Statement by Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Address at the Annual Dinner of the NAEAP In Commemoration of Emancipation Day at the Centre of Excellence, Macoya

Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Address at the Annual Dinner of the NAEAP In Commemoration of Emancipation Day at the Centre of Excellence, Macoya

I welcome this opportunity to address you on this very significant occasion as you join the rest of the country in our annual national celebration of Emancipation Day. I highly commend the National Association for the Empowerment of African People for its dedication to the people of Trinidad and Tobago. Its commitment is evidenced in several ways, including this ninth annual dinner in commemoration of this historic event in the narrative of human civilization.

I warmly welcome to our country, our keynote speaker, Professor Patrick Manning. I look forward to his address, feeling sure that, with such a name, we are certain to hear words of great wisdom and profundity. I also congratulate tonight’s awardees, Professor Brian Copeland and Mr. Everton Smith, being most deservedly recognized for their enormous contributions to the development of music and culture in Trinidad and Tobago.

We must never lose sight of the deep significance of Emancipation Day. On this occasion we remember the fact that the world did eventually bring to a close, one of the cruellest chapters in the history of mankind. It is a time when we must engage, without bitterness, but with solemn and profound reflection on one of the dark chapters in human history, so that we strengthen our resolve against inhumanity in all its manifestations, wherever it rears its ugly head.

The occasion is also undoubtedly one with great cause for celebration. Emancipation turned out to be a great boon for the countries of the New World as the descendants of former slaves went on to make phenomenal contributions to the societies which once denied the very humanity of their ancestors. They rose in all fields: academia, the professions, politics, social activism, religion, the arts and sport, reaffirming the indomitable and unconquerable nature of the human spirit. Most importantly, they built their families, strengthened their communities and today continue their contribution to the progress and stability of the Caribbean and the Americas. It is a story, both painful and inspiring and must be told to every succeeding generation of every country, especially those which were directly involved in a drama that has shaped the course of western civilization.

Trinidad and Tobago is proud of the fact that it celebrates Emancipation with national observance. This is a part of our history that has had a most profound impact on our development as a nation. Our country has benefited tremendously from the contribution of its citizens of African origin, who have excelled in every field of human endeavour in this society. Among the most pivotal contributions is the leadership they helped to provide, along with brethren of other origin, in the struggle against Colonialism and to build the foundations of our society in the post-independence era. They made an enduring contribution to the transformation of this country and paved the way for their own greater efforts, as well as that of all other citizens, in the cultural, social and economic development of our country. Therefore the freedom that we celebrate tonight, paved the way for the emancipation of our society from its historical shackles.

It is this recognition that gives more cause for everyone in this country to participate in the celebration of Emancipation Day. This is not African Emancipation Day. Emancipation in Trinidad and Tobago, as in other countries, has most importantly also been a struggle spanning generations of all origins. It has delivered our societies from the backwardness of Colonialism and its debilitating legacies, thus ensuring the modern development of our nations and making possible our present and future potential. Citizens of every origin have been involved in the emancipation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the same for Arrival Day. We all came from distant shores and built this place that is now our home. We all arrived and have all been emancipated by our collective efforts. Let our history and our continuing common struggle weld us further together. There is no other way to face the challenges that are before us. As the theme of this celebration reminds us, we must secure our future in these turbulent times. We need every citizen of every origin to achieve that goal.

Our country has been shaped by hands of many colours and minds of many cultures. It has been an intermingling that has made us so unique. People of different origins grew up together and created the nation of Trinidad and Tobago. As a collective, we were thus early emancipated from fear of others, a fact which has helped to produce the enduring harmony in plurality which is at the heart of our nationhood. We were therefore among the first to be prepared for the cosmopolitanism that is today an increasingly common feature of major cities and nations in today’s globalised world.

Let us build on this. The government is pursuing its vision of transforming Trinidad and Tobago into a developed nation. Our focus is on the people. It is the objective of all policies of our administration. We recognize an empowered human resource as key to the sustainable development to which we aspire. We have ensured the growth of the economy, increased national savings and improved social and physical infrastructure. And we have created jobs, attaining full employment for the first time since independence; built thousands of homes for those in need; improved health care; drastically reduced poverty levels in the country; and increased the security of the vulnerable, including the elderly and the disadvantaged.

Most importantly, we have placed special emphasis on the young. We continue our accentuated focus on Education and have improved quality and accessibility from nursery to tertiary with a three hundred percent increase in university enrolment over the last eight years. In training, our programmes have already borne abundant fruit. Over the last eight years, we have ensured that over one hundred and fifty thousand individuals have acquired skills for the modern workplace through our various programmes. We consider the provision of technical and vocational education as an indispensable aspect of sustainable national development.

Clearly, the opportunities are there before us. I exhort all citizens to make use of the unprecedented possibilities that have been provided for your development. Let us all be disciplined, strive earnestly, and work hard. There is no other path to individual emancipation and empowerment. We owe it to ourselves, our families, and our country. We owe it as a tribute to that part of our common ancestry whose liberation we celebrate today.

Thank you very much. Best Wishes to all.