Tobago won’t be better off on its own

CHIEF SECRETARY of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA), Orville London, said on Thursday that Tobago as an independent state would not fare better than it would as part of the unitary state of Trinidad and Tobago. He pointed out that Tobago would “survive” as an independent country. London was commenting during the THA’s post-Executive Council Meeting press briefing on remarks made by former President Arthur NR Robinson on Tuesday night. Robinson had said: “I have heard it said that Tobago is too small to be independent. I think time will show that is a fallacy.” Asked if he shared this view and how soon did he see Tobago emerging as an independent state, London replied: “I think the former President was making an evaluation and it is an evaluation with which I do not disagree, that if Tobago were to become independent Tobago would not starve, and Tobago would survive.

“But at this point in time I do not believe that Tobago will do as well as an independent island, as it would in the unitary state of Trinidad and Tobago or  in some kind of meaningful relationship with Trinidad. “The jury is out in my mind as to exactly what form this union should take, but I am a firm believer that Tobago’s future is inexorably linked to that of Trinidad, and what we will determine is the type of the relationship rather than separation. “I am not convinced at this point in time that Tobago will do better on its own, but I am convinced that Tobago will survive on its own, but I am not convinced that it will do better on its own,” London said.