UNC 2.0?!?!?!

[shake d livin wake d dead]

He sound good in that interview tbh. However, after watching KPB's results in the last two elections for leadership, I'm not so convinced about Vasant

[daring dragoon]

vass need to stick to property development and tell we where the 100 million $$$ in rice from india disappear during panday days when he was ceo of nfm. then i go vote for he.

[Devourment]

vass need to stick to property development and tell we where the 100 million $$$ in rice from india disappear during panday days when he was ceo of nfm. then i go vote for he.

Sunday 1st May, 2005

By Yvonne Teelucksingh

In February 1998, 41-year-old Vasant Bharath was fired as CEO of National Flour Mills. Among the allegations made by the company was that he had taken a unilateral decision to import rice from India at what he claimed were preferential rates, and this had caused the company to suffer losses of some TT$30 million.

Even worse was that the rice that had been purchased was “dog rice,” and unfit for human consumption.

In what Trevor Roberts, former branch president for NFM of the Seamen and Waterfront Workers’ Trade Union described, at the time, as a dismissal that had been “well put together, well orchestrated,” Bharath was vilified and hounded in the national press, his name besmirched, a promising career aborted, his family embarrassed and humiliated in what to this day is referred to as the “dog rice scandal.”

In the end, Bharath was forced to sell his home and his possessions, uproot his family and seek employment in England where, in the ensuing years, he held several high-profile positions, including European general manager and head of foreign exchange operations with Thomas Cook PLC and head of global marketing with Gulf Oil.

Throughout it all—and this Roberts considers to be his greatest mistake—Bharath said nothing.

But Bharath’s silence had been enforced by not only his line minister but also others in authority at that time.

The scandal over NFM’s supposed loss of TT$30 million under Bharath’s watch continues to be the topic of gossip, innuendo and open hatefulness.

The issue of “dog rice” from India, which he is purported to have authorised, has been immortalised in calypso, virulent talk shows and on political platforms.

Vasant Bharath is now back in Trinidad as the CEO of Nutrimix Flour Mills, a direct competitor of NFM whose shares in the years since his dismissal have fallen from a bullish $4.50 to a bearish $2.85 at a time when the Stock Market has more than quadrupled in value.

So, what has changed since 1998 that enabled Bharath to return home?

The short answer is that Claim No1999 Folio No 61 made at the High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, Commercial Court, Royal Courts of Justice, London, by National Flour Mills against Huntsville Navigation Co Ltd completely absolves Bharath of any wrongdoing in the matter for which he was terminated by the claimants.

According to the claim, served in 1999, NFM had, “by a contract contained in or evidenced by an agreement dated 15 April 1997, purchased from G Gangadas Shah & Sons of India about 12,000 metric tonnes of Indian semi-milled, parboiled rice (non-basmati) in bulk for US$395 per mt C& F Port-of-Spain, free out.”

The first shipment was to consist of about 6,000 metric tonnes.

One of the allegations made against Bharath was that there was no contract.

NFM further claimed that the purchased rice was shipped on the vessel Ruby Islands for carriage to and delivery at Port-of-Spain, West Indies, “in the same good order and condition as had prevailed upon shipment.”

This description of the cargo is repeated in six different instances in the particulars of claim, variously as “in good order and condition”; “good order and condition as had prevailed upon shipment,” “apparent good order and condition...”

NFM’s claim against Huntsville Navigation Co Ltd was that the rice which was shipped “in good order and condition” had deteriorated, the cause being “the negligence of the defendants, their servants or agents,” and the failure of the vessel “to proceed from Kandla to Port-of-Spain with all reasonable despatch…by a usual and reasonable route and had delayed and deviated.”

“Huntsville Navigation Co Ltd are the owners of the vessel, Ruby Islands, which left the port of Kandla, India, “between about 22 and 29 July 1997,” carrying a shipment “in good order and condition 6,350 mt of Indian semi-milled parboiled rice (non-basmati) in bulk…for carriage to and delivery at Port-of-Spain, West Indies.”

No mention was made in the claim of the 35-day delay— after Bharath’s removal from handling the matter—in offloading the rice when the vessel arrived at Port-of-Spain.

The claim by NFM against Huntsville Navigation was settled out of court for an amount that was much less than the TT$30 million loss which, in 1998, NFM claimed to have suffered as a direct result of Bharath’s alleged wrongdoing.

