The ruling United National Congress (UNC) will this morning seek nomination of candidates to contest all 41 seats in this year’s general election, which is expected to be held no later than September 17. One week ago, party leader and Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said nominations will begin today.
No date has as yet been announced for the election, which Persad-Bissessar has repeatedly said she would call when it was constitutionally due. The last constitutional date for the election is September 17, which is three months after the Parliament is dissolved.
Contacted for comment yesterday, interim party chairman, Khadijah Ameen said since Persad-Bissessar’s announcement of the opening date for nomination “several people have expressed an interest in seeking nomination.” She said “among those who have expressed an interest are people of a national note. We will have some interesting personalities seeking nomination.” She said the UNC will invite and approve nominations for all 41 constituencies in the country.
She said the other three member units of the People’s Partnership coalition—the Congress of the People (COP), the Tobago Organisation of the People (TOP) and the National Joint Action Committee (NJAC)—have agreed that each party invite and approve nominations from as many seats as possible and at the appropriate time the leaders and campaign teams will meet to negotiate which seat each party will contest on the PP ticket.
In the 2010 general election, the UNC won 21 seats, the COP, 6 and the TOP, 2. Ameen said the nomination forms will be available from 9 am at the UNC headquarters, Rienzi Complex, Couva. No date for the closure of the nomination process was announced by Persad-Bissessar but Ameen said yesterday that it was expected to be shortly after the election date is announced.
Ameen said the nominees must be people with “a good financial standing” in the party. His or her nomination form must be endorsed by 40 people from the constituency. She said incumbent MPs were also free to seek re-nomination. Sources have hinted at major changes in the candidates for the upcoming election.
The ministers of the People and Social Development and Sport, Christine Hosein and Brent Sancho are tipped to contest two seats in the upcoming parliamentary elections. And COP party leader, Justice and Legal Affairs Minister Prakash Ramadhar called an emergency meeting of all COP MPs last Tuesday, less than 24 four hours after Persad-Bissessar said nominations for UNC candidates were to begin tomorrow.
The one-hour inconclusive meeting took place at Ramadhar’s MP office. Sources say the COP has not as yet made any official announcement on nomination of candidates. The breakaway faction of the COP—the country’s newest party —the Alliance of Independents, at its launch last week said it contest 12 of the 41 seats.
The interim leader of the AOI is former parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nicole Dyer-Griffith. The Opposition PNM has already approved 40 prospective candidates. It’s screening committee is expected to meet with the Chaguanas East constituency soon to choose a candidate for that constituency.
Opposition Senator Diane Baldeo-Chadeesingh was chosen months ago but she subsequently withdrew her candidacy. The constituency executive are insisting that Nal Ramsingh be accepted as the replacement candidate but this has not been accepted by the screening committee. At the last meeting two weeks ago, the constituency executive walked out of the meeting with the screening committee over the matter.
No date has been announced for a fresh meeting to approve the PNM’s prospective candidate for Chaguanas East.