DENNIS: PNM CHAMPIONED AUTONOMY, CHIEF SECRETARY BLOCKED IT TWICE
PNM Tobago Political Leader Ancil Dennis has issued a stinging rebuke of the current administration’s stance on self-governance, asserting that the People’s National Movement remains the only party to have taken tangible steps toward autonomy in the last two decades.
In a recent statement, Dennis made it clear that the PNM Central Government took autonomy bills to Parliament « not once but twice, » only to have them derailed by the current leadership.
« Killing the Bills » Dennis accused the current Chief Secretary of actively blocking Tobago’s progress on two separate occasions. « It is interesting that the same Chief Secretary… partnered with the late Hochoy Charles to ensure that those bills were not supported in the Parliament in 2021, » Dennis stated. He noted that this opposition continued in 2024, with the Chief Secretary effectively « killing the bills » again while in office.
The Cost to Tobago According to Dennis, this obstruction came at a high price for the island. He highlighted that the rejected legislation would have guaranteed Tobago a minimum 6.8% of the national budget and granted « real law-making powers » to the Assembly to effect change.
A Question of Credibility Dennis questioned the moral authority of the current administration to campaign on the issue now. « What are they now coming to tell the people of Tobago about autonomy? » he asked, reinforcing that the PNM—at both the Central and THA levels—is the only entity that has moved the needle on the issue over the last 20 years.
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