Dominican Prime Minister Skerrit said the relationship with T@T is very strong

go through Time Domain Network Wireline staff

April 3, 2018 at 5:48 pm

Dr. Keith Rowley, Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago

Port of Spain, Trinidad (TDN)
– Dominican Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit reports that relations between Dominica and Trinidad and Tobago remain “strong.” Skerrit made the comments in a WhatsApp message to Trinidadian CNC3 Morning Brew host Hema Ramkissoon. He went on to say that he does not believe Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley knew about the Organization of American States (OAS) vote before it happened. “The relationship between Dominica and Trinidad and Tobago remains strong. The Government of Trinidad and Trinidad and Tobago in general has been very supportive of our efforts. I do not believe that the Prime Minister would have known about the OAS vote beforehand. This is one of those common miscommunication incidents that we all experience from time to time,” Skerrit said. Skerrit went on to thank the people of the twin-island republic for their support to Dominica since the passage of Hurricane Maria last September. The Dominican Prime Minister’s comments come amid ongoing calls in Trinidad and Tobago to sack the island’s foreign minister following the OAS vote. On March 23, Trinidad and Tobago’s representative, Ambassador Anthony Philip Spencer, voted against allowing Dominica to be exempted from its OAS dues for the next two years in response to Dominica’s request for a fee waiver. The move immediately sparked a backlash from Trinidadians, who just months earlier had donated money and in-kind to the Dominican Republic. The National Union, one of Trinidad and Tobago’s main trade unions, slammed the government, saying its actions reinforced the country’s image of “arrogance and incompetence.”

Prime Minister Rowley said he had launched an investigation into the circumstances that led a public official to vote against the bill. Meanwhile, a leaked letter from Philip Spencer to Rowley on March 29 stated that he acted in accordance with written instructions from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and CARICOM Affairs, which contradicted advice provided by the Permanent Mission.