After Wednesday’s Parliament drama on the ill-fated process to select a Police Commissioner, Thursday’s Senate sitting might have seemed tame if not for UNC Senator Wade Mark’s warning to Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi.
Discussing proposed amendments, Mark advised Al-Rawi, “We work hard—and we look forward to the match!”
His declaration startled PNM Senator Paula Gopee-Scoon, who appealed, “(UNC Senator Gerald) Ramdeen! Talk to your leader!”
Bills apart, Mark’s comment might also have echoed Opposition sentiment on the July 16 Belmont East and Barataria by-elections announced by Government Wednesday.
UNC’s short-listed candidates will be ready next week, party chairman David Lee said.
Despite that the polls aren’t in UNC’s traditional turf, they’ll test its political skill and standing, gauging the impact of UNC’s Parliamentary interrogation and public push concerning Government.
The last being UNC MP Ganga Singh’s rerouting of Wednesday’s debate on the Police Commissioner selection matter, from process to personality, boxing Government into accusations of bias and race after nominee DCP Deodat Dulalchan was rejected.
The polls are also the ruling PNM’s first political test since its 2015 general election win and the austerity mode Government subsequently slapped on T&T following economic challenges.
Government has been morphing since April, however, attempting shift from negative profile to one that’s managed T&T towards economic uptick, gotten the energy sector under control and swung potential foreign investments.
PNM profile-polishing was particularly obvious recently.
At Wednesday’s Police Commissioner selection debate, Government said it acted early in the term to confront the matter as its manifesto promised. Al-Rawi said Tuesday’s amendments to land title law involved keeping a campaign promise. Agriculture’s Clarence Rambharat on Thursday assured squatters “have nothing to fear under the PNM.”
Yesterday, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley presided over south highway developments.
Thursday’s PNM Barataria campaign launch featured full-on election mode: good news promotion, promises, defence against detractors accentuated with verve, vehemence and venom.
Another election-prep change was Thursday’s appointment of PNM’s Stuart Young as Communication Minister. At mid-term, Young, who’s also the PNM’s PRO, finally has his own ministry after being a Minister in the AG’s Ministry and the PM’s office, portfolios he retains.
If Young now has the longest title of all ministers, straddling the most significant portfolios—corruption buster and communication—PNM’s Marlene McDonald’s been the subject of the most changes in Government.
After being hired and fired twice (September 2015-March 2016 and June-July 2017), her third posting in March to the Ministry of Public Administration and Communication (PA/C) was halved within three months with Rowley’s move to place Young in Communication.
McDonald re-entered Government in March as minister in PA/C under the ill Maxie Cuffie. She was elevated to Minister a month later, with Cuffie bumped to minister in PA/C.
But the Office of the Prime Minister’s announcement on Ministers Young and McDonald and the separate Communication and Public Administration ministries didn’t mention either Ministry having a second minister (like Cuffie) or what now becomes of his recent position as minister in PA/C.
Texts to the new Communication Minister on what might be Cuffie’s position and if he’d remain in Communication or Public Administration received no reply.
What job—if any—Cuffie might hold remains ahead. PNM officials said Cuffie, as of Thursday, was expecting word from doctors by June 20 on return-home possibilities.
That a full-fledged Communication Ministry is necessary at mid-term prepping for polls, is an admission of Government’s weakness with communication.
Young’s been a standing feature of post-Cabinet media briefings, where he’s defended Government (sometimes recitation like) and also working international corridors with his boss.
As Government’s voice (and face) PNM may be targeting a wider national base.
As for how he fares with traditional PNM support, while Belmont East is in his PoS North constituency, Young’s performance as PNM PRO was criticised by a committee chairman at PNM’s 2017 annual convention.
Now left to be seen: how Young’s Communication performance will impact perceptions on the crisis-level crime rate, job cuts and economic situation which Finance Minister Colm Imbert on Thursday admitted “isn’t out of the woods yet”.
