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National Team Unity

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

National Team Unity (NTU) was a political party in Trinidad and Tobago led by Human Rights lawyer and former Attorney General Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj.

Founded as Team Unity, to contest party elections in the United National Congress in 2001, the slate of candidates was led by Maharaj. Team Unity won 21 of 24 contested executive posts including the Deputy Leadership (won by Maharaj).

Later that year a rift with UNC leader Basdeo Panday led Maharaj, together with Oropouche Member of Parliament Trevor Sudama and Naparima MP Ralph Maraj, to leave the party. This caused the UNC to lose its parliamentary majority, forcing national elections.

Renaming itself National Team Unity, the party contested the 2001 general elections, winning 2.5% of the vote but no seats. It did not contest the 2002 general elections, and remains more of a pressure group than a true national political party. In 2004 Ralph Maraj returned to the PNM (which he had left in 1995) as a speechwriter for Prime Minister Patrick Manning.

As of 2006 the NTU appears to be a moribund organization. Its leader Maharaj has rejoined the United National Congress.

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