Chester Sambrano
The United National Congress (UNC) has picked Care Parenting advocate Marsha Riley-Walker to challenge Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley for his Diego Martin West constituency seat in the upcoming general elections.
The announcement was made last night by UNC political leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar during a virtual political meeting.
Addressing the meeting before Persad-Bissessar spoke, Riley-Walker accused Dr Rowley of underperformance as a Member of Parliament in his five terms in office.
“Five terms as the MP for Diego Martin West and up the hill in Big Yard they saw water once, you know who was responsible for that, yes Dr Rowley this one you could blame Kamla for,” she said.
The Opposition leader also revealed candidates for the other Deigo Martin seats as well as Port-of-Spain South, the seat held by Marlene Mc Donald and Port-of-Spain and National Security Minister Stuart Young’s constituency.
The candidates are, Curtis Orr; former police officer for Port-of-Spain South, Darren Garner; Port-of-Spain North/St Ann’s West, John Ricardo Laquis; Diego Martin Central, Eli Zakour; Diego Martin North East.
Persad-Bissessar said she hopes to finish all screening by next week.
During the political meeting, the Opposition leader also questioned the Prime Minister as well as the Government’s motive behind its declaration that this country is not bound by the Rio Treaty regarding sanctions placed on Venezuela and some of its government officials, including Vice-President Delcy Rodriguez.
“This is like an act of aggression, this is like provocation...Are you provoking a war with the United States?”
She said if such a war would arise it would come in the form of sanction from our “largest trading partner.”
On a separate matter, Persad-Bissessar also called on National Security Minister Stuart Young to say whether he recused himself from the Cabinet when decisions were being taken to take loans from a company, NCB Global Finance, in which his brother is reportedly the Chief Executive Officer.