Opposition slams Manning for saying Kamla not suitable to be PM

The opposition United National Congress was on the warpath at a political meeting in Penal Junction, Friday with three front line speakers going after Patrick Manning for telling supporters the night before that Kamla Persad-Bissessar was not good enough to be Prime Minister because she was from Penal.

Roodal Moonilal was the first to go for the jugular on the issue, stating that the UNC leader is eminently qualified for the post and her place of birth has no significance. He said what matters is a person's ability.

Moonilal slammed Manning for an unwarranted attack on Persad-Bissessar and said Manning insulted everyone from the rural constituency that she has represented for more than a decade.

Jack Warner also jumped on Patrick Manning for his attack.

"Patrick is now saying that if you come from rural Trinidad you cannot become Prime Minister. What can he say to Christine Kangaloo, the candidate for Point a Pierre? Or Annwarie Ramkissoon, the PNM candidate for Princes Town? or Faziz Ramjohn, the candidate for Naparima?"

He addressed the Siparia candidate, Vidya Deokiesingh and asked "Why are you allowing Manning to do that to you, Vidya? Why?"

He dropped some picong on Manning about his social life. "Everybody in Port of Spain will tell you that before he became “Born Again”, Patrick only knew and frequented two locations in the north. Those two places were the Red House, and Smokey and Buntey in St. James."

He said since that time he has moved to his "palace" where he is holding farewell parties and “Breakfasses” every day.

Warner said Kamla has Patrick on the run and she has already beaten him twice - first when he closed down the Parliament to hide from the the opposition no confidence motion and again when he ran from a debate with the UNC leader.

He said victory number three is coming on May 24. "After that, the nation can count on our Prime Minister from Siparia for:

• victory over crime
• victory over corruption
• victory over poverty
• victory over disease
• victory over discrimination
• victory over maximum leadership
• victory over group domination
• victory over fear, which is the tool by which the PNM has enslaved so many people for so many decades.

"What Manning is most afraid of is that on Monday May 24, a woman from Siparia will end his ambitions to be Executive President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Sorry about that, Patos."

Warner named the various female leaders in the developed and developing world and said Manning needs to wake up to the reality and admit that now is the time for woman power.

"The empowerment of women leads to the empowerment of the nation," he said.

Persad-Bissessar herself mentioned the Manning comment, saying despiute what Manning is saying and has said before, she is better qualified than him to hold the nation's top elected office.

She served notice that on May 24 "this woman from Siparia" will lead the People's Partnership to defeat Manning and the PNM.

She said she is proud of her rural heritage and the lifestyle that prepared her for the job. And she said the experience of growing up away from the big city prepared her for service.