PM NOT SURPRISED HINDS WITHDREW NOMINATION

CCNTV6

Confirmation from the Prime Minister that one of his Cabinet members will not be contesting a constituency he has held for the PNM since 2015.  But was the Prime Minister surprised at this development?  Juhel Browne reports.

Transcript

00:00Mr. Hines was in Cabinet this morning, we have not spoken about it and therefore I don't

00:06have any additional information on the one that you have, but I think it's confirmed

00:09that Mr. Hines will not be continuing to offer himself as a candidate in this constituency.

00:17The confirmation from Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley in response to a question from the

00:20Express newspaper during Thursday's post-Cabinet media conference.

00:24According to the Parliament's website, National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hines first served

00:29in the House of Representatives as the MP for Lavatille East Mova for the PNM from November

00:357th, 1995 to November 7th, 2007.

00:39During that time he served as a Minister of State.

00:42When the PNM lost the 2010 General Election, Mr. Hines was appointed an Opposition Senator

00:48from June 18th of that year to March 31st, 2015.

00:53When the PNM led by Prime Minister Rowley won the 2015 General Election, Mr. Hines returned

00:59to the House of Representatives as the MP for Lavatille West.

01:03M.B.

01:04Hines had since served in several Cabinet posts, including as Minister of Works and

01:08Transport.

01:09M.B.

01:10Hines was appointed National Security Minister on April 19th, 2021.

01:15I haven't spoken to him yet, but I knew of his feelings along the way, so I'm not surprised

01:24that he would have.

01:26You see, when you come to a point sometimes that you come to a crossroad and you have

01:30to make a decision, and sometimes the angles at the crossroad are quite sharp, and I saw

01:37it somewhere, I think it's in the papers, I think, that it's family discussion or something

01:41like that.

01:42I'm not surprised that I, too, have a family and I know how these things go.

01:46There had been recent media reports about whether Mr. Hines had the support he needed

01:50from within the PNM's party leadership in Lavatille West to secure the nomination to

01:55again be their candidate in 2025.

01:58The Express sought to find out from the Prime Minister, the political leader of the PNM,

02:03whether he was surprised that Minister Hines has withdrawn his nomination to contest the

02:08constituency again in the General Election due next year.

02:12And did you have a hand in it?

02:16No, I had no hand in it, and I'm not entirely surprised.

02:21I'm a little disappointed, but because Mr. Hines has been with us for a long time, he

02:28has been a very, you know, loyal, hardworking MP, and therefore he's coming to the end of

02:35his service.

02:36There's usually sadness in parting, but I'm sure he would be around with us in the party,

02:41if not in the government.

02:43Port of Spain City Corporation Alderman Karim Marcel, an attorney at law, said in a statement

02:48on November 2nd that his decision to seek to be the PNM's Lavatille West candidate is

02:53not intended as a sign of disrespect to Minister Hines.

02:57Jule Brown, TV6 News.

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