Caption: Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and her Leader of Government Business Barry Padarath

Summary

• Kamla Persad-Bissessar said Barry Padarath’s singing at the Hyatt Lime fete was so bad she would have booed him too.
• A viral video shows Padarath on stage praising Works and Infrastructure Minister Jearlean John and crediting her as a founder of the fete.
• The crowd heckled and booed as Padarath continued speaking into the mic despite calls to leave the stage.
• Padarath denied being drunk, saying it was a festive Carnival atmosphere and nothing he said was inappropriate.
• MP Stuart Young criticised Padarath’s behaviour, contrasting it with alleged UNC job cuts affecting thousands of workers.

 

By Prior Beharry

PRIME Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the singing by Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath at the Hyatt Lime fete on Wednesday was so terrible she would have booed him too.

Asked to comment via WhatsApp on Thursday, after a video of Padarath on stage went viral, Persad-Bissessar said, “I saw the video. I thought his terrible singing was hilarious. I would have booed his singing also. It’s Carnival—enjoy yourselves safely 👍.”

The video, just under two minutes long, showed Padarath praising his ministerial colleague, Works and Infrastructure Minister Jearlean John. He boasted about her performance and told the crowd that John was one of the founders of the fete.

Padarath was filmed shouting to the crowd: “Minister, Minister Jearlean John. Jearlean, don’t hide. Do you know who is the founder of Hyatt fete? The founder of Hyatt fete. Put your hands in the air when Machel says, ‘Give them performance! Give them the time of their life!’ Minister! Minister! Minister! In the Kamla Persad-Bissessar administration is a lady… there’s a minister who founded Hyatt fete.”

Unimpressed by Padarath disrupting the fete, some members of the crowd began to heckle and boo.

Padarath, who seemed unfazed by the negative reaction, was approached by DJ Simmo, whom he ignored, instead addressing DJ Anna and calling on her to “give them performance.”

Despite calls for him to get off the stage, Padarath continued: “You ready? You ready? You ready for Jearlean John! Give them performance! Give them the time of your life.”

On Thursday, Padarath said he was not drunk.

He said, “It was a Carnival event; it is a festive atmosphere. I said nothing that was inappropriate. I bigged up a colleague as the founder of the event. I have had all manner of things said about me by detractors.”

On Tuesday, Persad-Bissessar had issued a message to revellers to behave responsibly.

She said, “My advice to Carnival revellers is enjoy yourself, but don’t do anything to embarrass yourself or demean your loved ones’ reputations.

“I wouldn’t want to see anyone who was really just trying to have a good time being humiliated on social media because of a regrettable act they committed in a moment of bad or impaired judgment.”

Member of Parliament for Port of Spain North/St Ann’s West, Stuart Young, said: “Barry Padarath’s vulgar display of immaturity and abuse of public office, along with other members of Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s cabinet, must be juxtaposed against the context of the UNC’s firing of over 40,000 workers from CEPEP, URP, reforestation, contract positions at WASA, T&TEC, TSTT (all of which fall under Padarath), contract positions at HDC, and many other state enterprises and ministries. Some of our most vulnerable citizens have been fired by this UNC government and are struggling to survive whilst these ministers party, get drunk, and rub their temporarily held offices in the faces of the nation.”