On Apr 12, 2026
BASSETERRE – Prime Minister and CARICOM Chairman The Hon. Dr. Terrance Drew said in a media release on Saturday that he convened a special emergency meeting on April 10, 2026, to address mounting concerns over regional governance, though the session was marked by the total absence of Trinidad and Tobago representatives.
The meeting was called to resolve a public dispute regarding the reappointment of Secretary-General Dr. Carla Barnett. While Dr. Drew moved to defend the institution’s integrity, he noted that neither Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar nor any member of her government attended the discussions. The Chairman warned that “unfortunate and erroneous statements” are currently threatening to diminish regional integration.
The controversy stems from a series of scathing allegations made by Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar, who has labeled the reappointment process as “surreptitious, corrupted and flawed.” She recently revealed that during a 39-day period leading up to the Nevis retreat, the Secretariat sent eight messages regarding a “soon to be legendary CARICOM shirt,” but zero messages regarding the Secretary-General’s reappointment.
“Clearly the shirt was of utmost significance and importance but the reappointment of the GS of CARICOM was not,” Persad-Bissessar stated. She further alleged that her Foreign Minister, Sean Sobers, was effectively “disinvited” from the decision-making retreat via a last-minute WhatsApp message at 8:56 a.m. on the day of the event, which claimed the meeting was for “Heads only.”
Persad-Bissessar has demanded the immediate release of Barnett’s performance appraisals and the minutes of the Nevis retreat, stating, “At best Minister Sobers was disinvited because he had no fancy CARICOM shirt, at worst he was disinvited to deliberately facilitate Ms. Barnett’s surreptitious reappointment process.”
In response, Dr. Drew has authorized the public release of internal communications and records of the decisions taken in Nevis to counter the narrative of secrecy. He urged member states to return to “internal mechanisms” for resolving disputes rather than engaging in public confrontation.
“It is hoped that as the Community moves forward, it will be possible to revert to the use of internal mechanisms for addressing the challenges,” Dr. Drew stated, emphasizing that the focus should remain on the benefit of the people of the region.
As the documents become available for public scrutiny, the rift highlights a significant tension between the Secretariat’s administrative protocols and the demands for transparency from one of the community’s founding members.
