Jack, Ramesh are the enemies
Bas breaks party's code of silence
By: Louis B Homer South Bureau
UNC Political Leader Basdeo Panday broke the party's code against speaking about its internal politics in public on Monday night, launching a public campaign to, he said, expose the true intentions of dissident members Jack Warner and Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj.
His silence in the face of embarrassing public utterances by his two senior politicians made him look like a fool, he said.
At the UNC's public meeting in Carapichaima, Panday, back from a trip to Scotland, said: "I will defend this party with my whole life and the time has come to put the party's business before the public and reply to the propaganda and lies".
He referred to Warner and Maharaj as "enemies".
He accused both of making a "done deal" with the PNM on the eve of the Local Government elections, and that Maharaj wanted to be part of an organisation without discipline "so that he could run parallel organisations to weaken the party for his own selfish purposes".
He said: "They want a party in which they can carry on favoritism and cliqueism and discriminate against others they believe do not support their scheming ways, and establish files on those whom they believe are against them and use it as weapons of blackmail."
Panday said he would have much dirt to reveal.
He said: "In the weeks ahead I will have a lot to say about those who want to receive large donations on behalf of the party and not be asked to account for it". He urged his supporters at the meeting that they should not be distracted "by lies, rumours propaganda and the spending of other people's money and such other dirty tricks perpetrated by the enemy."
One supporter shouted: "You should have exposed them a long time. You take too long to do it."
Panday said he had resisted bringing the problems of the party in the public domain for a long time but the two senior members of the party were taking his silence for weakness thinking that he would not reply.
He said of the meeting with Warner and Prime Minister Patrick Manning: "Up to this day he (Warner) has not reported to the party the contents of the private meeting which lasted for two and one half hours. If that is not contempt for the party, what is? If that is not indiscipline what is? It was only when he was pressured by the media and the public he made a public statement claiming that they talked about football and how he was very impressed with the decor of the house."
"I may be a fool but I detest being taken for one," said Panday
Panday said while on holiday in Scotland he was able to understand the reason why two senior members of the party wants to bring down the party instead of the government.
"They don't want change they want exchange, they want the leadership of the party," said Panday.
"Only the members of the party could give them the leadership, and if they cannot get it they will mash up the party," he charged.
