The screening committee of the Opposition PNM on Monday night approved rejected nominee Darryl Smith as its prospective candidate for Diego Martin Central in the 2015 general election, which is constitutionally due by September.
The decision was announced by party secretary Ashton Ford after 10 pm following the five-hour screening session at party headquarters, Balisier House, Port-of-Spain.
On April 2, Browne, Smith and other nominees were rejected by the screening committee. The constituency executive was advised to seek fresh nominees and at a subsequent meeting those nominees were also rejected.
Monday was the third time nominees for the constituency appeared before the committee.
Ford said the screening committee, chaired by party leader Dr Keith Rowley, asked the constituency executive to consider all nominees, including those who were rejected.
He told reporters the committee “had a long deliberation and when the recommendation came from the executive, they (it) recommended Darryl Smith.” Smith is the chairman of the Diego Martin Corporation.
Asked to explain the reasons for reconsidering the rejected nominees, Ford said: "Well the screening committee had to deliberate on what comes before it, and having screened ten we were not getting any better (nominees).”
He said that course of action was not in breach of anything “because we did it in Tunapuna, Cumuto/Manzanilla and other constituencies... even Barataria/San Juan we went back but the constituency came up with Mr Hafeez Ali.”
Ford said: “No one on the 17-member executive voted for Browne. He didn't get one vote in the second round again. We asked the executive again to consider and make recommendations and they came back again the same way.”
He said Smith got the most votes—nine—from the executive.
Ford said the review of the rejected nominees was “an opportunity open to all. Sometimes you are in this position where you exhaust all (avenues) and we can't be going and coming all the time so we had to make a decision at some point. In fact we are late, we were supposed to finish since Holy Thursday.”
The committee also approved a new nominee for Barataria/San Juan, Hafeez Ali, a 41 year-old contractor from the constituency.
He said Chaguanas East executive was given additional time to find suitable nominees.
