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New UNC leaders gain support in government strongholds

Feb 11, 2010 Letters

Dear Editor,
An opinion poll conducted by the North American Caribbean Teachers Association (NACTA) over the last week in Trinidad shows strong approval for newly elected leader of the opposition UNC, Kamla Persad Bissessar, even among supporters of the ruling PNM.
Supporters of all political parties feel current Opposition Leader Basdeo Panday should make way for Kamla as the Opposition Leader. Panday has held on to the post although he lost the internal elections for leadership. The poll shows a fifth of the supporters of the ruling PNM are not very pleased with the performance of their MPs suggesting they can be won over in an increasingly anti-incumbent political environment.
The poll was conducted with 580 PNM supporters in eight PNM held constituencies. Asked if they are satisfied with the performance of their MPs, in the eight constituencies combined, 61% said yes with 23% saying no and 16% not offering a response. In terms of rating, Member of Parliament, Kenny Swaratsingh (66%) leads, followed by Karen Tesheira Nunez (65%) and Roger Joseph (64%) at number three with Alicia Hospedales at the bottom at number eight.
Voters complain they hardly see their MPs except on TV and express a desire to meet them in person to lodge their complaints about rising prices, runaway crime, rampant corruption, extravagant spending, the Udecott and CLICO fiascos, water woes, drugs, unemployment, road disrepairs, housing shortage, etc. Many of them said since the last election, they have not seen their MPs. Political apathy is rife among voters with many saying they are fed up of empty promises.
Asked who they would rate as the best Minister, Jerry Narace (Health) stands out at 20%, followed by Conrad Enill (Energy) at 16%, Colm Imbert (Works and Transport) at 15%, Mariano Browne (Trade) at 7%, Karen Tesheira Nunez (Finance) 6%, and Hazel Manning (Local Government) 5%.
In addition to being seen as an effective Minister, Colm Imbert is viewed as the strongest debater in parliament on both sides of the aisle. Kamla seems to have likeability among PNM supporters. Asked if they support Kamla as leader of the UNC, 81% said yes. Asked if they think Kamla will be successful at transforming the UNC into an electable party, 70% said yes with 19% saying no. Asked if they think Panday should yield the Opposition Leader position to Kamla, 76% said yes with 13% saying no. But PNM supporters were evasive, when asked if they would vote for the UNC under Kamla’s leadership at the next general election. Disgruntled PNM-ites said the UNC has too many internal conflicts and is not an attractive alternative to them preferring instead a new multi-racial party.
If Kamla succeeds at healing the division within the UNC and uniting the opposition forces, the PNM will face a formidable challenge at the next election. Separately, interviews with 230 opposition supporters show Kamla has overwhelming support (just 14% opposing) to replace Panday as Opposition Leader, but many people say there should be an orderly transition and Panday should not be hounded out of office. Supporters of the opposition parties feel Kamla should take steps to reconcile with the candidates she defeated in the UNC internal elections to unite the party in preparation for the next general elections due in two years.
Vishnu Bisram

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