Padarath backs PM’s Venezuela stance

Pub­lic Util­i­ties Min­is­ter Bar­ry Padarath has dis­missed sug­ges­tions that Prime Min­is­ter Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar’s warmer tone to­wards Venezuela is dri­ven by Trinidad and To­ba­go’s in­ter­est in the coun­try’s en­er­gy re­sources.

Speak­ing to re­porters out­side Par­lia­ment yes­ter­day, Padarath, who was nurs­ing an in­jured foot, said the Gov­ern­ment’s ap­proach re­flects chang­ing cir­cum­stances, in­clud­ing de­vel­op­ments with­in Venezuela and its geopo­lit­i­cal po­si­tion.

His com­ments come af­ter Per­sad-Bisses­sar, when asked on Thurs­day whether she had a mes­sage for Venezuela’s act­ing Pres­i­dent Del­cy Ro­driguez, said, “I love her. I look for­ward to meet­ing her.”