Couva South Objects to Kangaloo, President’s House Will be Reduced to a ‘Kangaloo Court’

RUDRANATH INDARSINGH
Member of Parliament for Couva South

The people of Couva South unanimously object to the nomination of Senator Christine Kangaloo as President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

At a meeting held last evening, key social and political stakeholders agreed that the appointment of Senator Christine Kangaloo opened a gateway for a further assault on our country’s democracy and the objectification of the Office of President into a glorified clerk for the political arm of the Government.

This meeting was attended by the Member of Parliament for Couva South Rudranath Indarsingh, Councillors Ramchand Rajbal Maraj, Allan ‘Taxi’ Seepersad, Arelene Solomon-Ramesar and Gangaram Gopaul. It also included members of the Couva South constituency executive led by Chairman Sharma Sooknanan and activists.

The meeting was united in its opposition to Senator Christine Kangaloo, who it expressed has demonstrated a political ancestry rooted in the PNM, which cannot be signed away via a resignation letter from that party.

One wonders what is the use of Senator Kangaloo’s resignation from the PNM, when the letter itself was signed with a PNM ‘golden pen’.

That PNM ‘golden pen’ was used by Senator Kangaloo throughout her years of assault and bias against the Opposition Senators in the Upper House.

It was Senator Kangaloo’s ‘golden PNM pen’ that was used to dismiss several critical motions of urgent importance brought by the Opposition Senators over the years, especially on the issue of crime and Covid-19.

It was Senator Kangaloo’s ‘golden PNM pen’ which was used to assault the contributions of Opposition Senators while they represented the 309,188 citizens who voted for the United National Congress in the last General election.

What is even more concerning is the rootedness of Ms. Kangaloo’s family in the foundations of Balisier House. Her husband attorney-at-law Kerwyn Garcia is the recipient of many briefs handed to him by the PNM. Her father-in-law Anthony Garcia was the country’s sleepiest Minister of Education in the last PNM Cabinet. Her uncle-in-law Noel Garcia continues to be Chairman of UdeCOTT, a multi-billion dollar agency which was stolen from the Ministry of Housing, and suspiciously placed under the purview of the Prime Minister himself. This one man, Noel Garcia also doubles as the Chairman of another multi-billion dollar taxpayer-funded enterprise, the Housing Development Corporation (HDC).

Senator Kangaloo and her family all have golden ‘PNM pens’, which they will now use to place the writing on the wall for the Presidency.

One wonders as to what is the real nature of the relationship between Prime Minister Keith Rowley and the Garcia-Kangaloo family.

There can be no real belief that any of the decisions regarding the appointments to Service Commissions, the Elections and Boundaries Commission and the Independent Senate would reflect anything other than a ‘balisier blight’.

This ‘balisier blight’ has hit Kangaloo, causing her to be the first President to have had a decision of hers ruled as illegal by the High Court. Her ‘golden PNM pen’ was used to surreptitiously dismiss former Governor of the Central Bank Jwala Rambarran, a decision the Justice Devindra Rampersad who ruled in June 2022 that Mr. Rambarran’s dismissal to be unfair and unlawful, at the time she was acting for substantial President, Her Excellency Paula-Mae Weekes.

Kangaloo has not even been yet elected as President, yet the international community noted her embarrassing dismissal of Mr. Rambarran while she acted for a brief period while in the post.

One wonders about the embarrassment that would befall her and the country during a substantive term in the office.

Senator Kangaloo therefore joins PNM Attorney General Reginald Armour, SC as two high ranking officials in this Government to be embarrassed by the international courts.

The constituents of Couva South are calling on the Government to reconsider its nomination of Senator Kangaloo in favour of someone who can inspire the spirit of togetherness, stature, hope, respect and impartiality that Senator Kangaloo most certainly cannot.

Without consensus on a candidate, without confidence in impartiality, without respect for the Opposition and its constituencies, Dr. Rowley’s suspicious nomination of Senator Christine Kangaloo promises to reduce the President’s House into nothing but a ‘Kangaloo court’.

RUDRANATH INDARSINGH
Member of Parliament for Couva South and SHADOW RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE MINISTRY OF LABOUR and TOBAGO AFFAIRS