00:00 "Small parties need to pull their weight," was the admonition of UNC political leader
00:06 Kamala Bhissesa.
00:08 While head of the National Transformation Alliance, Gary Griffith, took offense to the
00:13 remarks, he told TV6 last week that there was no split between their two parties.
00:19 Over the weekend, though, political leader of the PEP, Philip Alexander, announced his
00:24 return to the helm of his party and its teaming up with the UNC.
00:29 Weighing in on these developments, political analyst Dr Indira Rampersad said it's a wait
00:35 and see game.
00:36 "Really it is difficult to predict anything at this point.
00:38 It's really difficult.
00:39 These are small parties.
00:40 They have not brought significant votes, but the potential is there to bring in some from
00:48 the third force, which is what UNC wants.
00:50 So it is a gamble on both sides, on all sides.
00:53 It is a risk because these small parties allegedly, or stated least, that they are not aligned
01:00 to any one of these and they are fed up with the same old politics, which is what the rhetoric
01:04 has been.
01:05 And yet, you want to court this, your credibility comes into question."
01:09 She is also observing the entire situation with some caution, especially since Mr Alexander
01:16 previously resigned.
01:18 "How important are these third parties?
01:21 We saw the PEP, which is now, I would say, caught in the UNC because we heard the overtures
01:29 coming from Mr Alexander.
01:33 Now he's regained or retaken the leadership of the PEP.
01:38 That's another peculiar development because I don't know if you can just do that, drop
01:42 leadership and come back.
01:46 So that's another surprising development.
01:49 Maybe their constitution allows it.
01:50 You may have heard that he did it.
01:53 And we see him actually endorsing the UNC.
01:57 Surprising in the sense that he's actually criticised the UNC in the past and in the
02:01 not too distant past."
02:03 She still maintains that the UNC needs to join with smaller parties to win at elections.
02:08 Dr Rampersad even discussed Tobago.
02:11 "If the UNC joins with Tobago, because that is another place it has to look to get support,
02:18 to get two seats in a coalition.
02:21 It has to be a coalition also with those two Tobago seats.
02:25 Because if you have 19, you can get that coalition in with two.
02:28 That brings you to 19, 20, 21.
02:32 You win the election, you know.
02:36 You can win the election by one seat.
02:39 But such is the nature of our politics."
02:41 Nicole M Romany, TV6 News.
02:44 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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