Which begs the question—why was the claim made for less than the amount of the loss?

In fact, NFM employees confirmed that “some of the rice was sold on the open market, and the rest was sold to Colombia for $7 million.”

The processed rice, which could not be sold to consumers, was down-graded to feed grade.

Additionally, it was confirmed by the then Prime Minister that all transactions of this nature “are well-insured.”

Moreover, members of the SWWTU who are employed at NFM confirmed that even after the inordinate delay of 35 days before the relevant bill of lading was released by NFM’s new attorney, “there was a big pelau cook-up at NFM using the ‘dog rice’.”

There was no report of anyone who ate the dog rice pelau having suffered any discomfort.

On balance then, it would appear that NFM did not suffer a TT$30 million loss under Bharath’s watch, and that the rice purchased and shipped from India was “in good order and condition.”

In his statement submitted at the High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, London, Colin Mahabir, who in 1997, was general manager, marketing at NFM, stated that although it “was not part of my normal function to get involved in contractual negotiations with suppliers,” he was, in early 1997, requested to travel with Bharath to India “to investigate whether we could find cheaper sources of rice than the sources in the United States which we traditionally used” and that he “had been recommended for this role by the chairman of the company at the time, Mr Robert Clarke.”

As a member of NFM’s grain purchasing committee, Mahabir was “involved in decisions about when we should buy and at what price.”

Also, it was “in 1997, and still is, normal practice at NFM that when a new shipment of rice comes from overseas, I am sent samples of the milled product for evaluation in terms of its appearance and smell… and these are subjective matters in which I am very experienced, knowing as I do the market which we serve.”

After stringent checks and balances which included inspection of the mill, water quality reports and verification of proper sampling and quality control procedures at G Gangadas Shah & Sons, Mahabir reported to the tenders committee at NFM along with Bharath, and “the committee decided to place an order with GGS in view of the price and their ability to supply a consistently good quality—a yield of 92 per cent when NFM’s standard yield was 86 per cent.”

Mahabir said he returned to India when the rice was shipped and brought back samples of what had been laded.

He confirmed that there was no sign of infestation.

“I did not see any black kernels. The rice looked to be in very good condition. It was definitely semi-milled parboiled rice,” Mahabir said.

He said he took photographs of the product being loaded and also brought back samples to NFM for testing.

Mahabir said the main problem with the rice which was eventually offloaded from the Ruby Islands was its appearance.

“It had been heat-damaged. Heat causes rice to be discoloured,” he said.

In fact, three separate analyses of the rice, including one done by Cariri and another by the Food and Drug Administration confirmed that the discolouration of the rice had not affected its quality.

In assessing their claim against the shippers, NFM sought expert and technical advice from expert rice broker M Jean-Paul Schepens, then chairman of the London Rice Brokers’ Association and Mr J A Conway, MSc, CBIOL, MIBIOL, who was then principal technical adviser at the food security department of the Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Chatham, UK, who has had “some 35 years of experience of post-harvest technology in the handling and storage of durable agricultural commodities both in temperate and tropical countries.”

Both determined that the protracted duration of the voyage was the primary cause of the deterioration.

Bharath’s dismissal was based on 13 allegations.

One allegation was that “no formal contract was entered into between parties” and that the order for rice from India had not been sanctioned by the then acting chairman of NFM and chairman of the Tenders Committee.

Yet, the letter of credit established by Citibank T&T Ltd on April 16, 1997 bears the acting chairman’s signature, as do subsequent amendments.

This letter of credit and its amendments formed the basis of the contract and clearly set out the relevant terms and conditions.

Contacted for a comment, union representatives at NFM said they were not surprised that NFM’s court claim against the shippers had exonerated Bharath.

They said that as far back as 1998, they had taken the evidence that would have cleared Bharath’s name to the Prime Minister and nothing was ever done.

“But”, says their spokesman, “I am happy that my friend can come back here and get the respect he deserves. I am happy to see him vindicated.”

After a seven-year exile in London, Vasant Bharath is glad to be back home.

“Trinidad is my home and it is always nice to be home among your friends and family,” he said last week.

Bharath packed up and left T&T after he was fired as CEO by National Flour Mills in 1998 amidst allegations that he had acted unilaterally in deciding to import some $30 million worth of rice from India.

He is now back as CEO of Nutrimix Flour Mills, NFM’s competitor on the local market.

