THREE days after revealing his intention to step down as Prime Minister, Dr Rowley announced on January 6 that Minister of Energy and Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Stuart Young will replace him as head of the government.
Speaking to reporters during a news conference at the close of the government’s two-day parliamentary retreat at the Tobago Plantations, Magdalena Grand Beach & Golf Resort, Lowlands, Tobago, Rowley said deciding on his replacement as prime minister, and the way forward for the PNM, were some of the main items on the agenda over the past two days.
He said Young, who has served in various capacities as a government minister over the past ten years, received the majority of support from the party’s parliamentary caucus.
“Once a vacancy arises with respect to the appointment of a prime minister, it falls to the President to respond to that by making an appointment on the person, who, in the President’s view, commands the majority in the House,” Rowley said, adding the provisions are contained in Section 76 of the Constitution.
“So we, as a caucus, as a PNM in the house (of Representatives), we discussed at length and in the end, we came up with a situation where the entire PNM caucus is in support of Member of Parliament Stuart Young, MP for Port of Spain North/St Ann’s West. And we are very pleased to announce that the promise of a smooth transition is going according to plan.”
Rowley said the PNM was a very stable and democratic organisation.
“In this case, the President would be guided by the expectation of the caucus and there would be no discrepancy between what the President thinks as against what others may think as to who has the majority of support in the House.”
Responding to his appointment in a post of his Facebook page, Young, who turns 50 on February 9, thanked his parliamentary colleagues for the confidence expressed in him.
He also thanked Rowley for his “continued and exemplary leadership in guiding through this historic process.”
ROWLEY CONFIDENT
Young said he was proud to be a member of the PNM and looks forward to working tirelessly “not only with all of our members but also with all citizens...as we continue working towards the building of our country and ensuring its future success.”
During the news conference, Rowley said apart from Young, Minister of Planning and Development and Arima MP Pennelope Beckles-Robinson had also thrown her hat into the ring, but did not get the majority support.
There was speculation that PNM general secretary and Minister of Youth Development and National Service Foster Cummings might also have been in the running.
Rowley declined to say how many parliamentarians voted for Young but expressed confidence in his ability to lead the government.
“Minister Young has been in the government for about ten years, operating first out of the Office of the Prime Minister, where he would have seen the government close up and would have participated in the government. I have seen him at work on many very detailed a
