Trinidad and Tobago is observing its 43rd anniversary as a Republic.
In a National address, President Paula Mae Weekes urged citizens to renew their understanding of what it is to be a sovereign, independent nation under a Republican Constitution.
Weekes was quoted by Caribbean Media Corporation as saying – that the republican status was the result of a “concerted effort by the engineers of independence – who firmly believed that we had the tenacity, the resolution and the means to carry out the complete administration of our affairs.
Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley used the occasion to remind nationals that building a new society should not be left to politicians alone.
Rowley said that the foundation of this country and all that it stands for was laid out within the Constitution crafted by Trinidad and Tobago nationals, who worked together to outline our basic principles and aspirations.
He acknowledged that Trinidad and Tobago continues to face “some economic challenges, such as falling energy prices, production and consequently revenues, which continue to threaten the quality of their lives.
He said over the past four years, his administration has been putting things in place towards achieving this vision of a new society – one he says is not a job for politicians alone.
