The MPs made the comments at a news conference following a caucus meeting. Mc Donald had raised concerns about the partial walkout of some MPs last Friday, which she said she had not approved.
The MPs left the House of Representatives after Speaker Wade Mark ruled that Amery Browne was speaking on matters that were irrelevant to the debate and cut him off from the debate.
Imbert, who has suggested the walkout did not follow the MPs who left the chamber. And Mc Donald also remained in her seat.
Mc Donald told the media she is not aware of any break in the ranks of the PNM. “The team is united and committed...All of us couldn’t walk out as we were threatened by the other side,” she said.
Mc Donald said, “If the entire Opposition had vacated their seats, (the government) would have seized that opportunity to clear the entire Order Paper...So the country would have missed the debate on the Bail Amendment Bill, the Evidence Act and the motion for the Standing Orders.”
Her position Monday was very different from her initial response. “If there is to be a walkout, it starts with the Chief Whip. I gave no nod or approval for that walkout. I intend to find out what transpired,” she said over the weekend, adding that she would deal with the issue at Monday's caucus.
Read the story: Opposition whip did not give MPs walkout order; intends to demand answers
It was Imbert who gave the order. And he said the issue about the partial walkout is “being blown out of proportions. I don’t think it’s a big deal and I don’t think it’s something that people should be focusing too much on. Certainly there wasn’t no split in the Opposition."
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