Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said that he would not have attended had he been invited to attend the meeting in Florida last Friday where four CARICOM leaders met with US president Donald Trump.
Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves and some of this other CARICOM colleagues had criticised the meeting, which was attended by the leaders of Haiti, Bahamas, Jamaica and St. Lucia, four CARICOM nations, as well, as the Dominican Republic.
“And if I were invited, I would have said no, I can’t come,” he said on Boom FM on Tuesday.
However, asked if he was peeved because he was not invited to attend, Gonsalves said:
“Oh Jesus! Heavenly Father, there are politicians in the United States running away from President Trump, I must run to him? Come on!” Gonsalves said.
“It’s not that I belittle his position. He’s an important leader, the leader of the most important country in the world but you don’t just run to people because they invite you.”
Gonsalves said that many years ago, US Vice President Al Gore had invited CARICOM prime ministers to a meeting and then Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines; Sir James Mitchell said he was not going to Washington to meet a vice-president.
“Now, one could have critiqued him as how much one wants, but he took a position on a principle as he saw it,” Gonsalves said.
“You think that Prime Ministers Williams, Manley, Burnham, Barrow would have gone to Mar-a-Lago in that particular manner in that particular context?” he said, referring to some of the region’s former leaders.
“Absolutely not! But, the leaders who have gone, who went there, I take them to be honourable men, I have no reason to think they are not honourable. It’s just that it has the potential to facilitate mischief of those who want to divide the Caribbean, divide CARICOM or divide it further.”
Gonsalves said that the United States and SVG have had good relations.
“But that doesn’t mean that because you have good relations that if a leader calls you to attend something and you consider that that would not be in the interest of CARICOM or that it sets about dividing CARICOM unnecessarily that you would politely say no. Not this.”
The host of the programme, Dwight “Bing” Joseph noted to Gonsalves that he was not called or invited.
“He frowned upon us,” Joseph said.
“Bing! Bing! Bing! Bing! If you think that I feel belittled, it says something more about you than me. I will tell you greatly. It will tell me that you have some inferior complex that if the president of the United States don’t invite you to somewhere, you feel peeved.”
Joseph said that everyone knows Trump’s personality.
“It is not Trump. It’s you, Bing. Don’t impose your insecurities on me, I don’t have them.”
Joseph retorted: “Does it say something about your ego?”
“My ego? I don’t have a problem with that.”
Joseph then told the prime minister, “I don’t have a problem with my insecurity.”
Gonsalves said he has seen a similar reaction elsewhere in the region.
“It is the sort of a thing which I see the Trinidadian opposition says the same thing about Prime Minister Rowley and Rowley answered them very forthrightly as I answer you. What is the matter with this crab-in-the-barrel mentality among some Caribbean people that you don’t go and make the critique about who you are supposed to go and make the critique you trying to pull done those who standing up for some principle and for unity in the region?
“… I really want to warn and caution against – to make it appear that because you are opposed to a meeting, it’s sour grapes that you weren’t invited. It is so wrong on so many levels. It’s absurd,” Gonsalves said.
Is this not just “Sour Grapes” from a man who sure loves to attend any and every gathering of world leaders, where he can eventually put forward the usual large begging bowl?
If he accepted the request from Prince Charles to visit SVG despite his extreme anti-monarchist pretentions, he certainly would have attended a meeting in Miami with the most powerful man in the world!
This had nothing to do with the useless and dydfunctional CARICOM as the presence of the non-CARICOM country the Dominican Republc shows.
The was a meeting of righteous countries opposed to the nasty Maduro regime which is starving its own people and forcing them to flee to other countries.
I think that the Prime Minister is correct in pointing out to Joseph about the Inferiority complex which is so common in the area; Ralph is a secured man, knows of which he speaks. It is said a man has no honor in his own country.
A leopard never change its spots who believe this
GOOD COMMENT
Gonsalves is many times worse than Trump, Trump never invited him because he knows Gonsalves is a Maduro supporter.
As usual, you are absolutely right Jolly Green. C. Ben is also right when he says IF Trump would have invited Gonsalves he certainly would have gone, even though he would not support actions against Venezuela.
Obviously Maduro is a terrible leader, even worse than Gonsalves and Trump. These bad leaders do not seem as bad only because there are so many other bad leaders in the world today. Consider Macron, the Rothschild Banker who is the leader of France. Italy has thrown out thier Goldman Sachs leader and is on the path to great leadership with a coalition that is so far working.
I do not agree with C. Ben about Israel. It is very sad that all the good jews have to feel forced to be represented by such a cruel and racist establishment while they ethnically cleanse more and more of the area from Muslims and Christians.
Maduro certainly has to go but it should not be the USA that decides who replaces him. Even though Gonsalves is also very bad we would not want the USA to set-up a puppet in SVG either.
To believe or not to believe a leopard never change its spots
C.Ben-David the converted jew always take an imperialist view when it comes to matters for this sort. Ralph is not lacking when it comes to confidence. He clearly does not exhibit any signs of having an inferiority complex. I do not agree with the Layou jew that he would have accepted Trump’so invitation. Looking forward to read the fall out from this lol.
All this talk about Jews is unacceptable, unless you put into the equation that Ralph Gonsalves is of Jewish ancestry, and C-ben David is a Jew. I am still not sure where that takes us.
The “race card” is always the one played by those who have no credible arguments.
Jolley Green the statement went further than the Jewish comment. Why have you surgically removed the other comments in the same paragraph?
Ben it sounds more like a Religious card.
Its quite possibly the start of a right wing fascist group to be using all this derogatory talk about Jews.
Samuel mentions Israel, where that came from is a mystery, please let us in on the secret.
Hitler pretended not to be a Jew, Gonsalves ancesters pretended not to be Jews, C-ben.David uses anther persons name and pretends to be a Jew.
Its all a little confusing, so lets lump them all together and call them f……..t. Right or wrong it’s convenient. Unless of course anyone objects to that?