The chairman of the COP, Public Administration Minister Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan, has requested an investigation into an alleged fist fight that took place at the party’s operations centre, Charlieville, Chaguanas on Sunday. “An investigation will be done. I do not know the details of it,” she told reporters during an interview at the Parliament yesterday. “To this day I did not know the details as to what started the fight... what was the basis of the fight,” she added.
Two COP members engaged in a fight after one allegedly called the other a snake for having left the party and after his return was given a significant party responsibility. Seepersad-Bachan said she knew “that there were many who are very upset over Mr Alexander because he has been very acrimonious with the party and therefore that must present problems and challenges in itself.” She said: “That has been the problem. We have to manage it.”
Seepersad-Bachan said she was not saying she was supporting “Alexander because I cannot see how we could put anybody in a prominent position like that. That is my personal view.” She added, however, that “it doesn’t mean we have to go around fighting down and hitting down each other over that.” Seepersad-Bachan said she did not witness any fight but attempts were being made to establish a committee to investigate the matter.
She confirmed that a joint statement was read at the national council on Sunday in which both she and the leader of the party, Legal Affairs Minister Prakash Ramadhar, indicated their intention to work together in the interest of the party. The two were very critical of each other when they challenged each other for the post of political leader during the party’s internal elections in July.