Sascha Wil­son

Unit­ed Na­tion­al Con­gress (UNC) deputy po­lit­i­cal leader can­di­date Mar­lene Coudray says her for­mer po­lit­i­cal par­ty, the Con­gress of the Peo­ple (COP), nev­er ap­pre­ci­at­ed her. Now that she has shift­ed her al­le­giance to the UNC, the San Fer­nan­do may­or said it was a case of "horn meh but doh leave meh." Coudray, who is con­test­ing the UNC's in­ter­nal elec­tions to­mor­row on Dr Roodal Mooni­lal's Na­tion­al­ists slate, was speak­ing in Debe on Wednes­day night. Her move to the UNC has evoked crit­i­cism from the COP, which ac­cused the UNC of poach­ing Coudray.

How­ev­er, Coudray said: "I am not an egg or an­i­mal. You don't poach me. And don't in­sult me by say­ing so."

Coudray, who fought the San Fer­nan­do West seat on a COP tick­et in 2007 but lost, said she had been a mem­ber of the UNC for the past two years. "I de­cid­ed to join a po­lit­i­cal par­ty where I am ap­pre­ci­at­ed and where my con­tri­bu­tions are ap­pre­ci­at­ed," she said, adding that she would not be de­terred. "They can­not dis­tract me. They can­not throw me down. I will throw them down," she added. COP mem­ber and San Fer­nan­do coun­cil­lor Glo­ria Cal­iste, who was at the meet­ing, said she came to sup­port Coudray. Cal­iste said Coudray was free to sup­port any can­di­date, since they all be­longed to the Peo­ple's Part­ner­ship. Coudray, Mooni­lal and Dr Su­ruj Ram­bachan are con­test­ing on the same slate for the three posts of deputy leader.