the UDeCOTT Board and repeated his warning that "the next election will be the UDeCOTT election".