UNC apologises on TT’s behalf

JULIEN NEAVES

NAPARIMA MP Rodney Charles says Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Dennis Moses must go after this country failed to support Dominica in its request to the Organisation of American States for a waiver in their contribution.

“On behalf of the United National Congress and the political leader, I apologise publicly to the Government and people of Dominica for this incomprehensible act by ambassador (Anthony Phillips-Spencer).”

He was speaking yesterday at a media conference held at the Office of the Opposition Leader, Port of Spain.

He said the request for the waiver of US $35,000 was due to the utter devastation in the wake of Hurricane Maria. He pointed out TT was the only country of 35 member states that objected to Dominica’s plea for assistance.

“This not the best of TT. We are better than this.”

Charles said, in response to the issue there has been a plethora of media reports in the Caribbean looking down on Trinidad including from Dominica, Jamaica, Barbados and St Lucia.

He called on Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to remove Moses over this latest of a plethora of embassy episodes which were not doing justice to the image of the country.

Charles said other issues included an appointment in Geneva of someone who did not represent the best and brightest, a policy in Venezuela which was not nuanced enough, being the last Caricom country to ratify climate change agreement, response to the potential oil boom in Guyana which did not leverage this country’s human resources and abilities to help Guyana, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and European Union blacklisting when all that was required was a letter expressing a commitment to deal with money laundering.

“There are too many episodes that do not do justice including travel advisories to which we have not mounted an effective response. United States, Canada, England, Australia are telling their citizens don’t come. And yet we talk about a diversification campaign that speaks to tourism.”