Environmentalist Dr Wayne Kublalsingh last night vowed to continue his hunger strike after Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar advised him against it and said the Debe to Mon Desir leg of the Point Fortin Highway will be constructed for the benefit future generations of Trinidadians.
In a letter yesterday, hours after Kublalsingh had started his second hunger striker outside her office in St Clair, Persad-Bissessar told him that while he felt compelled to express his views, “you must equally recognise that as Prime Minister I am duty bound to consider the representation of thousands of citizens who will benefit and whose lives will be positively affected for generations to come by the highway extension.”
“I have a duty to weigh in the balance, the competing views of those who have to endure the daily stress and inconvenience of the frustrating traffic and the consequential adverse impact on their quality of life and the economy,” the PM wrote in the letter. Persad-Bissessar said while we lived in a society that allows for the expression of diverse and dissenting views, it also meant that sometimes people would disagree on things.
Noting that the matter had gone to the courts, she said, “The real departure between us comes not in the way we see things, but the manner through which you hope to get your way by refusing to allow the courts to decide and abide by those decisions and harming yourself as a form of protest. “Having invoked the jurisdiction of the court, I urge you to respect the rule of the law and allow due proces to take its course. Taking the law into your own hands can only serve to undermine the legal process.”
She said she hoped that just as Kublalsingh felt he should express his view on the matter, he would also respect the “equally passionate views of the thousands of your fellow citizens who want this highway. “You claim to lead a Highway Re-route Movement, I lead Trinidad and Tobago and my perspective and decisions are always taken in the national interest and within thew laws that govern our republic.”
And signalling her intention not to back down, the PM added, “We cannot, and will not be eld to ransom by your decision to bring harm to yourself. While on a personal level it grieves me to see you do this, I can only offer prayerful support for your well-being and hope that good sense will prevail. May God continue to bless you as he continues to bless each and every citizen in our nation.”
Wayne not backing down
Leader of the Highway Re-Route Movement Dr Wayne Kublalsingh said last night he remains undeterred by the Prime Minister's letter and will again take up camp at 9 am today outside her St Clair office. He said he was willing to fight to the very end and, if so, sacrifice his own life for his cause, which he believes will not only positively affect residents but the nation.
“We will definitely be back there by 9 am. I will not give up...far from it. This has made me more relenting to fight for a cause that is just. “On Friday (tomorrow) there will be many more supporters who would be joining me and it would be much bigger,” Kublalsingh said. He called on Persad-Bissessar to account for her failure to abide by her promise, which was reiterated in the findings of the James Armstrong report.
Kublalsingh noted, however, that the PM could be under internal pressure and therefore had no choice but to take this path. “She has her own internal situation to deal with and it is possible they are making it very difficult for her,” Kublalsingh said. He also knocked the PM for wasting a “wonderful opportunity” to dialogue on the matter, which he said followed a path of science, logic and ultimately good governance.
“Indeed, the prime minister also missed an opportunity to chose genuine development rather than bogus development. This is obvious,” Kublalsingh said. On whether he believed Persad-Bissessar was callous given the wording of her letter, Kublalsingh instead offered her his forgiveness. “I really don't think she is callous, because the truth is she has treated us like this before. But I offer her my personal forgiveness of those who she has wronged and continue to wrong by her actions,” he said.
Kublalsingh said he believed there were others in the society who would rally around the Highway Re-Route Movement. “I think there are other entities in the society which are interested in this development, for example the media, the judiciary, the public service and civic groups and this is a wonderful opportunity for them to act,” Kublalsingh urged.
Armstrong report must be considered—JCC
President of the Joint Consultative Council Afra Raymond said yesterday it was a “real pity” the Armstrong report had not been considered. He made it clear he was not calling on the Government to abide by the report but rather to consider it. He said it could easily be assumed that the cause was against the People’s Partnership Government when in fact that was not the case.
“Somebody could see this whole movement and link that in a party political light and in that light they run a danger of assuming it is against the Government. “It is a short step from making the assumption that it is a PNM position but it is a bigger question because the fact of the matter is the highway is a major project.
“And what we achieved with the Armstrong report was a first for the Caribbean...t o have a large scale public sector review and all of that was possible because of Wayne’s sacrifice,” Raymond added.
Businesspeople in support of highway
Debe businessman Indar Jairaj, who protested briefly at Kublalsingh’s camp, said he wanted the nation to know that the highway was much needed. “This is very important to the Debe people. Everybody... Debe, Penal, Oropouche... need the highway. “Kublalsingh just wasting his time. He always coming to fast and only protest,” Jairaj said. He said he too was also prepared to go on a hunger strike in support of the highway.
When told that Kublalsingh had already began his strike Jairam was doubtful. “He (Kublalsingh) does go home. I serious. I would go on a hunger strike for 24 hours to make sure that the people from Debe and the surrounding areas get our highway.”
