Chief Secretary on suspension of Opposition Leader

“A disturbing and frightening phenomenon” is how Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Chief Secretary Orville London is describing Government’s suspension of Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley’s from Parliament.

Speaking at the weekly post Executive Council media briefing on Wednesday at the Administrative Complex in Calder Hall, London said who the opposition leader is and his political affiliation are not the major issues in this matter.

The Chief Secretary stated: “It is quite frightening that we should have a scenario in which anybody, any government, any ruling entity, whether it is in the THA or at the central government level in the parliament, can use its parliamentary majority to prevent a member from going to the House to do what he was elected to do, which is to represent the people, and to (suspend him) without due process.

“I think is it disturbing and a frightening phenomenon, and I think that we as right-thinking people should condemn it, and as I say—not to relate to any political affiliation—if something is wrong regardless of who does it, it is wrong,” he said.

London said both Tobago and the THA must learn from the manner in which Rowley was sanctioned.

“I think we have a responsibility as a country, as residents in Tobago but as citizens of the country not to divorce ourselves from what happens in Trinidad and believe as we put it, it is them people business,” London said.

“How this country is run is our business, how the institution is respected is our business and of course, anything that undermines the integrity of an institution is something about which we should be aware, of which we should be concerned.”