Kamla attacks PNM manifesto, says it fails to address crime and corruption

Kamla Persad-Bissessar said Wednesday Patrick Manning has no interest in debating her on national issue before he and the PNm have nothing to discuss.

Speaking at a political meeting in Prince Town, the UNC leader said Manning and the PNM have no vision for Trinidad and Tobago.

"They’ve had eight years to show us their ideas and their vision and they never have. Not only do they not have any ideas – they want to steal ours," she said.

She described the PNM as "intellectually bankrupt" and said that's why Manning cannot face her in a debate.

"You can’t debate when you have nothing to say. You can’t debate when you have no record of accomplishment. That tells us all we need to know about them.

As for the PNM manifesto, she that it's just more promises for Manning and the PNM to break. "Nothing but empty promises. For eight years, their approach to government has been massive waste, mismanagement, corruption and lack of accountability. So what good is a manifesto from them?" she asked.

"If Patrick had any idea how to govern, he would have done it already. If he had any ideas, he would have shared those already. It’s time for change," she declared.

She noted that the PNM manifesto has nothing about how a Manning government would stop crime. She noted the country's murder rate being the same in 2010 as it was in 2009 and that under Manning's watch there have been more than 3,000 murders.
"This unprecedented murder rate gives new meaning to the blind chant of a few that “Ah is PNM ‘till ah dead”. Under the PNM your casket might come true a lot sooner than you think!" she said the opposition leader said crime remains the country's number one problem yet when you read the PNM manifesto there is nothing to address the problem.

She said it promises "mega-projects galore, but fails to tell us how the government intends to make your home a safer place for you to live in; how they are going to reclaim the streets and lift the self-imposed national curfew for law-abiding citizens; how they intend to stop the blood from flowing."

She said that is evidence that "Manning will continue his merry way along the very path that has caused so much destruction and damage."

She said most people have nowhere to run to escape crime while Manning is too busy "spending our money to build skyscrapers and furnishing his palace to be bothered with the cries of our young people dying on our streets and in our neighborhoods...

"Blood and tears are flowing like water, and the soul of our nation has been ruptured...Tonight, I want to ask you, will you stay on a sinking ship? Will you let Manning and his cronies sink our beloved T&T?"

She said the PNM rewards incompetence, which is why Finance Minister Tesheira remains immovable...and Martin Joseph’s abysmal failure as Minister of National Security appears to have impressed Prime Minister Manning so much, that he has never once hinted at his removal or demotion, despite a recent Cabinet reshuffle."

She added, "In the Westminster tradition, both these ministers would have had to resign; in our system, they flourish."

The UNC leader said the PNM and Manning have abdicated their responsibility to the nation and the constitution.

"Your fundamental right to peace and security of the person has no value under a PNM administration! The first and most important fundamental human right guaranteed by the State to its citizens in this country is the right to peace and security of the person," she said.

"Our future will only be bright if we understand that these rights are owed to us by the State. We must cherish and jealously guard them," she added.

She also said transparency and corruption are absent in the PNM manifesto. "We have moved from the good old days of the Francis Prevatt and John O’ Halloran to Calder Hart and Andre Monteil! Nothing has changed," she declared.

And she had a message for Keith Rowley.

"Keith, you were right, this will be a UDECOTT election! And Manning’s corruption will be the issue...You say leave Manning alone? Well Keith, when you say leave Manning alone, you are also saying leave Calder Hart alone!"

She said giving Manning and the PNM another mandate is a formula for them to continue to plunder the treasury "and nothing will change". She added, "We will keep living the same nightmare, night after night, day after day for the next five years… We’ll enough is enough. It’s time for real change."

She said dealing with security and safety is a top priority for the People's Partnership and promised that that will be clear on Friday when the coalition presents its manifesto.

She offered a preview:

• hold the police accountable for the effective delivery of their services
• establish a National Security Operational Center involving the use of technology to set up a real time centralized system for tracking crime
• use GPS bracelets on offenders who are on probation
• better control and patrol our coastline
• establish the National Security Protective Services Training Academy to improve the training provided to police officers
• prioritize community policing
• overhaul the criminal justice system

She said the election on May 24 is about "all of us doing better together. All of us uniting to make sure our government works for us."