In an emancipation message yesterday, President of the Public Services Association (PSA), Watson Duke stated that the Prime Minister’s (PM) actions and inactions contradicted his emancipation speech. Quoting an excerpt from the PM’s speech, Duke read, “In this country, emancipation holds a true meaning, we are no man’s property, but part of humanity,” however, according to Duke, the Prime Minister was hypocritical in saying such. He claimed his statement was nothing but a lie, as Duke accused the Government of being legitimate slaveholders of the people of Trinidad and Tobago.

“I can’t understand how we can have governmental leaders that are so hypocritical, yet are so loved, by the people,” said Duke.

He stated that the leaders of Trinidad and Tobago were leaders who did not respect their people and saw them as property. “They impose upon us curfew without end. They impose upon us state of emergency without any solution and they simply tell us, whether we can meet together in groups of five or groups of ten, without any reason or why. If you get the vaccination, you can work. If you don’t get the vaccination, you can’t work.”

Duke said that if emancipation really meant that people were free, then persons ought to be free legally, and not just in their minds.