THE breakaway by former United National Congress (UNC) leader Winston Dookeran to form his own Congress of the People (COP) party was very revealing for students of politics, undecided voters, observers, sympathisers, enthusiast, arm-chair political-scientist and the two main political parties the UNC and the People’s National Movement (PNM).

Contrary to expectations and the distended opinions of COP organisers and some members of the media who covered the September 10 event at the Centre of Excellence, the crowd was infinitesimal in comparison to the launching of the Organisation for National Reconstruction (ONR) in 1981, the NAR in 1986 and the predecessor to the UNC, Club 88, in 1988.

Nevertheless, the most significant ingredient that would have contributed to a hale and hearty speculation that this “new politics” party had a symbol of hope in this plural society was forlornly deficient.

Ken Emrit, one of the UNC dissenter and a protagonist of the break away faction, who is also a senior executive of the Jack Warner group of companies, divulged that they provided seating accommodation for 7,000 guests at the launch. But I was present, I moved around the Centre of Excellence talking with people and the general consensus was that the crowd didn’t exceed 7,500.

A few political opportunists and arm-chair politicians, posturing as university lecturers and who PM Patrick Manning had singled out for special commendation as “cloak and dagger politicians”, are now singing a new tune.

When we dissect the human resources or the physical environment or the ambit of the COP we are able to distinguish their tentacles or filthy mitts all over the party.

So Dr. Hamid Ghany, the “lame duck” political analyst whose pretext is of little value and his assembly of scum, are conscious that their dead-horse political ally failed to exert a pull on the middle-class Afro-Trinidadians.

Therefore, his trickery or effort to play smart with foolishness by de-linking the COP from the ONR is purely designed for political massaging of the ego and preserving the racial hegemony of intellectual Indians who have always been opposed to UNC chairman Basdeo Panday and his “national unity” discourse.

Certainly, the ranking Afro-Trinidadians aligned to COP, namely Roy Augustus and Selby Wilson have no political connectivity or influence on the middle-class, worst yet the working-class Afro-Trinidadians.

If I weren’t a conscious brother, the first assignment I would give to Roy is to confront his old NAR colleagues about the allegation of racism against Afro-Trinidadians on the University of the West Indies (UWI) campus.

But, say what, this might not be of any relevance to the old primary school principal Roy because when he was chairman of the National Carnival Commission (NCC), mind you a job he got under the UNC Government, he tried to sell out to a big-shot lobby by fighting to facilitate the removal of Carnival celebrations from behind the bridge in East Port of Spain to Woodbrook.

However, this move was stoutly resisted by the indomitable former Pan Trinbago president, deceased UNC Senator Arnim Smith.

Without being sarcastic, realistically could you imagine any member of the 40 Hindu organisations or any member of the Maha Sabha elitist brigade or even the lackeys representing the business sector and the arm-chair mocking pretenders on the campus having any respect for poor Roy Augustus or Selby Wilson?

Anyhow the masses are already whispering that what Dooks needs is not “new politics” but “new politicians” with a better ethnic composition and broader base of working-class supporters.

The disrespectful and degrading remarks that is being uttered in private and public by some of the COP hegemonic against Basdeo Panday signal the lack of appreciation and consideration of their history.

While the wily old Bas is no saint, his contribution to the East-Indians achievements in this country cannot be dismissed by political dribblers or toddlers like Nirad Tewarie et al. Even most of the arm-chair intellectuals on the campus must thank the old Bas for liberating their parents from the burden of having their children on the cane plantation instead of being in school.

Of course one must also give the Canadian missionaries their just dues for re-socialising and assisting the East-Indian in their educational achievements.

Maybe they need a gentle reminder that as leader of the All Trinidad Sugar and General Workers’ Trade Union (ATSGWTU), Bas struggled tooth and nail against the PNM establishment and Caroni (1975) Limited to implement legislations to double wages and abolish child labour on the plantations so that mothers were able to send their children to school.

This was no ordinary struggle. In fact it is mainly responsible for the vast amount of East-Indians who gained social mobility to the middle-class through educational opportunities, many who have become doctors, lawyers, accountants, engineers, educators and others who have excelled in their chosen professions.

Yet a selfish bunch of self-serving, neemakharam if you like, Indo-Saxons want to refer to Bas as a rabble rousers and one who does not want to push their miserable agendas.

The world view of some of these intellectuals is that Hinduism should strive to be like the Zionist movement and Bas is diametrically opposed to this doctrine.

Surprisingly, the concept of COP’s mantra of “a new politics” hit a snag as soon as its dithering leader Dooks was inaugurated into the Maha Sabha’s Hall of Fame and whenever his out of timing communication specialist Nirad Tewarie exhibits his disrespectful pronouncements with such malevolence.

Therefore, no window-dressers like Roy Augustus or Selby Wilson have the political influence to guarantee the middle-class Afro-Trnidadian a safe heaven or solace in the COP.

If I thought for one moment that poor Roy was accepted as a voice for the Afro-middle-class masses then Nirad’s daddy, Principal of UWI, St. Augustine Bhoe Tewarie, could have never been a clandestine mover and shaker in COP, unless he was willing to keep his words and end the discrimination against poor Black people children.

If Roy and the other Afro- Black skin White mass in COP have any doubts, as soon as I receive my refusal for the MBA programme they would be appalled to hear the facts in court.

If Roy shies away from this simple yet important issue then he would be failing his Afro-Trinbagonian brothers.

COP would therefore fail to attract the support of this ethnic group.

And make no mistake, the party would eventually also lose the support of poor East-Indian who just got caught up in the euphoria because a reality check is already manifesting itself on the horizon.

Like it or not, the reality at the end of the day is that we have to contend with a two party system in Trinidad and Tobago.