Saturday, April 26 2008

FORMER Trade and Industry Minister Dr Keith Rowley’s monthly salary will be slashed from $33,000 to $14,000 after Prime Minister Patrick Manning fired him from the Cabinet on Wednesday.

Rowley’s dismissal will also see a shake-up in Government’s seating arrangements in the House of Representatives, with one of the other Government frontbenchers taking his old seat. Rowley will sit either at the end of the Opposition’s backbenches or the third seat from the end at next Friday’s sitting of the House.

As a senior Cabinet minister, Rowley was entitled to a monthly salary of $33,000. Non-Cabinet ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries receive monthly salaries of $27,300 and $18,900 respectively. His dismissal from the Cabinet means that Rowley will take only home a monthly salary of $14,000 in his capacity as Diego Martin West MP. As an MP, Rowley still has access to benefits such as $300,000 loan facility for the purchase of a new or used car, a $9,500 constituency allowance. Rowley however cannot access a monthly $1,000 ‘committee service’ salary since he was not appointed to serve on any Parliamentary sessional select or joint select committee.

Sources told Newsday that from next Friday, Rowley will be sitting on the Opposition’s back bench with Toco/Sangre Grande MP, Indra Sinanan Ojah-Maharaj and St Ann’s East MP Anthony Roberts.

San Fernando West MP, Junia Regrello, returns to the Government backbenches because he now outranks Rowley as a Parliamentary Secretary in the Culture Ministry. Regrello was moved to the Opposition back benches last week to make way for La Horquetta/Talparo MP, Roger Joseph, who was promoted by Manning on April 2 to Junior Works and Transport Minister.

Sources said Rowley’s former seat on the Government front benches, two seats down from Manning, could be filled by Finance Minister Karen Nunez-Tesheira who occupied one seat down from Rowley. Parliament officials said Leader of Government Business Colm Imbert, and Opposition Chief Whip, Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, decide the seating arrangements for their respective MPs.

On Wednesday, Imbert refused to say whether or not he had prior knowledge about Manning firing Rowley. After Manning, Rowley and Imbert are the two PNM MPs with the longest service in the House.