Asked whether he was aware that NFM knew that its allegations against him were baseless, Bharath said, “I had copies of several documents that clearly showed that there was no wrongdoing on my part at NFM which were never disclosed by the company.”

He said he never made the documents public then because he was advised by his line minister that “I was not to respond to any of these frivolous allegations.”

“Of course, during this time of silence, the country was left to come to its own conclusions,” Bharath said.

“And six months later, when I did disclose the said information in a wide-ranging television interview, the public’s mind had already been made up.”

Commenting on information that completely exonerates him from any wrongdoing in the $30 million rice deal, Bharath said he was tremendously relieved, “not just for myself but for my family and friends who’ve suppported me throughout this matter and who on many occasions, have been the subject of ridicule as a result of their support.”

He said he was initially bitter and angry at what he saw was a well-orchestrated plot to remove him.

“Time is a great healer, and with maturity, I’ve come to realise there have been far greater wrongs perpetrated in the world,” Bharath said.

“As a good friend of mine always says, ‘God wears pyjamas but He never goes to sleep.’”


http://legacy.guardian.co.tt/archives/2 ... news8.html

[Devourment]

He sound good in that interview tbh. However, after watching KPB's results in the last two elections for leadership, I'm not so convinced about Vasant

I've been a huge fan of Vasant since the late 90s. He's perhaps the smartest politician locally and someone who can truly turn things around for T&T.

If the UNC had remained in Government during the early 2000s, they had the foresight of setting up a technology industry in Trinidad. They had ongoing talks with Microsoft for having an offshore development center in Trinidad. Intel and Motorola were considering setting up semiconductor plants here as well.

If anyone knows Prof. Patrick Hosein, he was a consultant on this plan and he had the connections to make it happen.

[Rovin]

they does really say unc ppl does fight down their own kind

i do remember that whole bicycle rice fiasco but it look like ppl go study bring up that like for d rest of days, everybody has baggage but we shouldn't tote that line forever , if dise d only person who offered to go up for leader well then support d man or it look like ppl want to go for 11-12 loses in a row next 3-5yrs while we all growing old

watch pee nm side. rowdy was their bess offering in spite of landate & his failure to deliver in whatever ministries he was in , not to mention he bashed his own leader manning & party for wrong doings yet dise d man they chose to become PM , their supporters gave him 100% support & he will be for PM 10yrs , might be more too

.... so why unc cant throw their support behind a new leader too , like ppl used to say long time : like they love to remain complaining in oppposition

[paid_influencer]

He sound good in that interview tbh. However, after watching KPB's results in the last two elections for leadership, I'm not so convinced about Vasant

Did you see the part at the end, where Akash hit him some good wood? Man play a clip of dog rice on Friday talking about how 'useless' the anti-gang bill was and how bad the PNM was for bringing up the extension. Then he show the same dog rice candidate a few days later talking about how the UNC bad for not supporting the extension and how that will cost lives.

[eliteauto]

Speaking of dogs, I see the political pothong PEA living on Vasant's page, making comments about Kamla being the better choice repeatedly. This from the guy who as political leader of the PEP bashed the UNC and like a true dog is now eating his vomit. Time longer than twine all puppets does show their strings

[shake d livin wake d dead]

He sound good in that interview tbh. However, after watching KPB's results in the last two elections for leadership, I'm not so convinced about Vasant

Did you see the part at the end, where Akash hit him some good wood? Man play a clip of dog rice on Friday talking about how 'useless' the anti-gang bill was and how bad the PNM was for bringing up the extension. Then he show the same dog rice candidate a few days later talking about how the UNC bad for not supporting the extension and how that will cost lives.

He got some yorkers from Akash...he defended them pretty decentish

[Dohplaydat]

He sound good in that interview tbh. However, after watching KPB's results in the last two elections for leadership, I'm not so convinced about Vasant

Did you see the part at the end, where Akash hit him some good wood? Man play a clip of dog rice on Friday talking about how 'useless' the anti-gang bill was and how bad the PNM was for bringing up the extension. Then he show the same dog rice candidate a few days later talking about how the UNC bad for not supporting the extension and how that will cost lives.

He got some yorkers from Akash...he defended them pretty decentish

Anyone post it online? Missed it

[The_Honourable]

He sound good in that interview tbh. However, after watching KPB's results in the last two elections for leadership, I'm not so convinced about Vasant

Did you see the part at the end, where Akash hit him some good wood? Man play a clip of dog rice on Friday talking about how 'useless' the anti-gang bill was and how bad the PNM was for bringing up the extension. Then he show the same dog rice candidate a few days later talking about how the UNC bad for not supporting the extension and how that will cost lives.

