"Kamla Persad-Bissessar must go and she must go now!" Those were the words of Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) leader Ancel Roget as he delivered the feature address after yesterday's march in Port-of-Spain. He made the comment to thousands of workers, citizens, members of civil society organisations and supporters of the People's National Movement (PNM) and the Movement for Social Justice (MSJ), after they gathered at Adam Smith's Square following a demonstration through the streets of Port-of-Spain.
Roget made several demands of the Government, among them an increase in the minimum wage, investigations into the e-mail scandal, the recovery of the $6.8 million for the recovery of the firetruck, the removal of Rabindra Moonan as the chairman of the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) and Attorney General Anand Ramlogan, the ratification of the ILO convention 189 recognising domestic workers as workers and an end to political interference in the recruitment practices of state boards.
He said the union would take to the streets again in the coming weeks and launched the "Kamla Must Go" campaign. He added: "This march cannot be a one-and-done. We have to go into the communities. We have to organise better, differently. “The 25,000-plus today must be increased by two and three and four-fold as we come back here in Port-of-Spain. We will occupy the streets. We will call attention to the bad governance whether they have Caricom visitors here or not."
Roget chided Persad-Bissessar for her call at the United National Congress' (UNC) Monday Night Forum, Caroni, for a boycott of yesterday’s march. He called comments by Persad-Bissessar "a shameless misrepresentation of the facts." He asked the cheering crowd: "Why would the PM say that? What does she stand to gain? What was that coded message to supporters in Caroni?"
Roget also challenged Labour Minister Errol McLeod and Persad-Bissessar to name the 66 negotiations which the Government claimed to have settled. He described the People’s Partnership Government as "the most anti-worker Government ever."
Several other labour leaders and political leaders shared the platform with Roget, among them Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley, MSJ chairman David Abdulah, PNM chairman Franklin Khan and Banking Insurance and General Workers’ Union (BIGWU) president Vincent Cabrera, who chaired the proceedings. Abdulah, during his short address, said in his last meeting as a member of the Government he informed Persad-Bissessar that corruption would being the Government down.
He said he was asked by Persad-Bissessar whether he was speaking of state boards or Cabinet and, he said, he responded to both. He said former minister of national security Jack Warner was present at the meeting and said “David is right.” He then said Persad-Bissessar said she heard that too but could do nothing and would not do anything about it. Roget also warned Rowley of "traitors" in the PNM, saying that there were attempts to impede the march by holders of high office at City Hall, Port-of-Spain.
When asked by the T&T Guardian exactly what was done to impede the march, Roget said: "They took a very long time to give us the letter of approval to give to the police and it was excuse after excuse and so on about the office being closed and all of that. “The person, whoever the person is, PNM will investigate and find out who that person is. Maybe by Valentine Day next year we will find out."
Thousands of people had earlier taken to the streets after they gathered at Woodford Square and set off on the march. They stopped for a short while in front the Office of the Prime Minister, then walked down Alexandra Street, onto Carlos Street, before stopping at Adam Smith Square for final speeches from union leaders.