Ominous signs for Trinidad and Tobago coalition government

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Jul 31, CMC – A regional pollster is warning that the victory of former national security minister Austin “Jack” Warner in a by-election in Trinidad and Tobago on Monday, is an “ominous” sign for the ruling People’s Partnership government headed by Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar.

Peter Wickham, a director at the Barbados-based Caribbean Development Research Services (CADRES), described Warner’s convincing victory in the Chaguanas West constituency, considered a stronghold of the ruling United National Congress (UNC), as historic and also ominous with the parties preparing for a Local Government elections by October.

Warner, the interim leader of the newly formed Independent Liberal Party (ILP) defeated four other candidates including Khadijah Ameen, the UNC candidate, polling 12, 631 votes as against 5,126 for Ameen.

“It is ominous. The reality is that right now the situation is not one where it can shake the moorings of her (Prime Minister Persad Bissessar’s) administration. She still has a clear majority, there is no question there but I think the signals have been set.

“The first signal was Tobago, this is the second signal. I think the third signal will be the Local Government elections.”