He got some yorkers from Akash...he defended them pretty decentish

Anyone post it online? Missed it

Now taking it in myself... you have to watch it on fb itself

[daring dragoon]

vass need to stick to property development and tell we where the 100 million $$$ in rice from india disappear during panday days when he was ceo of nfm. then i go vote for he.

Sunday 1st May, 2005

By Yvonne Teelucksingh

In February 1998, 41-year-old Vasant Bharath was fired as CEO of National Flour Mills. Among the allegations made by the company was that he had taken a unilateral decision to import rice from India at what he claimed were preferential rates, and this had caused the company to suffer losses of some TT$30 million.

Even worse was that the rice that had been purchased was “dog rice,” and unfit for human consumption.

In what Trevor Roberts, former branch president for NFM of the Seamen and Waterfront Workers’ Trade Union described, at the time, as a dismissal that had been “well put together, well orchestrated,” Bharath was vilified and hounded in the national press, his name besmirched, a promising career aborted, his family embarrassed and humiliated in what to this day is referred to as the “dog rice scandal.”

In the end, Bharath was forced to sell his home and his possessions, uproot his family and seek employment in England where, in the ensuing years, he held several high-profile positions, including European general manager and head of foreign exchange operations with Thomas Cook PLC and head of global marketing with Gulf Oil.

Throughout it all—and this Roberts considers to be his greatest mistake—Bharath said nothing.

But Bharath’s silence had been enforced by not only his line minister but also others in authority at that time.

The scandal over NFM’s supposed loss of TT$30 million under Bharath’s watch continues to be the topic of gossip, innuendo and open hatefulness.

The issue of “dog rice” from India, which he is purported to have authorised, has been immortalised in calypso, virulent talk shows and on political platforms.

Vasant Bharath is now back in Trinidad as the CEO of Nutrimix Flour Mills, a direct competitor of NFM whose shares in the years since his dismissal have fallen from a bullish $4.50 to a bearish $2.85 at a time when the Stock Market has more than quadrupled in value.

So, what has changed since 1998 that enabled Bharath to return home?

The short answer is that Claim No1999 Folio No 61 made at the High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, Commercial Court, Royal Courts of Justice, London, by National Flour Mills against Huntsville Navigation Co Ltd completely absolves Bharath of any wrongdoing in the matter for which he was terminated by the claimants.

According to the claim, served in 1999, NFM had, “by a contract contained in or evidenced by an agreement dated 15 April 1997, purchased from G Gangadas Shah & Sons of India about 12,000 metric tonnes of Indian semi-milled, parboiled rice (non-basmati) in bulk for US$395 per mt C& F Port-of-Spain, free out.”

The first shipment was to consist of about 6,000 metric tonnes.

One of the allegations made against Bharath was that there was no contract.

NFM further claimed that the purchased rice was shipped on the vessel Ruby Islands for carriage to and delivery at Port-of-Spain, West Indies, “in the same good order and condition as had prevailed upon shipment.”

This description of the cargo is repeated in six different instances in the particulars of claim, variously as “in good order and condition”; “good order and condition as had prevailed upon shipment,” “apparent good order and condition...”

NFM’s claim against Huntsville Navigation Co Ltd was that the rice which was shipped “in good order and condition” had deteriorated, the cause being “the negligence of the defendants, their servants or agents,” and the failure of the vessel “to proceed from Kandla to Port-of-Spain with all reasonable despatch…by a usual and reasonable route and had delayed and deviated.”

“Huntsville Navigation Co Ltd are the owners of the vessel, Ruby Islands, which left the port of Kandla, India, “between about 22 and 29 July 1997,” carrying a shipment “in good order and condition 6,350 mt of Indian semi-milled parboiled rice (non-basmati) in bulk…for carriage to and delivery at Port-of-Spain, West Indies.”

No mention was made in the claim of the 35-day delay— after Bharath’s removal from handling the matter—in offloading the rice when the vessel arrived at Port-of-Spain.

The claim by NFM against Huntsville Navigation was settled out of court for an amount that was much less than the TT$30 million loss which, in 1998, NFM claimed to have suffered as a direct result of Bharath’s alleged wrongdoing.

