"Give me a disciplined team and I shall give you government": Panday

Basdeo Panday maintained his attacks on Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Jack Warner Friday night as he continued his campaign for reelection as leader of the United National Congress (UNC) in the January 24 internal election.

He said neither of them has contributed anything to the party and none of them is capable to defending the party. Panday spoke about his own track record of defending the rights of people and "working in the trenches".

He said that means working with people, living among them, feeling their pain and hunger, "not falling down in the trenches".

He said Warner, who is running for the chairmanship of the party, is never in the country and Persad-Bissessar "can't even get up." That combination, he said, can never defend the UNC.

The Siparia MP is running for the leadership as is Tabaquite MP Ramesh L. Maharaj. But Panday's focus in on Persad-Bissessar who is perceived as the one who is creating unease in the Panday camp.

He said his former education minister cannot speak of any achievement and therefore she is trying to win votes using her gender.

"That is the biggest insult to womanhood," he said. He derided her for her "no woman, no cry" speech in 2007 at Mid Centre Mall, Chaguanas when she was denied the leadership of the UNC Alliance for the general election.

Panday said that "foolish" display might have cost the party vital votes because it gave people the impression that there was a split in the party.

Panday spoke of female world leaders and said they never relied on their gender.
"They never say vote for me because I am a woman...they never say no woman, no cry," he said.

Panday reserved some of his scathing criticism for Warner, suggesting that the Chaguanas MP did not understand the comment he made in Felicity earlier in the week when he said there is room for Persad-Bissessar in the UNC but she must first "get that monkey off her back".

Panday said any school child knows that the term refers to "an addiction" problem that is difficult to handle and said he was merely saying that Persad-Bissessar has a serious problem that she has to fix.

Then he directed another pejorative comment at Warner, "I want to tell Jack Warner that I won't insult the monkeys by calling him one of them."

Panday also repeated allegations of financial impropriety involving Warner and invited his audience to check the Internet to get information about the FIFA vice president.

And he went further, calling FIFA "the most corrupt organization" in the world. Panday said Warner is part of the problem in the UNC and cannot defend the party.

And he insisted in drawing a link between Warner and Persad-Bissessar, saying they have a joint slate. Panday and Persad-Bissessar are presenting teams but Warner has refused to take that route, insisting that having a slate encourages "cliquism" and divisions.

He has endorsed Persad-Bissessar for leader and some members of her team as well as some of his allies in the now disbanded Ramjack group. But Panday said it's all a cover. He said that is why she does not have a candidate for chairman on her slate.

Councillor Khadijah Ameen had been nominated for that post in Persad-Bissessar's team but she had withdrawn from the race, leaving it as a two-way fight between Warner and Panday's candidate, Vasant Bharat.

Panday praised his team and said his aim is to bring back discipline with a professional group of men and women. And he made a pledge to his supporters: "Give me a disciplined team, and I shall give you government."