Warner promises mass membership drive to rebuild UNC

Jack Warner appealed to United National Congress (UNC) supporters Thursday to stop sitting on the fence and make the decision to vote for him as Chairman in Sunday's internal election of the United National Congress.

He also urged them to vote for Kamla Persad Bissessar as Political Leader and for the entire team that he has endorsed, which includes former Chaguanas Mayor Dr Suruj Rambachan.

Speaking in Biche, he reminded supporters that the UNC was built on the promise that as an institution it would give ordinary people the opportunity to do extraordinary things.

But he said the party under the current leadership has lost its moorings and changed course and now reflects characteristics of the parasitic oligarchy.

"For fourteen months I pounded the pavements with one message: give the Party back to the people. The misery and pain that we face in this Party is because of bad governance, a lack of democracy and weak leaders who create nothing more than internal strife and division among its members," he said.

Warner said the problem with the UNC stems from a refusal of the leadership to be accountable to the membership. And he suggested that the PNM is supporting the Panday team because it needs panday as opposition leader in order to win again.

"If Bas wins then the PNM wins and Patrick Manning is assured of staying in power forever. However when Bas loses on Sunday, Trinidad & Tobago wins!" he declared.

"No leadership that has failed to account to its people for the past 20 years should be allowed to remain in power. No leadership that has stolen the right of its membership should come to you for your vote," he said.

Warner lamented the fact that instead of encouring the growth in the membership the UNC has discoruaged and chased away those who wished to join the party. He promised that as a top prioritty he would aplogize to those were were uncermoniously rejected and launch a mass mebership drive to rebuild the UNC.

He also accused the current leaders of destroying the party's institutions,especially the women’s arm and the youth arm.

He said in a democracy even persons who seek to deprive others of their basic constitutional rights and promote inequity and injustice can offer themselves as leaders. But he added, "nowhere under democratic rules does it say you have the right to give them your vote."

Warner said the current leadership is disconnected from the membership and is blinded to the needs of the people by ikts arrogance. "They do not experience the pain you feel. They have no idea of the pain all of us feel," he said.

He promised that he will never let the UNC executive govern wikthout seeking the people's mandate. "Never again will any leader be able to steal from you the right to elect the leadership of this party for we will set a statutory date on which elections will be held."

He said the team he is supporting offers the type of change members can trust. He said the panday plaftofrm is divisive and marginalizes people.

"They can break down but we know how to rebuild; they can destroy but we know how to restore; they can damage but we can repair because the glory we seek is not for ourselves but one that will lift this country from the social demise which we all face," he said.

He urged members to get it "right this time or remain wrong forever."