A double-edged sword

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Stabroek News - Jack Warner may have convincingly won the Chaguanas West by-election in Trinidad on Monday but there are arguably more losers than winners after this particularly nasty and game-changing political battle. Obviously, the United National Congress (UNC) candidate, Khadijah Ameen, was simply not up to the task of mounting a credible challenge to Mr Warner, who had previously won the seat in the 2010 general election, when he polled more votes than any other candidate in any other constituency. This time around, Mr Warner won 69 per cent of the votes cast to the hapless Ms Ameen’s 28 per cent. Observers contend that this was a victory based on Mr Warner’s performance as an MP and personal popularity over the tribalism of the UNC. This then was a major defeat for the UNC, the principal coalition member in the People’s Partnership (PP) government, with a mainly East Indian support base, in a predominantly East Indian constituency – its “heartland,” as analysts in Trinidad are describing it. Again, Mr Warner’s win is being hailed as a triumph of representation over party, where it is the grass roots appeal of the candidate rather than the wishes of the party that sways the electorate.