President: Important to look back at history

His Excellency Professor George Maxwell Richards, President of Trinidad and Tobago, said one should not be afraid or reluctant to look back. He noted that not enough attention is being paid to our history and the characteristics that make up our people. President Richards was speaking at the Symposium on First Peoples at the Town Hall in Arima last Saturday night. He said that we have been careless about many things and less than honest with ourselves. The President noted that in looking back we would discover or be reminded of some positive and some not so positive aspects of ourselves.

“We must face them and learn from them.” He added that all of us must accept our own responsibility in the matter of nation-building. The President reiterated that civil society must have a vision of the country we want and should work towards the shaping of a place where space is created for all who settle here. However, His Excellency advised that there needs to be a focus on linking the youth with elders, the custodians of our oral history, so that the children as well as young men and women will have a better understanding as to how they may approach the future.