Manning booed
Protesters call for PM to resign
Camille Bethel South Bureau
Friday, March 26th 2010
Prime Minister Patrick Manning faced an unprecedented protest outside his San Fernando East constituency office yesterday, involving union members pushing for him to reverse unpopular decisions amid growing public discontent.
They also asked that he resign.
Manning refused to meet with protest leaders, ignoring them as he left at around 6.30 p.m. He was booed by protesters but cheered by office staff.
Police SUVs were used to form a barricade to prevent protesters from getting close as a smiling Manning left.
Manning normally meets constituents between 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. every Thursday.
UNPOPULAR: Prime Minister Patrick Manning was booed by union protesters but cheered by his San Fernando East constituency office staff yesterday. Members of the Oilfields Workers' Trade Union (OWTU) are demanding that Manning reverse unpopular decisions and resign. -Photo: Trevor Hackett
The protest was kept secret. The media were invited to attend an emergency general council meeting of the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) at its San Fernando headquarters, and then taken by bus to Manning’s Coffee Street office of 13 years.
Union president general, Ancel Roget, said he did not bother asking for a meeting with Manning ’because we don’t expect him to come in his arrogance’.
The protest was kept secret until the final minutes to prevent the police from finding out, the Express was told.
Southern Division Task Force officers arrived during the protest and ordered protesters off the road as they chanted ’we will keep on struggling until Manning goes away’ and ’Manning in the office hiding from workers’.
Roget said the protest was meant ’to bring the message to Manning that he must go. This PNM government is the most corrupt in the history of Trinidad and Tobago. If Manning wants to say this is political, then it is’.
The OWTU is one of the largest unions in the country and represents workers of Petrotrin, T&TEC and more than 60 other companies involved in oil and gas, manufacturing, agriculture and financial services.
Roget said the union learnt on Wednesday that Cabinet had instructed Petrotrin to give $46 million toward a development at Plaisance Park, Pointe-a-Pierre, as an act of political patronage.
’We see it as further politicking to support themselves in office, as they brace themselves for what will be a very turbulent general election to come,’ he said.
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