Eric Williams: The constitutional scholar and the introduction of bicameralism in Trinidad and Tobago

Abstract

The introduction of bicameralism into the legislative structure of Trinidad and Tobago was considered to be one of the hallmarks of constitutional reform for Trinidad and Tobago as advocated by Eric Williams. Prior to becoming the first Chief Minister and subsequently first Premier of the Colony of Trinidad and Tobago, Williams embarked on a series of public meetings throughout the colony to gain public acceptance for his ideas on constitutional reform in general and bicameralism in particular. He gained widespread popularity from these public meetings. This gave him leverage to form a political party, the People's National Movement (PNM), which carried him to political power and changed the direction of constitutional reform in the colony, as far as the structure of the legislature was concerned, away from unicameralism to bicameralism. Williams modified his original ideas once in power and was influenced by the structure of the senate of the West Indian Federation that came into being in 1958 as well as the desire to maintain political stability. Williams was only able to achieve his goal because the Colonial Office sided with him against the main opposition party in the colony in 1961. The model of the senate created in 1961 has remained the same structurally since then with only an increase in its size.