The opposition leader is suddenly interested in meeting with the government to discuss crime and to cooperate to make legislative changes to facilitate the war on crime. He said Saturday fighting crime is not a political issue.
Where was that national spirit in February, Dr Rowley, when you and your MPs voted down the bill to hang killers?
Where was that national spirit in February, Dr Rowley, when you and your MPs voted down the bill to hang killers?
All that was needed was the same "concern" and a little cooperation. Instead you and your MPs behaved like a gang and defeated the legislation that would have hanged those who kill and just walk away.
Even when Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar tried to reach out to you to make changes you behaved like a hooligan in the Parliament and snapped at her, saying you would not talk with her.
Attorney General Anand Ramlogan quite rightly accused you and the PNM of taking a serious debate on hanging and transformed it into a "political gayelle", in which MPs were trying to outdo each other because their internal election campaign was coming. So much for crime and politics!
The Prime Minister continued to reach out to the opposition even when the bill was in the final committee stage; she even offered to suspend the sitting to try to find a compromise.
I am sorry, Dr Rowley, you were not interested in talking or finding any means to deal with the criminal problem then and you are just playing politics today when you say you care.
The Prime Minister continued to reach out to the opposition even when the bill was in the final committee stage; she even offered to suspend the sitting to try to find a compromise.
I am sorry, Dr Rowley, you were not interested in talking or finding any means to deal with the criminal problem then and you are just playing politics today when you say you care.
The Prime Minister had no choice but to accept defeat on the hanging bill but lamented that "at the end of the day it would be innocent people of this land who would suffer".
Ramlogan said in Parliament on that fateful day that for "every murdered person and every murderer that escapes the hangman's noose, the PNM must be held responsible."
He said he had tried the "diplomatic, friendly route" to give the PNM support, but the party failed to rise to the occasion because its political concern was not to "make the People's Partnership look good".
He described the PNM's attitude as "political hooliganism of the worse kind" and accused the PNM of political obstructionism by "holding an entire country to ransom and standing in the way of a vision."
Today, Rowley's political deception and hypocrisy stand out clearly with his crocodile tears.
He said he had tried the "diplomatic, friendly route" to give the PNM support, but the party failed to rise to the occasion because its political concern was not to "make the People's Partnership look good".
He described the PNM's attitude as "political hooliganism of the worse kind" and accused the PNM of political obstructionism by "holding an entire country to ransom and standing in the way of a vision."
Today, Rowley's political deception and hypocrisy stand out clearly with his crocodile tears.
We have said before that the government has a responsibility to fight crime with all the weapons it can muster. We know that it has been making a valiant effort and that crime has come down, despite the horrendous events of last week.
Rowley should be ashamed to even raise his voice on this matter to try to score cheap political points and try to pretend that he and his party care.
Let us not forget that their former leader who said crime was not a problem, entertained gang leaders at the state's expense and also gave them lucrative government contracts.
The PNM never cared about ending crime and they don't care now. And that includes Keith Rowley and the whole PNM clan!
Jai Parasram - 21 August 2011
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