“I will not be bullied.”
This from Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles who yesterday delivered a stern response to Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar following a social media post by the Prime Minister that accused the People’s National Movement of being “hijacked” and “owned” by “fake elite financiers”.
In a social media post of her own, Beckles referred to Persad-Bissessar as an “Absentee Prime Minister” whose legacy would be the reduction of the country to a “vassal state”.
She said the Prime Minister’s assertions of the party being controlled by external influences were a result of her misery seeking company.
The exchange comes after the PNM on Friday staged a walkout from Parliament after Deputy House Speaker Dr Aiyna Ali halted their protests.
This issue arose over objections that Opposition Senator Faris Al-Rawi was included in the debate to adopt the Special Report of the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC).
PNM senators Janelle John-Bates and Al-Rawi had assisted former health minister Terrence Deyalsingh with his witness statement submitted to the committee, the former offering her resignation to the Senate in the aftermath.
Beckles said on Friday she is considering if she will accept Jon-Bates’ resignation.
During the debate, Beckles’ leadership was criticised as being “weak”. Shortly after, Persad-Bissessar stated in her social media post that Al-Rawi, the party’s public relations officer (PRO), was untouchable and protected.
“They showed themselves to be a party totally controlled by its fake-elite financiers, existing only to serve them…It appears that Pennelope Beckles cannot touch Faris Al-Rawi, as she must adhere to the dictates of the PNM’s financiers, who have slyly replaced the former PNM leadership with her.”
“Astonishingly, for some people but not me, MP Beckles and the PNM did not flee when the Government called for Senator John-Bates’ removal; the fleeing occurred at the precise moment MP Jearlean John called for MP Beckles to remove Senator Faris Al-Rawi for his role in this scandal,” she wrote.
‘Desperate’, ‘embarrassing’
accusations about financiers
Beckles fired back yesterday, saying that the Prime Minister was “quite alone in pitiful circumstances”, stating that she was not in Persad-Bissessar’s shoes.
She said as political leader of the PNM she will make decisions about representation in Parliament, guided by commitment to due process.
Beckles said: “I will not be bullied or directed in these matters, nor will I allow a Government on whose benches sit persons on bail, persons who openly brandish false qualifications, persons who are before the courts on various matters, and persons who engage in the most disgusting and obscene behaviour on social media, to decide how the Opposition must discipline or deploy its members.”
She referred to “childish tantrums” on the part of the Prime Minister, along with wild and spurious accusations that the PNM was controlled by financiers and elites.
Beckles said these accusations were embarrassing and revealed the desperation of someone who had run out of facts.
PM absent from the debate
The PNM has already made its position clear, she stated.
“Our decision to walk out of the Parliament was a principled stand against a Government that abused its parliamentary majority, ignored Standing Orders, and allowed proceedings to descend into disorder and theatrics,” Beckles said.
She continued: “Had Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar taken the time to attend the parliamentary sitting on Friday, she may have possessed some moral authority to comment on the proceedings; but in her usual fashion, she seeks to pontificate on matters which she did not witness. She was absent from the Chamber on Friday, absent from the debate, and absent from the facts.”
If the Prime Minister intends to lecture on parliamentary conduct, she should first ensure her consistent presence in the Chamber to attend to the people’s business and understand the issues first-hand, Beckles said, adding: “The Government is engaging in selective outrage, attempting to expand a specific issue beyond its proper scope and ignore serious procedural breaches as highlighted in the Minority Report.
“These breaches are as critical as every other breach and must be investigated with equal vigour. There must be one standard applied equally to the conduct of all parliamentarians. That principle is essential to maintaining public trust and the proper functioning of democratic institutions.”
She concluded: “The People’s National Movement will not be intimidated. We will continue to act responsibly, uphold due process and defend the people of Trinidad and Tobago.”
