Mistaken Identity

Satiricus is not easily shocked. As a veteran of the newspaper wars, he’s heard and seen it all. Or so he thought – until now. How dare his newspaper GTimes think, much less tell people that the YC-Tea was moving away from APANU? So what if the new kid that replaced 0.007 Bond said so? Heck! This was politics: yes was no and no was yes.

APANU and YC-Tea came from the same womb. What was actually going on? “Is tactics, Bai. Tactics!” Cappo looked squarely at Satiricus. “Why yuh paper got fo bust dem youths runnings?”

“That’s right, fellas,” agreed Hari. “You shoulda ask what happen to 0.007 Bond and Nesta and the rest of the dem dat start de whole thing.” “Ah wha happen?” enquired Bungi. With all the rains he hadn’t cut any cane for a week and he looked as fresh as a hibiscus.

“Well, it could be dat Grain Ja feel dem getting too big fo dem boots. Dat Nesta gyaal got a mouth, you know.” Cappo braced back in his chair.

“That was Forbes old tactics. Never give them time to form their own power base,” Samad just had to give the historical background.

“And Grain Ja is a Burnham man to the bone!” “That’s right! They have to depend on the leader at all times!” Suresh chortled.

“But maybe Grain Ja only want fo dem youths fo get a new image?” suggested Bungi.

“You mean because 0.007 and de rest a dem bin mek trouble in de streets?” inquired his old cane-cutting partner Cappo.

“Right,” agreed Bungi.

“Bungi, like yuh fetch too much cane and you head get soft!” Cappo was scathing. “APANU is still PNCEE. And dat mean dat dem always gon mek trouble in de street!” “But de Youth Man leader – Grant – tell de paper dat deh not ‘officially’ part a APANU?” Bungi obviously decided to be a foil for his old partner.

“Bai Bungi, Cappo right. You don’t know this politics thing,” Suresh shook his head. “Grain Ja tell the new people he put in YC-Tea , that they independent. But like the new guy didn’t see the wink!”

“YC-Tea is a front group,” explained teacher Samad patiently. “They supposed to pretend that they independent – but they know who’s the boss.”

“Me think dis youth man see how Grain Ja and all a dem lining up dem-selves fo get position and duty-free car in parliament and decide fo try a ting wid Pressie,” Cappo challenged the group.

“You could have a point,” agreed Hari. “He see Pressie giving in all over the place, and he decide to tell the reporter that he can work with the Pressie too.”

“And you see how Grain Ja slap the back a he head!” Cappo slapped the table in glee. “De chap had to seh quick quick, he neva seh so even though dem gat he pan tape!” “We’ll see more of this.” Samad predicted.

“You see all this committee business APANU and KFC talking about in parliament? Every committee Grain Ja and company sit on is more money they get.”

“De Youths in YC-Tea gon want a piece of de action. So de question is if de Pressie gon tek dem on?” Cappo was ever the political animal.

“The Pressie got to get some old heads around him who know how to separate the rice from the husk!” Satiricus seemed to have his question answered.