Which begs the question—why was the claim made for less than the amount of the loss?

In fact, NFM employees confirmed that “some of the rice was sold on the open market, and the rest was sold to Colombia for $7 million.”

The processed rice, which could not be sold to consumers, was down-graded to feed grade.

Additionally, it was confirmed by the then Prime Minister that all transactions of this nature “are well-insured.”

Moreover, members of the SWWTU who are employed at NFM confirmed that even after the inordinate delay of 35 days before the relevant bill of lading was released by NFM’s new attorney, “there was a big pelau cook-up at NFM using the ‘dog rice’.”

There was no report of anyone who ate the dog rice pelau having suffered any discomfort.

On balance then, it would appear that NFM did not suffer a TT$30 million loss under Bharath’s watch, and that the rice purchased and shipped from India was “in good order and condition.”

In his statement submitted at the High Court of Justice, Queen’s Bench Division, London, Colin Mahabir, who in 1997, was general manager, marketing at NFM, stated that although it “was not part of my normal function to get involved in contractual negotiations with suppliers,” he was, in early 1997, requested to travel with Bharath to India “to investigate whether we could find cheaper sources of rice than the sources in the United States which we traditionally used” and that he “had been recommended for this role by the chairman of the company at the time, Mr Robert Clarke.”

As a member of NFM’s grain purchasing committee, Mahabir was “involved in decisions about when we should buy and at what price.”

Also, it was “in 1997, and still is, normal practice at NFM that when a new shipment of rice comes from overseas, I am sent samples of the milled product for evaluation in terms of its appearance and smell… and these are subjective matters in which I am very experienced, knowing as I do the market which we serve.”

After stringent checks and balances which included inspection of the mill, water quality reports and verification of proper sampling and quality control procedures at G Gangadas Shah & Sons, Mahabir reported to the tenders committee at NFM along with Bharath, and “the committee decided to place an order with GGS in view of the price and their ability to supply a consistently good quality—a yield of 92 per cent when NFM’s standard yield was 86 per cent.”

Mahabir said he returned to India when the rice was shipped and brought back samples of what had been laded.

He confirmed that there was no sign of infestation.

“I did not see any black kernels. The rice looked to be in very good condition. It was definitely semi-milled parboiled rice,” Mahabir said.

He said he took photographs of the product being loaded and also brought back samples to NFM for testing.

Mahabir said the main problem with the rice which was eventually offloaded from the Ruby Islands was its appearance.

“It had been heat-damaged. Heat causes rice to be discoloured,” he said.

In fact, three separate analyses of the rice, including one done by Cariri and another by the Food and Drug Administration confirmed that the discolouration of the rice had not affected its quality.

In assessing their claim against the shippers, NFM sought expert and technical advice from expert rice broker M Jean-Paul Schepens, then chairman of the London Rice Brokers’ Association and Mr J A Conway, MSc, CBIOL, MIBIOL, who was then principal technical adviser at the food security department of the Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Chatham, UK, who has had “some 35 years of experience of post-harvest technology in the handling and storage of durable agricultural commodities both in temperate and tropical countries.”

Both determined that the protracted duration of the voyage was the primary cause of the deterioration.

Bharath’s dismissal was based on 13 allegations.

One allegation was that “no formal contract was entered into between parties” and that the order for rice from India had not been sanctioned by the then acting chairman of NFM and chairman of the Tenders Committee.

Yet, the letter of credit established by Citibank T&T Ltd on April 16, 1997 bears the acting chairman’s signature, as do subsequent amendments.

This letter of credit and its amendments formed the basis of the contract and clearly set out the relevant terms and conditions.

Contacted for a comment, union representatives at NFM said they were not surprised that NFM’s court claim against the shippers had exonerated Bharath.

They said that as far back as 1998, they had taken the evidence that would have cleared Bharath’s name to the Prime Minister and nothing was ever done.

“But”, says their spokesman, “I am happy that my friend can come back here and get the respect he deserves. I am happy to see him vindicated.”

After a seven-year exile in London, Vasant Bharath is glad to be back home.

“Trinidad is my home and it is always nice to be home among your friends and family,” he said last week.

Bharath packed up and left T&T after he was fired as CEO by National Flour Mills in 1998 amidst allegations that he had acted unilaterally in deciding to import some $30 million worth of rice from India.

He is now back as CEO of Nutrimix Flour Mills, NFM’s competitor on the local market.

