00:00It was a historic and unprecedented moment.
00:04I, Stuart Richard Young, do swear by Almighty God that I will bear true faith and allegiance
00:15to Trinidad and Tobago, and will uphold the Constitution and the law, that I will conscientiously
00:23and impartially, and to the best of my ability, discharge my duties as Prime Minister.
00:32Unlike the other seven Prime Ministers before him, Senior Counsel Young took his oath of
00:36office as the head of the government before the holding of a general election, as outgoing
00:42Diggle Martin West MP, Dr Keith Rowley, officially began his retirement as the head of the government.
00:49The new Prime Minister is also not presently the leader of the party to which he belongs.
00:55As we begin this new chapter together, this is my commitment to you.
01:00I will lead with integrity, inclusion, and accountability.
01:06We will harness our unique strengths, diversity, and aspirations to build a future where every
01:15citizen has the opportunity to thrive.
01:20We will put aside differences, leverage our collective experiences and expertise, and
01:28champion the necessary reforms to transform and strengthen our nation, and uplift our
01:37people.
01:38Among those present for the beginning of that new chapter at President's House were the
01:42Chief Justice, government MPs, and Prime Minister Young's two sons, his mother, father,
01:49brother, and sister-in-law.
01:52After having taken his oath of office and receiving his Instrument of Appointment from
01:57President Christine Kangaloo, the new Prime Minister spoke with the media.
02:01One of the things that TV6 News has sought clarification from the new Prime Minister
02:06is an issue that is one of a diplomatic nature.
02:09The matter resulted from what the British government has said was a significant increase
02:14in the number of unjustified asylum applications by Trinidad and Tobago nationals at the UK
02:20border.
02:21The government of Trinidad and Tobago has said these were a relatively small number
02:25of persons.
02:26Will one of those priority issues for US Prime Minister be the issue with the UK, the visa
02:31regime and so on, because Dr Rowley had very strong comments about that at the PNM meeting
02:36last night.
02:37I have already engaged the UK government with the people here, also at least one of their
02:43government ministers.
02:45I've already had a meeting with that government minister virtually.
02:49I've made certain requests and yes, that is one of the areas.
02:53I will fight for Trinidad and Tobago in every way possible to build a better Trinidad and
02:58Tobago from the strong foundation that we have.
03:01Opposition leader Kamala Harris has questioned the foundation of Mr Young's appointment
03:05as Prime Minister as she claims it is unconstitutional and has threatened legal action on behalf
03:12of her party.
03:13It is up to the leader of the opposition and every citizen of Trinidad and Tobago as how
03:17they want to go forward with Trinidad and Tobago.
03:20I am not going to be hindered in any way by anyone who does not want what is best for
03:25Trinidad and Tobago.
03:26There may be legal parameters etc but so be it.
03:29And let's wait.
03:30Let's wait and see how it unfolds.
03:33I'm not going to presuppose it but I will do all I can on your behalf.
03:37I have said I will continue to fight for Trinidad and Tobago.
03:40I will continue to do what I need to do to build a better Trinidad and Tobago.
03:45So I ask the opposition and the leader of the opposition to join with me to build a
03:50better Trinidad and Tobago and that's as much as I can do.
03:53And I ask that with clean hands and a clean heart.
03:56Prime Minister Young maintained a focus of his new administration is unity.
04:01Jules Brault, TV6 News.
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