The word “poll” is likely among the (volume of) four-letter words the PP would have acquired during its five years of governance. But the PP’s boss on Monday night, while known for her forthright approach, was having none of it when she and her supporters rolled into Guaico for the PP’s public pre-election preppings.
Well before Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar took to the stage, her team-mates had gotten the full house primed for the night. Minus use of rum but with heavy employment of “Rise Up” and other rhythms firing up troops. Cumuto Manzanilla MP Collin Partap, whose voice hasn’t been heard much in the Parliament since he was (back) benched after dismissal in 2012 for a DUI matter, demonstrated that setback hadn’t stumped his loyalty:
“One good term deserves another!” Partap declared to the audience, the assorted opponents of which would have immediately begged to differ with his four-letter word definition. And volunteer their perception in other much more colourful four-letter terminology. Partap, as part of the opening act, had the lighter duty. To Trade and Industry/Communication Minister Vasant Bharath, however, fell the task of educating the audience—present, pondering and potential—regarding the blow from the Moody’s downgraded rating of T&T.
“Blow” being the relevant four-letter word here. Even the said Larry Howai, in the hot seat of Finance Minister and who has been doing his fair share of headshaking at the circumstances he’s been forced to handle, might have silently been deleting expletives when the downgrade emerged with the potential to erode government’s economic performance stripes in the crucial election season.
“Facts are stubborn things, they don’t go away,” Bharath noted (probably aware that four-letter word could cut both ways for the PP currently). Displaying an uncharacteristic sheen of perspiration, the usually cool-looking Bharath targeted what the PP regards as the four-letter attribute of PNM leader Keith Rowley: “Wild outbursts and noise...is this the man you want to trust with the power of Government?”
Minister Rodger Samuel, the night’s hit, gave the UNC audience a glimpse of what attendees at COP’s public meetings have learned: he’s quite the platform artist away from the confines of parliament’s backbench. The political Bible according to the Arima preacher included his gospel:
“A thing twice is so nice a second time around (on a second term)...We building things so fast Google and my GPS can’t keep up or pick it up (I get lost in South the other day and couldn’t track the route)...A former prime minister once said if T&T is a donkey, Arima is de thing under de tail.”
“Minister Samuel, you preach tonight!” was Persad-Bissessar’s stamp of approval after Samuel finished, announcing today’s sod-turning of the Arima hospital.
Neither indicated why the hospital promised in the manifesto was only now getting airborne. Weeks before term’s end. Persad-Bissessar appeared on Monday to be in more of a reflective mood, acknowledging the PP had “of course” made mistakes (“all parties do, the difference is we learned from them”), admitting the last five years “have not been easy” (“I’ve had to fire people I knew well”).
All of which was preparing her audience for her announcement—one which went further than election hints at other meetings—that the election is “at hand” and the UNC would start accepting nominations next week. But not before, however, Persad-Bissessar got in her own stabs at Rowley, eschewing four-letter words and employing quite something else: “Chicken Licken crying all over the world that the sky is falling...don’t be panicked by Chicken Licken...Chicken Licken wants my job...bring your plans CL, not your panic!”
There’s been no feedback from the heirs of that fable’s author or the South African fast food chain of the same name on the PM’s commandeering of Chicken Licken. But after yesterday’s parliament debate on Rowley and by tonight’s Malabar PNM meeting, a whole lotta “foul” will be cried.
And many other—permissible—four-letter words.