Tuesday, March 2 2010

The red herring spread by Prime Minister Patrick Manning in Parliament last Friday was obviously intended to provide him with an excuse to dodge further questioning about the Heights of Guanapo church, claiming continuous “religious persecution.” The Prime Minister has done his cause no good.

In his embarrassing soliloquy he answered not a single question except to say that it was not his (personal) church. One would have expected that simple, straightforward, and, do we need to say it: honest answers about the allocation of the land, the designs, the approvals, and the construction of the church would have seen this matter closed and the country moving on.

However, it is the government itself, and the Prime Minister in particular, who have this issue becoming more and more of an issue which demands that the media dig further.

So, we raise some more questions here, and what Mr Manning and his religious advisor and others do not answer here, Mr Manning will finally have to answer in Parliament.

First we need to know more about Rev Juliana Pena and her church. Just who is this mystery woman? One would have thought that she would be proud to clear up the mysteries surrounding the church which as far as the public knows is being financed and built by unknown sources —other than the contractor is the same Chinese company that built NAPA and the Prime Minister’s Residence. Rev Pena must publicly clear the air. Why, we ask is the Prime Minister so worked-up about a church that he says is not being built with state funds?

We have no problem when our government provides land for established religious organisations, and by “established,” we mean religious organisations which have a significant membership or following. However, if our land is being given away to groups which cannot count a thousand followers, we need to ask questions and get satisfactory answers. So, let us hear what is the membership of this church which has found such favour with our Prime Minister that he spends 53 minutes in Parliament defending it.

We will not be deterred from our questions or the pathetic cry from the Prime Minister that we are involved in “religious persecution” of him and the Full Gospel Church. This must easily be the most benignly tolerant society on earth when it comes to religious acceptance. Indeed, it is as easy to start a church here as it is to form a political party, and we mean no disrespect to religions or political parties in this comment. We raise this to demonstrate just how hollow is the refuge being sought by the Prime Minister.

But troubling issues keep coming to us, which will be published when we confirm them. These include the revelation that the local architects and engineers had met with top officials at a church in San Fernando who asked them to design something similar for Guanapo.

The Prime Minister has two choices that we see: He can either decide to tell everything, or have it presented to him.