Ramesh going to court to stop property tax

Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj is threatening Prime Minister Patrick Manning with court action over the new property tax.

He told supporters Sunday he has written a pre-action protocol to Manning telling the prime minister the tax is illegal.

"The property tax, if implemented, would interfere with the rights of individuals to the enjoyment of property, which is guaranteed in Section 4 of the Constitution,'’ he said.

He claims that the act breaches the doctrine of the separation of powers in the Constitution.

"The act gives power to the Cabinet to forfeit property to the State without first getting an order from the court. It therefore gives to the Government judicial power which should only be exercised by the courts," he said.

The property tax has become a very emotional issue and politicians are using it to try to score points.

The Tabaquite MP is campaigning for the leadership of the United National Congress (UNC) in the January 24 internal election. He is opposing the incumbent, Basdeo Panday, and Siparia MP Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

Persad-Bissessar has also spoken out against the tax. She has also threatened legal action on the same grounds and has pledged that if she is elected UNC leader and becomes prime minister one of her first acts would be to scrap the tax.