Secretary General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Dr Carla Barnett this morning declined to comment on the controversy surrounding her reappointment, and whether she is prepared is step down amid increasing pressures from the Trinidad and Tobago Government.

Dr Barnett was reappointed in February during the 50^th Regular Meeting of the CARICOM Conference of Heads of Government in St Kitts and Nevis.

Since then, however, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, while casting aspersions on the entire reappointment process, has claimed that her country was locked out of the decision making process.

Last week, the Prime Minister of Jamaica floated the idea of CARICOM meeting to discuss the issue.

Approached by the media at an event this morning, Dr Barnett opted to remain silent and she walked away.

While, President Irfaan Ali has backed the reappointment and has stated that the proper process was followed, Trinidadian Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar, has dubbed the reappointment as “surreptitious, corrupted and flawed,” adding that the CARICOM Secretariat under its current leadership was “dysfunctional, dishonest and incompetent.”

In response to growing criticisms by Persad-Bissessar of the process used to reappoint Dr. Barnett, current Chairman of CARICOM and Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Dr Terrence Drew provided an outline of the events that unfolded in the lead up to, and after the reappointment of Dr Barnett.

Prime Minister Drew maintains that established protocols were followed, but explained that the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago departed St. Kitts and Nevis on the first day of the conference, ahead of the retreat, and an invitation extended to her Foreign Minister Sean Sobers was in effect turned down.

The Government of Trinidad and Tobago, has stated that the Foreign Minister was blocked from attending the meeting as he was told it was specifically for Heads of Government only.

It was during the retreat that the Heads of Government present took a decision to reappoint the Secretary General under Article 24 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas.

Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar has said that while her country remains committed to CARICOM, her Government will not recognize Barnett as the Secretary General after August, when her first term in office officially ends.

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