On October 29, 2026, a normally routine session of the national Senate descended into unruly verbal exchanges between members across the political aisle, prompting Senate President Carolyn Trench-Sandiford to pause proceedings for a full two hours to de-escalate tensions and review official footage of the altercation. When the chamber reconvened, Trench-Sandiford confirmed that her review of all available video and audio recordings of the incident confirmed that unprofessional, disrespectful conduct had come from legislators on both sides of the partisan divide, rather than originating from a single party.
In her formal address to the chamber after the suspension, the Senate President laid out the full sequence of inflammatory remarks that sparked the disruption: the conflict first ignited when Senator Pitt made a public comment stating other colleagues “need to school on English and understand that you can’t fix stupid.” The tensions escalated further when Senator Chanona raised a point of order related to audio transmission issues, a disruption that prompted the initial decision to halt the session to resolve the brewing conflict. When legislators returned to the floor, Pitt made another offhand remark noting, “you mean they didn’t hear what I call the man, slow,” drawing a sharp retort from Senator Hector Guerra, who fired back that “what is slow is the Senator’s sense of style.” Pitt then doubled down on the personal jabs, commenting, “so we get personal today? My sense of style slow, but you the wear skirt today.”
At that juncture, Trench-Sandiford intervened directly to remind all elected senators that they were bound to uphold a standard of conduct befitting the solemnity of the Senate chamber, emphasizing that mutual respect for fellow members, the presiding chair, and the institutional integrity of the legislature was non-negotiable. She noted that every exchange had been formally logged in official parliamentary records and would not be rehashed unnecessarily, before exercising her executive authority as Senate President to formally strike Guerra’s retaliatory remark from the official parliamentary transcript.
This report is adapted from a direct transcript of the outlet’s evening television newscast, with all Kriol-language remarks from legislators transcribed using a standardized, consistent spelling system for full accuracy for readers. A full video recording of the complete newscast is available for public viewing via the outlet’s official digital channels.
Senate President: Disrespect on Both Sides
