PM stands firm on CARICOM dispute: ‘Expel us if you want’

May 14, 2026 News

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(Trinidad Express) Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says CARICOM can expel Trinidad and Tobago from the regional body if it wishes to do so, but moving forward, this country will not recognise Dr. Carla Barnett as CARICOM Secretary-General after her tenure expires in August.

The Prime Minister was responding to questions from the Express yesterday, where she made it clear that T&T remains committed to CARICOM and is not withdrawing, but it will not stay silent on what she said was the dysfunctional and chaotic state of the body and Barnett’s reappointment.

Trinidad and Tobago maintains that Barnett’s reappointment, which was decided on during the 50th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government in St Kitts and Nevis in February 2026 without T&T being present when the decision was made, was not formally placed on the agenda for plenary discussion during the conference, and this was in breach of the revised Treaty of Chaguaramas.

Last Friday, a virtual Regular Meeting of CARICOM was held where Montserrat requested that the issue of the controversy surrounding the reappointment of Barnett be discussed.

The Express understands that it was a tense meeting where ten leaders from the 15-member CARICOM body were present.

Trinidad and Toba­go’s representatives from the Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs raised objections, noting that the Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs Sean Sobers were not present because of the official visit of India’s Minister of External Affairs, Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, and parliamentary obligations.

In the end, the majo­rity present accepted that Barnett’s reappointment at a retreat in Nevis would stand, and come August when her term expires, she will continue.

Trinidad and Tobago is against the manner in which the reappointment occurred, as Sobers stated previously that he was disinvited from the retreat on the morning of the event, and there was no input from T&T and other countries which were also not represented.

Sobers last sent communication to CARICOM chairman Dr. Terrance Drew asking for information such as notes from the retreat and also noting the text message disinviting him from that meeting.

The Prime Minister, in a social media post last month, criticised CARICOM after revealing that Barnett authored a statement issued by Drew defending her reappointment.

She also called out the “deliberate and disgraceful silence” of CARICOM foreign ministers, stating they were privy to proof in the form of a WhatsApp message which indicated Sobers was disinvited from the Nevis retreat where Barnett was reappointed.

Asked yesterday whether she received any response to her questions about the Secretary-General autho­ring the CARICOM press release or the text message sent to Sobers disinviting him from the retreat, Persad-­Bissessar said she did not.

“No, they are still hiding from providing responses. It’s really shame­ful that the entire group knows that Barnett did disinvite Minister Sobers via Whats­App, but they still persist in continuing with dishonesty.

“Everyone also knows that Barnett authored chairman Drew’s CARICOM press release to clear herself and deliberately left out her WhatsApp message disinviting Minister Sobers that’s still on the COFCOR WhatsApp group, by the way,” she said.

The Express asked the Prime Minister what is T&T’s position since, reportedly, a majority of CARICOM member states support Barnett’s reappointment.

She responded: “Trinidad and Tobago only recognises Barnett as SG until the end of her term this August 2026. All CARICOM leaders could do as they please, but Trinidad and Tobago will not recognise her as SG for a next term. That’s not going to change,” she said.

“We have already made that clear. We do not recognise her after August 2026. This is our final position,” she added.

Asked about sugges­tions that the matter should be taken before the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), Persad-Bissessar said Trinidad and Tobago does not use the CCJ as its final court of appeal, and her Government will never move to make the CCJ the country’s final court of appeal.

Asked whether it was disrespectful for CARICOM to press forward with discussing Barnett’s reappointment last Friday when both she and Sobers were unable to attend, Persad-Bissessar said she was unbothered and CARICOM can expel T&T if they so wish.

“They are free to do as they wish. I’m not bothered. We have alrea­dy made our position clear; they are free to expel us from CARICOM if they wish to do so. They are free to work with us if they wish to do so. Life goes on in Tri­nidad and Tobago, with or without CARICOM. The world stops for no one,” she said.

Not depending on CARICOM

Asked how she proposes to resolve this issue without any conflict, she said this country is working by exploring other markets and expanding trade.

“We are not sitting and depending on CARICOM as a trade market. We are actively working to expand our trade network with the Middle East, South America, India and Africa,” the Prime Minister said.

Asked if she will be attending future meetings, Persad-Bissessar said: “Trinidad and Tobago has always been represented by someone at CARICOM meetings, except when we are sent WhatsApp messages by the GS disinviting us.”

It was reported that Jamaica’s Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, was seeking to bring about mediation to the ongoing impasse between T&T and CARICOM. Asked whether discussions with Holness had made any headway, Persad-Bissessar said: “Prime Minister Holness is someone who I have the greatest respect for. He is a good friend to Trinidad and Tobago. I prefer that details of our conversations remain confidential.”

As to if she believed that T&T is being sidelined as CARICOM members push forward and rally around Barnett, the Prime Minister maintained that the body is dysfunctional.

“The entire Caribbean population can see now how dysfunctional and chaotic the CARICOM is. Imagine, they have no meeting minutes, no performance appraisals, none of the documentation we requested. CARICOM members are free to support or not support Trinidad and Tobago in the future. CARICOM is not a political union, it’s a common market. If eventually they don’t want us in the common market, they are free to do as they please,” she said.

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• CARICOM, dispute, Expel, Kamla Persad -Bissessar

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