Category: CANA News

The head of the Guyana Police Force’s Special Branch, Prem Narine, Monday told a magistrate court that Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed is a threat to national security even as the defence sought to establish that the United States extradition request is politically motivated.

Mohamed and his city businessmen father, Nazar ‘Shell’ Mohamed are wanted in the United States for alleged wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering associated with their once thriving gold trading business.

The Mohameds had been unsuccessful in getting the Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), the country’s highest and final court to support their challenge of the validity of an Authority to Proceed (ATP) issued under Guyana’s Fugitive Offenders Act. The High Court and the Court of Appeal had also dismissed the challenge.

Appearing before Chief Magistrate Judy Latchman, the head of the GPF intelligence unit said that his assessment of the Opposition Leader was based on information available to him in his capacity as head of the Guyana Police Force’s Special Branch.

He told defence attorney Siand Dhurjon during cross-examination that Mohamed posed a threat to national security even though he said he was unaware of a similar statement made outside of the court by President Irfaan Ali.

‘…. what I’m aware of is that Azruddin Mohamed, based on my information, is a threat to society,’ Narine said, adding further that ‘standing here now, the information I have, I would consider him a threat to national security’.

The Head of the Special Branch denied that he was not being fully factual in his account to the court with the defence lawyer saying ‘I’m putting to you that your memory is rather selective today, and you’re not being honest with this court’.

Narine replied ‘that is not true’.

Last Friday, Narine during his testimony had described Mohamed as a dangerous person, adding that he was capable of anything.

Narine told the court that while he had collected two warrants from the Attorney General’s Chambers, he not say how the documents came to be there.

Dhurjon suggested that the Attorney General’s Chambers has no role in the extradition process and that such matters are handled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Home Affairs, to which Narine replied that he did not know.

Asked whether he had encountered any other extradition matter involving the Attorney General’s Chambers during his career, Narine said he had never encountered another extradition process.

The defence lawyer sought to establish that the extradition process was politically motivated by the Guyana government, but Narine denied that he was instructed by President Ali to get involved in the matter.

‘Definitely not, because an instruction from the president is a privilege and something that I would remember,’ he said.

He specifically could not recall whether the police commissioner, crime chief or commander had instructed him to take action in the matter.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr. Godwin Friday, Monday urged Caribbean countries that in order to modernise public financial management effectively, there must clearly distinguish between what is simple digitisation that is merely replicating paper forms in a digital environment and real digital transformation, where business processes are re-engineered to be digital by design.

Addressing the regional workshop on artificial intelligence (AI) in public financing management for Small island Developing States (SIDS), Friday said that in years gone by, governments across the region debated and approved estimates of revenue and expenditure . ‘Behind these figures, in that thick, sterile document, lie the efforts of ministers and their permanent secretaries to garner the scarce resources to be used to provide the essential functions of government,’ he told the delegates from across the region.

He said that for SIDS, limited capacity and scarce resources leave very little room for waste, duplication, or poor decision making.

‘Yet we know these flaws persist,’ he said, noting that in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the fiscal responsibility framework recognises that credible budget preparation, disciplined programme execution, and reliable fiscal forecasting are critical to creating and maintaining public confidence in government and to ensuring fiscal sustainability.

‘However, many of our existing systems were designed for a bygone era. They are characterised by ministerial and departmental silos, manual data entry, and excessive reporting delays and folios, up to folios of paper.’

Friday said that this results in higher risks of the waste, duplication, and poor decision making, adding that grounded in the International Monetary Fund’s(IMF) digital solutions guidelines for public financial management, ‘our efforts must align with reforming functional business processes, building adaptive and interoperable IT architecture, and modernising legal and data governance frameworks.

‘We are all aware of the incessant drumbeat of AI. We know the times are changing and as the songwriter says, we better start swimming or we will sink like a spoon’.

But Prime Minister Friday told the conference that as artificial intelligence begins to reshape fiscal operations ‘we must avoid adopting technology in isolation or getting misguided by the hype.

‘We must instead be guided by what delivers the greatest value for us. We must not invent problems simply so that AI could solve them. Rather, we must see how AI solves the problems,’ he said, adding that when deployed with clear purpose, emerging technologies can be of great benefit to everyone.

‘But it must always remain a tool, not an end in itself. Digital transformation also requires breaking down institutional silos,’ he said, reiterating the need to ‘avoid adopting technology in isolation or getting misguided by the hype.

‘We must instead be guided by what delivers the greatest value for us. We must not invent problems simply so that AI could solve them. Rather, we must see how AI solves the problems, as was said earlier, that we have now. ‘

He said that the eruption of La Soufriere Volcano here a few years ago, five years ago, ) and the devastation caused by Hurricane Beryl in 2024, demonstrated how swiftly and how thoroughly natural disasters can disrupt ordinary life, economic activity, and government’s operations.

