Trinidad and Tobago PM Keith Rowley Says OAS' Almagro Has to Go

Fresh off the heels of a state visit to Chile, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Keith Rowley said the current head of the Organization of American States Luis Almagro had to be changed.

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On Thursday the Trinidad and Tobago Guardian reported that Rowley, while speaking at a press conference at Piarco International Airport reprimanded Almagro's manner of dealing with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

“Trinidad and Tobago registered a strong objection to the behavior of the OAS leadership. The public servants from the OAS took it upon themselves to engage the Government of Venezuela, the president in fact, in a very derogatory manner,” Rowley stated.

During the press conference, Rowley added that the job requirement of the OAS is that of a public servant, one that doesn't exhort the president to take an arbitrary, partisan stance. Therefore, Almagro had compromised his own credibility in siding with the opposition against Maduro's government, a government that was democratically elected, and “cannot now play any significant role in dealing with Venezuela's difficulty.”

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Rowley reiterated that the government of Trinidad and Tobago has expressed “strong objection” to the behavior of Almagro regarding his position toward the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

Referring to the “aggressive” stance adopted by certain members of the 15-member Caribbean Community, CARICOM, Rowley also stressed that all leaders must be careful.

“CARICOM could destroy itself as an honest broker with respect to any involvement in assistance to Venezuela and its internal problems,” he said.

Trinidad and Tobago was part of the CARICOM-bloc that played a vital role in defeating the anti-Venezuela motion led by the U.S. at the OAS meeting meant to discuss the situation in Venezuela.