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CCNTV6
  • 2 years ago
Former PNM General Secretary, Ashton Ford weighs in on the life and political legacy of UNC founder Basdeo Panday.

Mr. Ford says Mr. Panday was a true leader and a fighter.

Tv6's Nicole M Romany reports.
Transcript
00:00 Mr Ford tells us he first met Mr Pandey when he Ford was mayor of Arema. Ford
00:07 says the former Prime Minister was always a strong leader who had the
00:12 respect of his peers. He recalls some of the fearless statements Mr Pandey would
00:18 make. You know for example serious issues like when teachers were taking
00:24 legal action he would say anybody abandoned any teacher abandoned his job
00:30 is a criminal and he got a lot of flack for that and never hesitated to defend
00:36 his statement. He like many others speaks of Mr. Pandey's desire to help young
00:42 people. When he tried to transform people who on the other side on the wrong side
00:51 I remember a young man in Laventille he put him up as a candidate and he said
00:59 that when they asked him how you could do that this guy is involved in the law
01:03 and he said well I am trying to build youth community leaders transform them
01:09 from one way of life to the proper way of life and that is and he gives it to
01:15 them as community leaders. Ford says Mr. Pandey not only talked to the talk but
01:22 walked the walk as well. This brings me to his relationship with his
01:30 daughter and we knew her from when we were in Parliament when she was
01:38 born and thing and she grew up in the eyes of the international community
01:43 similar Erica Williams and Eric William and George Chambers and his daughter
01:49 what what these leaders demonstrate is that fatherhood is a key role in our
01:57 nation and they displayed. He summed up Mr. Pandey's political life in this way.
02:05 We remember him as a valiant man. He has two folds. He remember when he was
02:12 opposition leader he was fiery. Well he maintained that in to some extent as
02:18 Prime Minister but he had to be over a number of national issues for the
02:24 interests of the country and he also had to preside over some scandals that we
02:30 had to deal with and face the reality of what transpired under his government so
02:39 that you have to look at it both ways the good and the bad.
02:43 Nicole M Romany TV6 News
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