‘For climate-vulnerable small island developing states like us, physical resilience and digital resilience are inseparable. As our public financial management systems become increasingly data-driven and interconnected, cyber resilience, robust data backups, and secure safeguards must be embedded from the start to ensure systems remain reliable under severe pressure.

‘We have seen what happens when that fails. Hurricane Beryl taught us well. Lessons we need not repeat. Technology such as AI is an enabler for our public offices. It is not a substitute for human accountability.’

Friday said that artificial intelligence cannot fix a fundamentally flawed process, nor can algorithms replace professional judgement, institutional ethics, and public oversight.

‘Not yet, anyway. We must continually invest in training our people so they are equipped to work effectively with emerging tools such as AI,’ he said, urging the delegates to challenge themselves, examining what has worked and what did not work.

‘Learn from one another. We are a common economic space. So, by helping one another, we’re helping ourselves,’ he added.

The weeklong conference is being held under the theme ‘Adapting Financial Management for AI: Harnessing Digital by Design’. It is being held in collaboration with the IMF and the Caribbean regional Technical Assistance Centre (CARTAC).

Antigua and Barbuda is on Monday marking Africa-CARICOM Day 2026 with Prime Minister Gaston Browne calling for a new era of practical cooperation between Africa and the Caribbean, urging both regions to transform their shared history and ancestry into stronger economic, diplomatic, cultural and developmental partnerships.

In his message to mark the occasion is being commemorated here by the Antigua and Barbuda Reparations Support Committee (ABRSC), as well as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), the African Union (AU), the African Diaspora, Prime Minister Browne said the observance must represent more than a celebration of historical ties.

‘The relationship between Africa and the Caribbean must be more than a historical connection. It must become a strategic partnership for the future,’ he said, noting that the observance represents a declaration of the shared identity, interests and responsibility of African and Caribbean peoples to future generations.

Prime Minister Browne reflecting on the common experiences of slavery, colonialism, exploitation and exclusion endured by African and Caribbean peoples, pointed to the resilience and creativity that emerged from that painful history, calling for solidarity to be converted into meaningful cooperation in trade, investment, technology, education, tourism, transportation, culture and people-to-people exchanges.

Browne identified improved connectivity as essential to building the relationship envisioned between the two regions, pointing to the partnership involving Air Peace and LIAT Air as an example of what can be achieved when both regions take deliberate steps to overcome the geographical distance separating their peoples.

‘Our people must be able to travel, conduct business, exchange ideas, invest and build relationships with greater ease,’ Browne said, highlighting also Antigua and Barbuda’s engagement with the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) as an important avenue for expanding access to capital, increasing trade and investment, supporting entrepreneurship and creating economic opportunities.

However, the Prime Minister stressed that the relationship cannot be viewed solely in economic terms, stating that ‘Africa is not simply a market for the Caribbean, and the Caribbean is not simply a market for Africa. We are family.’

Both Prime Minister Browne and the ABRSC placed reparatory justice at the centre of the Africa-CARICOM relationship with the head of government saying reparatory justice is not about reversing history, but about confronting its continuing consequences and addressing inequalities created by slavery and colonialism.

He reaffirmed Antigua and Barbuda’s commitment to CARICOM’s reparations agenda and pointed to the Third CARICOM Regional Conference on Reparations, scheduled for Bridgetown, Barbados, from September 17-19, 2026, as another opportunity to advance the movement.

Prime Minister Browne renewed his call for the establishment of a CARICOM-Africa Joint Commission, which would provide a permanent institutional mechanism for advancing the common interests of the two regions.

He also called for greater cooperation in mass media, information sharing, education and public diplomacy, arguing that Africans and Caribbean people must be given greater opportunities to learn about and understand each other.

The Prime Minister identified four areas for renewed action: reparatory justice, expanded trade and investment, stronger air, maritime and digital connectivity, and greater cultural and educational cooperation. He encouraged schools, universities, cultural institutions, media organisations and community groups to become active bridges between Africa and the Caribbean.

Browne supported the call by the Antigua and Barbuda Reparations Support Committee for governments, regional institutions, civil society organisations and citizens across Africa and the Caribbean to deepen cooperation and ensure that ancestral bonds are transformed into greater economic opportunity, cultural renewal, reparatory justice and collective advancement.

‘Let us build bridges across the Atlantic. Let us strengthen the bonds between our peoples. Let us turn our shared history into shared opportunity,’ Prime Minister Browne added.

A school term opened in Trinidad and Tobago on Monday with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar issuing a warning parents to do their ‘part now with your children so that in years to come when they become adults, you won’t have to be at the courthouse in your old age trying to secure bail to get them released from incarceration’.

