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Trinidad’s ruling People’s National Movement (PNM) has refused to set a date for elections. The party rejected the decision at a special congress held yesterday at the National Academy of Performing Arts (NAPA).
The report contains recommendations that contradict the proposals of the National Coordination and Control Committee (NACCR) headed by former Speaker Barendra Sinanan.
The National Consultative Committee on Constitutional Reform (NACCR) report recommends that “general elections should be held every five years on dates specified in the Constitution. Parliament should therefore continue to govern for five years from the date of its first sitting after any election and then be dissolved. For example, if the election is in September, just count the fourth anniversary of that date and the next date will be the fixed election date. This will result in a term of office of less than five years, but always more than four years.
In his speech, Keith Scott, chairman of the National Unity Party’s internal constitutional review committee on constitutional reform, pointed out that the committee was established in January 2024 and focused on 16 specific areas of reform, 13 of which had a “brotherly” relationship in the National Unity Party’s 2030 policy document.
On proportional representation, Scottland said the committee recommended that it be retained in the local government system, but “there was strong support for a first-past-the-post system at general elections … so proportional representation at general elections was rejected.”
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When it comes to the issue of fixed election dates, the Scots said they also oppose this.
He said suggestions that removing that discretion from leadership might be unrealistic.
Currently, the date of the general election is decided by the prime minister, and he said it was “advisable that the prime minister should continue to have that discretion”.
Scotland noted that referendums had been held in Grenada and Jamaica.
He said the committee’s recommendation that a referendum could help increase citizen participation and reform.
DPP and Accountability
Scottland said there was general agreement that the DPP’s office would remain independent.
However, he said there are concerns about the office’s lack of accountability and poor performance, particularly in relation to white-collar crime.
He said there were suggestions that parliament should oversee the DPP office.
It was agreed that the final court of appeal in Trinidad and Tobago should be the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) based in Trinidad.
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