Opposition Leader and Political Leader of the PNM, Pennelope Beckles is calling for a shift in tone from Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar regarding in her approach to Venezuela.
She says the Prime Minister's combative stance is not in the best interest of Trinidad and Tobago, especially at a time when international eyes are closely watching the region.
00:00Beckles is standing firm on her party's position, that diplomacy must always come first.
00:06Speaking on the TV6 morning edition, the opposition leader cautioned that no public statement
00:12should be made by the Prime Minister without first acquiring all the relevant information.
00:18She stresses that in matters as sensitive as this, accuracy and discretion are not just
00:25best practice.
00:27They are national duty.
00:28It's not in our interest at all.
00:31I mean, we're talking about, you know, the whole geopolitics.
00:35It's not, it's not only not advisable, but save and accept that you get the information
00:41from Venezuela, which in my humble view cannot be difficult to get, because you have an embassy
00:46there, you have a sitting ambassador here from Venezuela, so you use your ministry, use
00:53what is the normal diplomatic channels.
00:55Beckles also points out that Trinidad and Tobago is in a unique position with access to the
01:02Venezuelan embassy.
01:03embassy, a diplomatic advantage, she says, should be used wisely, especially since many
01:09countries do not share that privilege.
01:11Because it's not every country that has an embassy here. So I am not sure why the Prime Minister took
01:17that position. Because, I mean, if you looked at even French news, I saw French newspapers talking
01:23about it, several other, and people begin to think of all sorts of things and immediately they're thinking
01:30that things likely to happen between Trinidad and Venezuela.
01:35Mrs. Beckles, who is the first female political leader of the PNM, is also making it clear that the stakes are high.
01:43She cautions that the mishandling of the issue could lead to serious trickle down effects for the population.
01:50From economic fallout to strained regional relations. And she warns that the consequences of poor diplomacy will not be limited to politicians, but ordinary citizens as well.
02:02So you're talking about the whole issue of smuggling, you know, narcotics. You're talking about the impact on the marine environment as well as the impact on the fishing sector.
02:16I mean, just overall trade, all sorts of issues because people begin to think, well, what really is happening? And people begin to form their own opinions based on saying, you know, Trinidad, stay clear.
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