Member of Parliament Dinesh Rambally was unknown before he became a Member of Parliament for the United National Congress, and after 2025 when he is not selected as a Member of Parliament he will return to his familiar abode of anonymity. Gifted a safe seat thanks to the urging of the Maha Sabha this unknown lawyer within the ranks of the UNC has been nondescript in his contributions to the Parliament or his representation as a Member of Parliament. As swan-song MP Rambally has joined the many who have gone before with similar statements concerning the leadership of Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
When Rambally was selected in 2015 as a Member of Parliament he had no issue with Anil Roberts being selected as a Senator, or with Ravi Ratiram a Member of Parliament or the litany of unsuitable persons selected by Kamla to national positions. Hiding behind the principle of collective responsibility Rambally was silent but thankfully now he has seen the light of day and spoken out , adding his voice to the same sentiment made in the past by Ganga Singh, Fuad Khan, Ramona Ramdial, Jack Warner, and myself.
Rambally, however, is correct on every count in his analysis of the chances of the UNC winning the next general elections under the stewardship of Kamla Persad Bissessar. The issue of the party image, erosion of institutions of the party, trampling of the UNC’s constitution, trivializing major national issues, failure to present real-alternative solutions to crime, etc. raised by Rambally are some of the deficiencies the UNC faces.
Kamla Persad Bissessar unlike any other leader of the UNC or its previous incarnations (ULF/DLP) has granular control over every aspect of the party from the Party group executive to the Members of Parliament office staff. This level of control means that the deck is stacked against any form of real democracy or representation within the UNC or even the opportunity to have a forum for discussion of divergent ideas.
It can be predicted like all others who have made challenges to the Kamla-led UNC Rambally will be ignored and attacked as a PNM operative and be blamed along with others like Rushton Parray for the UNC losing the next general election. The weaponizing of gender will continue as yet another male attacks the leadership decision of a female leader, and the rewarding of blind incompetent loyalists will be manifested in the selection of UNC candidates for the next general election.
The sham that is the institution of the UNC is epitomized by the failure of the political leader to file her nomination papers at the party headquarters following a media release that attempted to make an insignificant event into another opportunity to praise the leader. Rambally’s awakening serves as a warning: the faithful must liberate themselves from the cult of personality that enslaves them to Persad-Bissessar’s whims. The UNC’s downfall is imminent, with the continued leadership of Kamla.
Dr. Devant Maharaj is former Cabinet Member of the UNC (2010-2015)