The Opposition Leader has led a march and met with Acting President of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago concerning the contentious Section 34 of the Indictable Proceedings Bill (2011).

What remains and still looms in the minds of the objective bystander, is what viable alternatives do the Honourable Leader of the Opposition have if they are to be the government-in-waiting.

Poignant questions still remain in terms of what policies and measures do they have in order to move the country forward.

As in many progressive democracies like the United States of America, opposition factions approach governance from an action-oriented/problem-solution stance...not reactive.

Consequently, they must be able to furnish the electorate with alternatives to move forward.

Example, during the years 2002-2010, the homicide rate alone (excluding other serious/indictable offences) was over 3,000 in a population of only 1.1 million.

During a two-week period in August 2011, we experienced a spate of homicides in a little over seven days resulting in the State of Emergency, which was not intended as a permanent measure, but a stop-gap measure—like we do when someone has a deep wound gushing blood, we don't stand by, but trying interim measures to stop the heavy flow.

How will they approach and deal with the over 90 recommendations in the UFF Commission Report, which deals with critical matters that we must ponder on and heed as we move forward? What is the action-plan for this?

The Opposition needs to promulgate what plans it has to reduce crime, to curb juvenile delinquency, restore social contracts that have been eroded from a disintegration of family life, and what economic measures it has to stimulate the economy.

The Opposition is the alternative government and indeed, the government-in-waiting. Moreover, the leader of the main opposition party is often given access to sensitive information on the basis that he or she, as the prime minister-in-waiting, has to be ready to perform the role of running the country at short notice.

H Stewart

Trincity