No word on acting PM as Young leaves for meeting with US Sec of State

PRIME Minister Stuart Young was scheduled to fly out of Trinidad on March 25 bound for Jamaica where he is among Caricom leaders scheduled to meet with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for critical talks that could have a direct bearing on TT's energy future.

The meeting with Rubio is set for March 26 and he has been allotted one hour with the American president's chief adviser on foreign affairs.

However, as he spoke with Newsday on Tuesday evening following a visit to the Debe Islamic Association masjid, Young kept silent on who he has appointed to act as prime minister in his absence.

During the near nine-year tenure of former prime minister Dr Rowley, then finance minister Colm Imbert was the only person appointed to act as PM whenever Rowley was out of the country. In the dying embers of Rowley's tenure as PM, that changed, with then energy minister Young being the preferred choice as acting PM.

It remains to be seen if Imbert, now Public Utilities Minister, will be given the nod by Young to deputise as acting PM.

Young visited the mosque to partake in the breaking of the Ramadan fast and he met with relatives on the maternal side of his family.

When asked who would be acting prime minister, Young smiled and said, “You all will find that out tomorrow (March 26)."

It is a high-stakes meeting between Young and Rubio especially as President Trump has said he will impose harsh 25 per cent tariffs on countries trading in oil and gas with Venezuela. The meeting also comes after the Trump government has threatened to revoke the visas on government officials who hire and use Cuban medics.

On the issues he hope to discuss with Rubio, Young said, “The issues on the agenda will be decided between myself and the Secretary of State. We will be addressing matters of security, Caricom issues, and energy concerns.

“I don’t want to say more on that because it’s premature, and we need to enter discussions with open minds. I will report back to the population on Thursday at the post-Cabinet press conference.

“I am flying out, hoping to achieve what is best for the people of Trinidad and Tobago and I will speak more on this when I return.”

Officials at the mosque said this was the first time that a prime minister had ever visited that mosque which happens to be the regular place of worship for members of Young's family.

Young said the visit was due to him wanting to be "in Ramadan," and also to have discussions with his Cabinet colleague Haji Kazim Hosein.

“My family is Muslim. I wanted to visit a mosque in the country, and what a fitting one to come to as we celebrate Eid in a few days. It’s important to come here, show my respects and let our Muslim brothers know how important they are,” Young said.

His visit to the mosque came mere hours after Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar derided Young and the PNM government as being out of touch with the common man.

Young also spoke about his meeting, earlier on Tuesday, with members of the Central Bank, the Bankers' Association and heads of the various commercial banks.

He said fruitful conversations were had on discussions concerning what needs to be done to help the average citizen from the perspective of the bank's customers, particularly with regard to accessibility to foreign exchange, bank charges and service fees.

“I needed some understanding of what we can do as a government in discussion with the banks to address that. These charges affect all citizens who use the banks. They were very receptive. It was a good meeting.

“My main concern was to express my thoughts and tell them we must start looking at solutions. I asked them to engage with the Minister of Finance (Vishnu Dhanpaul) and I will meet with them again in two Wednesdays from now.”

Young also slammed Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal for statements made about the PM, Housing Minister Adrian Leonce and Attorney General Camille Robinson-Regis on reports of Leonce having a now-defunct business deal with an associate in the United Kingdom when that associate is suspected of being in criminal activities.

“It is a bit hypocritical, but the people of Trinidad and Tobago will look at these things and see them as election season tactics.

"Let us listen to who delivers whatever message and understand their past and what they are trying to achieve."

Young said it was especially interesting to hear Moonilal speak about criminals adding, "We as citizens, are much smarter than that."