In a message posted on her social media pages, Persad-Bissessar called on teachers and principals to ‘adopt a zero-tolerance policy to disrespectful and misbehaved students and parents.

‘Don’t stress out yourselves trying to help persons who don’t want to be helped, if students refuse to behave properly and parents are ignoring your concerns, send them straight home and let them and their parents battle it out in their house. ‘You are there to teach, mentor, and protect those students willing to learn, you are not there to be abused, intimidated, and harassed by any student or parent. If any threat or abuse is made towards you, contact the TTPS (Trinidad and Tobago Police Service) immediately and let law enforcement officers deal with these errant individuals,’ she wrote.

IN her direct message to parents, the prime minister said that they should ensure that their ‘children are properly cared for, prepared for school, and taught discipline, respect, and responsibility at home.

‘Know what they are learning, monitor their behaviour and progress, listen to their concerns, and work closely with their teachers,’ she said, adding ‘do not dump your parental responsibilities onto teachers, that is your job, you made your children , it is not the teachers’ or anyone else’s responsibility to mind them.

Persad-Bissessar said that she is aware of that most of the students returning to their classes on Monday will heed the call for them to be disciplined and concentrate of their schoolwork, noting however that ‘a minority of you will not heed this advice, go to school to bully others, not study, create chaos in classrooms, and hinder other students from learning and having a pleasant school experience.

‘This bad behaviour will result in failure and you will doom yourself to a difficult life ahead full of low-paying jobs, struggles, and misery. Many persons will give you glib reassurances that if you fail at school your life is not over but trust me they are not telling their own children the same thing. ‘

But Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar said that ‘these same persons while publicly giving you that advice are privately giving their own children and grandchildren the same warnings about a difficult future without an education as I am giving you today.

‘None of these glib people are going to lift a finger to help you when you complete schooling without an education and are struggling to earn a living.

‘Life is tough without an education, it will grind you down until you end up just surviving day to day and not actually living a satisfying wholesome life,’ she said, adding ‘there will be always be difficult days in life but a good education gives you many options to navigate difficulty and overcome challenges to have a wonderful life.

‘To our teachers and principals, your work demands patience, authority, and sound judgment. You carry an immense responsibility, and I thank you for maintaining standards while guiding and encouraging our children.’

Meanwhile, President of the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA), Crystal Ashe he is expecting a low turnout of students on the opening day given that the government assisted cheques for parents were only distributed last week.

‘It came much too late. That’s last week, Wednesday, when they actually started distributing these cheques. These are government cheques. They will have a five-day waiting period, sometimes even more. That is the fac,’ Ashe said, noting the problems associated with collecting the cheques from the authorities.

‘… you have no security or anything like hat, putting your life at risk,’ he said, noting that teachers collect the cheques even though it is not their responsibility.

‘But you know what? They do it. Because we see the need for the parents to actually receive this money. There are some persons who genuinely need it, and we have no problem with that,’ he said, noting however that ‘the process should have started earlier.

‘You didn’t know school was going to close. You didn’t set the date. So if you know school is closing on a particular date, you put the things in place so that it will happen before, so that everything will be in a timely manner.

‘This week, we expect a very low turnout,’ Ash said that repairs at some schools have not been completed.

Education Minister Dr. Michael Dowlatt said over 300 schools have been under repairs and that those that have not been completed would still accommodate students.

‘Over 300 schools, I think the exact number would be about 359 that we are looking at. We have focus on washrooms, sewer systems, electrical systems, water storage, ensuring that …classrooms are intact, that the schools have the right furniture,’ he added.

Ash disagrees, saying that some contractors and the principals will make alternative arrangements.

‘So I know for a fact, I’ve had that experience already, where they would work on a weekend, but you can’t tell me you’re coming and drilling and cutting and screwing and all those things. And then in addition to that, children are by nature very inquisitive. So you don’t want to have these things, you don’t want to have them distracted, because they should be focused when they go there, their focus is on their work’

President of the National Parent Teachers Association (NPTA) Walter Stewart is also concerned about the readiness of some schools.

‘This year, however, according to reports of the 359 schools scheduled for the 2026 repairs, only 100 have been completed to date. We are therefore faced today with several schools entering the new academic year unprepared to fully receive our students,’ he said.

Nearly two months after a Flamingo Air plane crashed in Andros, killing all 10 people on board, the Ministry of Health and Wellness said the forensic reports for the passengers have been received and are being reviewed by the chief forensic pathologist at Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH).

‘After the review process, the chief forensic pathologist will liaise with the coroner on next steps to facilitate the release and transfer of the deceased to the designated funeral homes for final arrangements,’ the ministry said in a statement.

