Act 2... (Beyond Section 34)

In the memorable scene from the movie 'The Good, The Bad & The Ugly,' the one armed man, elated to find Tuco in a bath tub unarmed goes on at length to tell him how long he has been waiting to kill him and how happy he is to find him, during which Tuco pulls out a gun and shoots him and says to his dying body - “When you come to shoot, shoot! Don't talk, shoot...”

I am reminded of this on the heels of the third (and for me the last) round table discussion on the Section 34 fiasco and the inability of the gathered members to not only understand that the situation has expanded beyond the issue at caption, that it has expanded into a comprehensive political issue, one that requires an equally comprehensive and a more focused political response.

Perhaps many of the leaders may be too close to the forest to see the trees, but the fact of the matter is civil society is having a really hard time being cast in the position of not only deciding on the seriousness of the combined failure of both the Parliament and the Cabinet to protect the public from what is turning out to be a planned assault on the legislature, but more importantly on the immediate sub plot of choosing who they might want to govern them in the future from among the same and very people. Much like having to choose a spouse between abusers, the game of who-did-what-worse and when is not making things any easier.

The lack of  fresh options is turning the voters off, and many are straddling the fence unsure of what to do next. To most (and I agree), we did our civic duty already two and a half years ago when we removed the PNM from office, and while to many the UNC has fallen badly, it is still not low enough for them to consider the PNM as an option; make no mistake, it is this that Jack Warner and the UNC controllers are banking on and now is not the time to be playing big fish in a small pond. If the PNM wants to appear all embracing then it needs to open its arms and itself to public scrutiny and it must do so with grace, respect for the electorate and a contrite heart. To do otherwise would be reminiscent of Basdeo Panday's snarling 'look in the mirror' speech he addressed to then COP leader Winston Dookeran when he (Panday)  lost to the PNM in 2007. What Bas either failed to recognize or was purposely avoiding was that to the electorate, those who voted as well as those who didn't, the then PNM was no worse than the UNC and if anyone needed to look in the mirror it was him. This is where the roundtable finds itself and for as long as it chooses to remain 'the PNM and other groups' it will limit its attractiveness to the PNM core suipport as neither the unions nor the MSJ brings anything new to the equation; if anything, the MSJ as a political party cannibalizes the PNM. Clearly the game needs to be changed to include everyone - either raise the political stakes or lower the political rhetoric, but you cannot have it both ways, not if you want 'mainstream' Trinidad & Tobago to get on board.

The Unions themselves need to realize that the longer this drags out the more they will be watering down their wine. Their members are only too aware that political marches have never yielded follow on results in their favor, and while as citizens they may be incensed over the entire affair and would lend their voices to a national response, they too can see the political play from a mile away and are not interested in being used. It's time to stop playing reluctant bride politics. If the Section 34 issue is as serious as you believe it to be then have the courage of your convictions; put your own house in order and call for elections. We've marched already over Section 34; we're not marching anymore.