Asked whether he was aware that NFM knew that its allegations against him were baseless, Bharath said, “I had copies of several documents that clearly showed that there was no wrongdoing on my part at NFM which were never disclosed by the company.”

He said he never made the documents public then because he was advised by his line minister that “I was not to respond to any of these frivolous allegations.”

“Of course, during this time of silence, the country was left to come to its own conclusions,” Bharath said.

“And six months later, when I did disclose the said information in a wide-ranging television interview, the public’s mind had already been made up.”

Commenting on information that completely exonerates him from any wrongdoing in the $30 million rice deal, Bharath said he was tremendously relieved, “not just for myself but for my family and friends who’ve suppported me throughout this matter and who on many occasions, have been the subject of ridicule as a result of their support.”

He said he was initially bitter and angry at what he saw was a well-orchestrated plot to remove him.

“Time is a great healer, and with maturity, I’ve come to realise there have been far greater wrongs perpetrated in the world,” Bharath said.

“As a good friend of mine always says, ‘God wears pyjamas but He never goes to sleep.’”


http://legacy.guardian.co.tt/archives/2 ... news8.html

too much to read but not to long after all this another flour mill was opened. i dont have court clothes so read between the lines.

[The_Honourable]

Speaking of dogs, I see the political pothong PEA living on Vasant's page, making comments about Kamla being the better choice repeatedly. This from the guy who as political leader of the PEP bashed the UNC and like a true dog is now eating his vomit. Time longer than twine all puppets does show their strings

I noticed that also. He's not part of the UNC membership and I find it strange he is intentionally targeting Vasant. This tells me they crossed paths in the past and whatever incident it was, Phillip took it personal. That being said Phillip does have a point... some of the persons who supporting Vasant in the background are shady and should never be in politics again e.g Jack Warner.

PEA realize the PEP project (although well intentioned) was a failure and learnt the hard way that a high social media following does not always translate into votes. I suspect his long game is to get back in the UNC party and gun for leadership maybe in 2025. If you can't beat them... join them.

[Dohplaydat]

Speaking of dogs, I see the political pothong PEA living on Vasant's page, making comments about Kamla being the better choice repeatedly. This from the guy who as political leader of the PEP bashed the UNC and like a true dog is now eating his vomit. Time longer than twine all puppets does show their strings

I noticed that also. He's not part of the UNC membership and I find it strange he is intentionally targeting Vasant. This tells me they crossed paths in the past and whatever incident it was, Phillip took it personal. That being said Phillip does have a point... some of the persons who supporting Vasant in the background are shady and should never be in politics again e.g Jack Warner.

PEA realize the PEP project (although well intentioned) was a failure and learnt the hard way that a high social media following does not always translate into votes. I suspect his long game is to get back in the UNC party and gun for leadership maybe in 2025. If you can't beat them... join them.

You need to realize Philip is an opportunist, 2 to 3 months ago he was bashing Kamla saying she needs to go as leader. Now it looks like they (team Kamla) have paid him to campaign for her indirectly.

[Rovin]

who taking guesses for d outcome tomorrow

as much i wish to see kams & her minions ride out they gonna win 5-1 maybe more , watch n see , d die hards not deading nor changing their mindset & they willing to follow like lemmings into battle come 3-5yrs from now

..... also election rigging , remember d box of moonilal votes found in d bush

[Dohplaydat]

who taking guesses for d outcome tomorrow

as much i wish to see kams & her minions ride out they gonna win 5-1 maybe more , watch n see , d die hards not deading nor changing their mindset & they willing to follow like lemmings into battle come 3-5yrs from now

..... also election rigging , remember d box of moonilal votes found in d bush

Yea I still think she's gonna win.

But what's very interesting is that the majority of the local UNC constituency executives (even in many seats where Kamla's crew won their seat) are on Vasant's side now.

They have influence amongst many UNC members in each constituency too.

I heard someone who was calling registered voters on behalf of team Kamla say she never get cuss up so before.

There's a lot of anger towards Kamla for things like ignoring the local executives recommendations for MPs, lack of payment for works delivered, using, abusing and no rewards for hard workers in the party.

There just might be a revolt happening behind the scenes, but alas Kamla still for some reason has a lot of influence in the Southland.

[paid_influencer]

the thing that bothering me... every one of these UNC candidates talking about the election rigged, ballots floating down the river, etc... but some of them decades in the party and all to happy to go along with it as long as food getting served. The dog rice candidate is no exception.

