Trinidad and Tobago Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath on Friday said the ruling United National Congress (UNC) is playing no role in Barbados’ February 11 general election, distancing the party from comments made by Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley about possible external political influence.
Padarath’s remarks followed statements by Mottley suggesting that references made by the leader of the opposition Democratic Labour Party (DLP), Ralph Thorne, to the phrase “yellow is the code” — the UNC’s campaign slogan during Trinidad and Tobago’s April 28 general election last year — could signal outside support.
“I tell you yellow is the curse about here,” Mottley told supporters of her ruling Barbados Labour Party (BLP), which is seeking an unprecedented third consecutive clean sweep of the 30-member Parliament.
“And what is that really a code for? Is it a code for campaign financing? Is it a code for who is supporting your party financially, because of that is the case the (former prime minister) Errol Walton Barrow should now be rolling in a watery grave to believe that anybody leading the Democratic Labour Party could want to make that party subsidiary of another political entity in the Caribbean.”
Mottley said Barrow had stood “shoulder to shoulder” with the late Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Dr. Eric Williams and that Barbadian leaders had long maintained close but independent ties with their regional counterparts.
“I have stood shoulder to shoulder with (former prime minister ) Dr. Keith Rowley and the same Kamla,” she said in reference to Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar.
Mottley also dismissed suggestions that her BLP was taking advice from Jamaica’s ruling Jamaica Labour Party.
“First of all, anybody who knows anything about s knows our sister party in Jamaica is the People’s National Party and even though they are not in government we are not fair weather friends,” she said, noting she had addressed PNP conventions in Jamaica on several occasions.
UNC distances itself
Speaking to reporters outside Parliament in Port of Spain, Padarath sought to distance the UNC from any involvement in the Barbadian campaign.
“I would want to issue caution to our Caribbean colleagues with respect to using that sort of inference. The United National Congress, we have said both publicly and privately that we do not interfere in the elections of any other sovereign nation and we hold true to that.
“Obviously, though, many of our party colours across the Caribbean and the world are quite similar. We don’t have any control or jurisdiction over those things. So that I would in the silly season in Barbados that those inferences are not made because we really and truly do not have any horse in the race there.”
The DLP’s official party colour is blue.
Padarath said the UNC administration would respect the outcome of the February 11 polls.
“The UNC government will respect the will of the people of Barbados and therefore the outcome of the elections will be respected by the government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.”
Asked whether UNC-linked social media influencers or entertainers could appear on political platforms in Barbados — as had occurred in St Vincent and the Grenadines and St Lucia — Padarath said performers were free to work independently but did not represent the party abroad.
“we know that (Yellow is the code) is quite a catchy song but most of the persons you have spoken about…they all came from the entertainment fraternity before entering the political stage…
“They have every right to perform if they are hired so to do. But they do not speak or sing on behalf of the United National Congress in support of one political party over another in a sovereign nation”.
Padarath also had a direct message for the Barbadian prime minister.
“Let not your heart be troubled Honourable Prime Minister, the will of the people in Barbados I am almost certain wll be done and we respect the democratic process because Barbados is a sovereign nation.
“We have no intention of interfering in Barbados elections,” he added.
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