Trinity Cross committee not formed

Following a recent High Court ruling that the symbol discriminated against non-Christians, Prime Minister Patrick Manning on Friday vowed to remove the Trinity Cross and told the House of Representatives an eight-person committee would review this award and “such other national symbols and observances that may be considered discriminatory.”

The committee is to be chaired by respected historian Prof Bridget Brereton of the University of the West Indies (UWI), St Augustine, whose published books include Race Relations in Colonial Trinidad 1870-1900.

Other committee members are designer Gillian Bishop, businessmen Gregory Aboud and Devanand Ramlal, academics Prof Selwyn Ryan and Prof Rolph Balgobin, and public servants Anselm Richards and Sandra Marchack.

However, despite Manning vowing to have a new highest top honour in place for the annual national awards ceremony to mark our August 31 Independence Day, since his announcement of the committee on Friday, nothing further has been done.

Sunday Newsday understands that committee members have not yet received letters of appointment, nor has any meeting been held for them.

While Maha Sabha secretary-general, Sat Maharaj, has welcomed the change of the Trinity Cross, Leader of the Opposition Kamla Persad-Bissessar pondered whether the appointment of the committee was merely a delaying tactic by the Government to implement the change, saying “I’ll believe it when I see it happens.”