Last time I voted in a UNC election was for Winston Dookaran. I see all the old UNC stock (dog rice included) as eat-ah-food politicians that want to take over now that an opportunity arises. I see some of the young guns like Saddam Hosein, Jayanti Lutchmedial and Sean Sobers as the real future of the party and if dog rice is elected, we might as well flush it all down now.

Prediction: UNC supporters have enough common sense to leave dog rice right dey and hope for better in 2023.

[elec2020]

who taking guesses for d outcome tomorrow

as much i wish to see kams & her minions ride out they gonna win 5-1 maybe more , watch n see , d die hards not deading nor changing their mindset & they willing to follow like lemmings into battle come 3-5yrs from now

..... also election rigging , remember d box of moonilal votes found in d bush

ditto. she gonna win. no ifs and buts about it. a shame cause till she gone or stops with her oreo and blank man comments she makes UNC alienate a third of the national voting base. if vasant pulls through UNC may have a high chance of getting my vote in 2025 as I really like his NFM redemption story. It shows alot about someone imo who was thrown to the wolves for something that was not his fault and still came out a better man.

[paid_influencer]

^ elect, just to get your position on this, what do you think of Vasant's slate being entirely of east-indian descent?

[elec2020]

i only wait to see clear signs of racism before i call someone a racist. so yh u can call a slate of pure black, indians or white/fair skinned people sus. but thats not enough in my book. its like when u see pure black/indo/fair skin couples. does that mean both are racist? nah thats not enough evidence. I want u to make a comment or do something that shows me 100 per cent (without a doubt) that u have a problem with people of another ethnicity. till then i will give you the benefit of the doubt.

edit: i wanted to make sure before i said it so i googled it to double check but yh.. look vasant have a black man on his slate. a rasta man too boot.

[paid_influencer]

i only wait to see clear signs of racism before i call someone a racist. so yh u can call a slate of pure black, indians or white/fair skinned people sus. but thats not enough in my book. its like when u see pure black/indo/fair skin couples. does that mean both are racist? nah thats not enough evidence. I want u to make a comment or do something that shows me 100 per cent (without a doubt) that u have a problem with people of another ethnicity. till then i will give you the benefit of the doubt.

edit: i wanted to make sure before i said it so i googled it to double check but yh.. look vasant have a black man on his slate. a rasta man too boot.

Indeed. His original slate did not include any Afro-trinidadians. It was edited to add a Tobago Coordinator after this became a campaign issue.

I sincerely wanted to know your view, thank you for sharing. It is important to be inclusive.

[elec2020]

i only wait to see clear signs of racism before i call someone a racist. so yh u can call a slate of pure black, indians or white/fair skinned people sus. but thats not enough in my book. its like when u see pure black/indo/fair skin couples. does that mean both are racist? nah thats not enough evidence. I want u to make a comment or do something that shows me 100 per cent (without a doubt) that u have a problem with people of another ethnicity. till then i will give you the benefit of the doubt.

edit: i wanted to make sure before i said it so i googled it to double check but yh.. look vasant have a black man on his slate. a rasta man too boot.

Indeed. His original slate did not include any Afro-trinidadians. It was edited to add a Tobago Coordinator after this became a campaign issue.

I sincerely wanted to know your view, thank you for sharing. It is important to be inclusive.

Yh... as i said it takes more than that for me to flat out call u racist. So for instance, while there were always rumours about kamla being racist (and the oreo comment did not help her case). My opinion on her being a racist was cemented by her blank man comment. Imo there is no way u can defend that statement. Thats like u saying funk instead of f___. We all know what u really wanted to say. and sorry. but in 2020. this mindset needs to go. it continues to be a bane to our progress as a nation. we need to stop it. and imo the first step to stopping it is by not putting in power those who clearly display those properties of being racially biased.

[elec2020]

if i recall hinds claimed that Ashworth Jack and KPB were alligators in a murky lagoon. I googled alligator, murky and lagoon and i got no hits on those terms being racially charged. Is it that because he mentioned Ashworth Jack in the statement he was being racist by pairing up a black man with an east Indian woman? idk nah. can someone explain to me (other than ZR i would love if this individual gets a life and leaves me alone like he doesn't get the hint that i am ignoring him racist narcissists like him) why the alligator comment by hinds was deemed racial. I may be missing something. If i am then i apologize for my ignorance.

