Political Scientist Professor Hamid Ghany says Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar SC effectively staged a “diplomatic coup” in convincing CARICOM leaders to refer the reappointment of Secretary-General Dr Carla Barnett to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).

Speaking during an interview with TTT News on Tuesday, Professor Ghany described the regional leaders’ unanimous decision to support the Prime Minister’s proposal as a significant diplomatic victory, saying it validated Trinidad and Tobago’s concerns over the process used to reappoint Dr Barnett during a retreat at the last CARICOM meeting, where several Heads of Government, including T&T’s Prime Minister, were absent.

“I think a lot of this has to do with the Prime Minister herself. I mean, apart from the fact that Trinidad and Tobago has a long history of being a country in the forefront of CARICOM, this particular issue over the last few months had been played out in the public domain in a manner in which Mrs Persad-Bissessar was vilified for not wanting to adhere to a decision of CARICOM. But she stuck to her guns and she has maintained continuously that the process was flawed and that she has made it very clear that this is not about Dr. Barnett. This is much bigger than Dr. Barnett. This has to do with the integrity and trustworthiness of CARICOM itself. It went to the very heart of CARICOM.”