“Knock on every door and get every vote out!”
That was the command from PNM lady Vice-Chairman Camille Robinson-Regis to the sea-of red-clad PNMites who showed up for Sunday’s party convention and Local Government campaign launch.
“Call out every ounce of passion and strength!” she appealed. “We need to ensure we get it done!”
Themed Getting It Done! the PNM yesterday released its campaign song at the Queen’s Park Savannah which attracted a large crowd from all constituencies, including youth delegates.
The party’s 49th convention scheduled to begin at 10 am, started an hour late and without PNM leader Keith Rowley. He arrived around 12.16 pm. PNM chairman Colm Imbert said Rowley had been at a Memorial day function earlier in the day.
Robinson-Regis said the upcoming Local Government election is about what’s best for T&T in the 14 corporations and “who’s getting it done” for you.
She listed a number of achievements by the Rowley administration over its term, saying: “Bit by bit we’re getting it done and no one can say we’re doing it in a selective, partisan or discriminatory way!”
Robinson-Regis told PNMites that over the “next 21 days and 18 hours” to the December 2 election that the party needs to do what it did in 2013 when it won in every Tobago House of Assembly area, when it won the St Joseph by-election and also when it recaptured the majority of Local Government seats.
“In the next 21 days and 18 hours we also need to do what we did for 2015 general elections, for the 2016 Local Government polls and for the THA elections in 2017!” she added.
PNM chairman Colm Imbert, hosting his first convention as chairman, said the PNM has had its ups and downs in politics but always returned with a “bang”.
He added, “We have no doubt we’ll be victorious again in 2020 (general polls) .”
Among resolutions was a call by PNM’s Point Fortin unit for the needs and concerns of Petrotrin retirees, other community stakeholders and families— concerning medical issues, distribution and use of non-oil assets—be adequately considered in a “holistic social and economic development plan for those communities”.
PNM’s Laventille-East Morvant unit also called for Government to establish teams to examine under-performance by youths. The unit noted that over the years in urban areas and especially densely populated East-West corridor areas there has been an increase in the incidence of school dropouts, teen pregnancies, membership in street gangs, substance abuse and involvement in criminal activity. It was also noted that youths “claimed” to feel alienated, excluded and unable to have a voice.
Among committee reports, PNM’s membership screening team observed that since (2017-18) the party registered a total of 4,201 members “which is a little below our annual average annual registration” the committee confirmed. PNM Youth League’s report called for contract labour to be added to the national agenda.
Crowds who arrived by maxi taxis and buses for yesterday’s convention trickled in slowly from 7.30 am, but the QPS auditorium was filled with red-clad PNMites and flag-waving supporters by the time Rowley arrived. A short, fat, Indo T&T man wearing a yellow T-shirt with the slogan “Carrying Baby for Barry” was among some spoofs of the Opposition.