[VexXx Dogg]

Ramroop and Ramdial on his ticket as deputy pol leaders? and Jack publicly endorsing him (yes, on a DJ truck down by me)

I eh mind vasant, but he have deadweight

[De Dragon]

Vasant dead in the water, Kams already throw out the PNM collusion bogeyman, which is like catnip to the base, and all but ensures Vasant's demise.
It is also interesting to see how people are speaking about him being the "future" of the party, presumably because he is educated, and well spoken. T&T democracy hasn't evolved beyond the loud, obnoxious tone deaf leadership speaking style.
How else in the world could a loudmouth, non-achiever like JUHN Scarfy ever get to be PM of anywhere? T&T places more emphasis on picong, name calling and dotishness than substance.

[paid_influencer]

good thing all the rivers and watercourses closed

[Redman]

Bas say he eh following rigged elections.....lol

I wish he get a program on tv.

[zoom rader]

Bas say he eh following rigged elections.....lol

I wish he get a program on tv.

You vote him out, called him currupted and now you bigging him up.

When bas was pointing out red Goverment corruption, did you big him up?

You full of 5hit

[randolphinshan]

Bas say he eh following rigged elections.....lol

I wish he get a program on tv.

You vote him out, called him currupted and now you bigging him up.

When bas was pointing out red Goverment corruption, did you big him up?

You full of 5hit

Zoom hope you went and vote for that crook Kams already eh and have your white oak, puncheon and rag to clean her vomit later.

[Dizzy28]

Went Tunapuna Hindu school earlier to drop of someone to vote. Turnout looked healthy.

[paid_influencer]

safe_image.php.jpg (22.65 KiB) Viewed 1723 times

'F-word' claims as tempers boil over on UNC election day

Tempered flared and a 'cuss out' allegedly happened as tensions grew on the United National Congress (UNC) internal election day.

UNC councillor for Aranguez/Warner Village Amit Sooknanan claimed that UNC leadership contender Vasant Bharath told him to "F*** off" after he (Sooknanan) confronted Bharath about wearing a Tshirt with his "Lotus" voting symbol on it.

..
"He cursed me when he came outside, I told him he should know better being a senior member of the UNC, he pulled down his mask and told me to F*** off" said Sooknanan.
..

full article -

There are two slates the Lotus team by Bharath and the Star team led by incumbent leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

Bharath categorically denied that he cursed Sooknanan and said it was the Star members who were behaving badly.

Sooknanan speaking to the Express by phone said just before 8 a.m. he went into the Aranguez Community Centre at Mehalal Street where he saw Bharath wearing a UNC jersey with the lotus symbol.

He said he immediately confronted Bharath and told him he can't do that and he also alerted the presiding officer.

" I told Mr Bharath that what he is doing is wrong and to avoid any issue I told him let us both exit the polling station," he said.

Sooknanan claimed Bharath began "throwing slangs".

He said Bharath left the but returned shortly after with his wife who was also wearing the lotus symbol.

Sooknanan said he confronted Bharath again and reiterated he cannot be wearing symbols and influencing votes.

"He cursed me when he came outside, I told him he should know better being a senior member of the UNC, he pulled down his mask and told me to F*** off" said Sooknanan.

He said at this point tensions increased and members of the Star team did become rowdy as Bharath threw insults.

"I had to hold back a lot of people because they wanted to fight and confront this abuse," he said.

Sooknanan said he is disappointed that Bharath would behave in such a manner as he's aspiring to lead the party.

Bharath said the sequence of events as outlined by Sooknanan are not true.

"I didn't curse him. I was there this morning and they started to make a lot of noise regarding me wearing my Lotus T-shirt and I said to them there's nothing either in the UNC Constitution of the party nor in the election rules that prohibits anyone from wearing anything. I could wear red, green, blue, a short with a horse... there is nothing that prevents us from wearing it and they started to get on," said Bharath in a telephone interview with the Express.

He said he never used expletives but he did indicate that he was not breaking any rules by wearing the Lotus symbol.

Bharath said it was the Star team who became confrontational.

"They were starting to misbehave and get on and started to shout in the background and so on. I continued to speak to the media and then afterwards I walked off, of course I didn't curse him but I may have said to him 'look this is why the PNM is in this condition that it is in' and that's it," he said.

https://trinidadexpress.com/newsextra/f ... 650a2.html

UNC elections true to form