Secretary General of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha (SDMS) Satnarayan Maharaj says it is unfortunate that the Divali meal served by former prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar at the Diplomatic Centre in 2014 has become a topic on the political platform.
Maharaj, who is the chief spokesperson for one of the largest Hindu organisations, told the T&T Guardian “it is unfortunate that the expression ‘roti’ was used. People are now linking it with the Calcutta Ship statement which was made on a political platform some time ago; there is a subliminal racist expression.”
It is for this reason Maharaj said he was “not surprised that Dr Rowley got a hostile reception in Charlieville.”
He said while an attempt was now being made to “back-track by releasing figures for money spent on the Shouter Baptist and Emancipation celebrations, the fact is that people are now viewing it as racist.”
The Calcutta Ship comment was made by Hilton Sandy, then deputy chief secretary of the Tobago House of Assembly, during the 2013 campaign. Sandy subsequently apologised for his statement which was made on a PNM platform.
Maharaj said he has been attending Divali functions hosted by prime ministers since the days of “Patrick Manning and that function hosted by Persad-Bissessar which Dr Rowley referred to was huge, there were thousands of people. I don’t know the exact number but I attended and it was over-crowded, there was hardly any room to move. There was a specific area for eating and one for the entertainment programme.”
Maharaj said he was one of the lucky ones because his seat was reserved at the table with the then prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
He said the function hosted by Persad-Bissessar was an evening event “when people finished work. It was much larger. There were thousands of people there. The amount of people who were there I am not surprised it cost a lot.”
Maharaj said, “Roti was just a small part of the meal. There were a variety of dishes but now the word roti has been politicised. It is unfortunate. It should not have been brought up on the platform,” he said.
Maharaj also attended the recent Divali function hosted by Rowley. He said, “Dr Rowley’s luncheon was a tame affair. It was at midday and the numbers were smaller. Everybody knew everybody, it was more intimate. I appreciated that because it was not over-crowded. I am not sure who the caterer was but it was not local Indian dishes, it was more India Indian, food like you will get at Apsara or some genuine Indian restaurant. There was also roti at the function. It was more like a naan,” he said.
Maharaj said the Divali function hosted by Rowley was held in the ballroom of the Diplomatic Centre. Checks by the T&T Guardian indicate that the ballroom has the capacity to hold between 200 and 300 people comfortably.
“I attended both functions and from what I saw, Rowley’s function should have cost 90 per cent less than Kamla’s function.” Rowley has indicated that his function cost less than $300,000 while the one hosted by Persad-Bissessar cost in excess of $1.6 million.
Apart from the variety of dishes at the 2014 Divali function, Maharaj recalled, “there were drinks (non-alcoholic), a variety of East Indian sweets, an orchestra, tents, air condition. The two functions were different. It is unfortunate because this should not be a political issue,” he said.
ANALYST: MORE TACT NEEDED
Political analyst Dr Winford James says the Prime Minister’s message of “excessive expenditure by the former administration” has been clouded by the “way he presented it — which made people wonder if he has something against roti. But it is a national dish and I am sure, like all of us, Dr Rowley enjoys a good roti.”
Head of the Political Sciences Department at UWI, Dr Bishnu Ragoonath, told the T&T Guardian it appears that “the PNM has developed a campaign strategy which focuses on mismanagement and corruption of the last regime. The campaign seems to be painting the UNC as a corrupt political entity and should not be given the opportunity to hold the reins of power whether at the national or local government level.”