Ten people were killed on July 10, Independence Day in The Bahamas, when the Cessna C402C aircraft crashed in a wooded area near the San Andros airport in North Andros.

The pilot Franklyn Cambridge, was one of the victims with the others included the five members of Da Pond Band, Giovanni McKenzie, Rashad Storr, Mateo Winder, Toniquea Gilot, and Tra’vis Johnson.

‘The Ministry of Health and Wellness once again extends condolences to the families of the deceased and thanks them for their patience during this most difficult of circumstances,’ it said, adding that the forensic reports will help to confirm the victims’ identities.

The Civil Aviation Authority Bahamas (CAAB) hd immediately suspended Flamingo Air’s operations following the accident as a precautionary safety measure.

In August, the chief investigator with the Aircraft Accident Investigation Authority (AAIA) of The Bahamas, Kendall I. Dorsett Jr., said that the the aircraft was on the visual flight rules plan from the Linden Pindling International Airport en route to the San Andres Airport when the tragedy occurred.

Dorsett said that the aircraft was destroyed ‘by fire, nine persons receiving fatal injuries’ and that ‘it was determined that the landing gear was observed to be in an extended position and the flaps were also observed to be in an extended position.

‘So based on those observations, it would appear that the aircraft would have been configured for landing at the time of the accident,’ he said, adding that an ‘aircraft of this size do not are not required by regulations to have a cockpit voice recorder or flight data recorder.’

The Cayman Motoring Federation (CMF) has received the 2026 José Abed Award at the FIA American Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The award, established in 2023, recognises an FIA sporting club for outstanding contributions to motorsport education, participation and regional development.

CMF was honoured for its progress in motorsport education, particularly through STEM Racing Cayman Islands, which introduces students to engineering, technology and project management.

Federation president Jane Scaletta described the recognition as ‘an important milestone,’ adding: ‘Education has always been central to what we are building.’

At the congress, Scaletta addressed FIA member clubs, sharing Cayman’s success with the Motorsport in a Box initiative.

She emphasised that ‘a country does not need a large permanent motorsport facility or a Formula One circuit for motorsport to flourish.’

Since launching its first auto slalom event in 2024, CMF has grown to four events in 2025 and established a six-event National Auto Slalom League for 2026.

Scaletta stressed that Cayman’s experience offers lessons for other small island nations, proving that limited land and resources need not prevent the development of motorsport.

The federation plans to continue expanding STEM Racing, the National Auto Slalom League, and esports, and to introduce karting.

‘This award belongs to our students, teachers, competitors and volunteers,’ Scaletta said. ‘The size of a country does not determine the size of its impact.’

The Barbados Tridents roared back to form at the Kensington Oval on Sunday night, snapping a four-game losing streak with a resounding eight-wicket victory over the Saint Lucia Kings in the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL).

The comprehensive win, which marks the Tridents’ third of the season and their second conquest of the Kings this year, was set up by a disciplined bowling unit before Quinton de Kock and Rivaldo Clarke orchestrated a composed chase to delight the home faithful.

After being put in to bat, the Kings looked intent on erasing the memory of their recent 98-run debacle, riding a flying PowerPlay performance from Kamil Pooran to race to 51 for 1 after six overs.

However, the momentum came crashing down when the wily Mujeeb Ur Rahman struck, dismissing the dangerous Pooran for 37, just six balls later.

That breakthrough triggered a stranglehold for the Tridents. Mujeeb and Jakeem Pollard turned the screws on the Kings’ middle order, drying up the boundaries and stifling the run rate.

Roston Chase attempted to reignite the innings following Pooran’s departure with a defiant 34, but the Barbados bowlers maintained their vice-like grip.

Mujeeb ended as the pick of the attack with outstanding figures of 3 for 22 from his four overs, while Daniel Sams demonstrated his class with a miserly spell of 2 for 20.

The Kings’ death-overs woes continued as they mustered just 29 runs while losing three wickets in the final five overs, limping to a modest total of 138 for 6 at the halfway mark.

In reply, the Tridents’ chase got off to a flying start. Openers Brandon King and Zachary Carter put on a brisk 41-run stand to keep the required rate well within reach.

Roston Chase provided the breakthrough for Saint Lucia by removing King for 22, and soon after, home town boy Joshua Bishop dismissed Carter, who had played a handy cameo of 32.

That brought Rivaldo Clarke to the crease alongside the experienced Quinton de Kock, and the duo initially showed caution as the Kings’ bowlers, spearheaded by Bishop and Charith Asalanka, attempted to replicate the Tridents’ earlier defensive tactics.

Despite a few anxious moments, including a couple of chances that fell short of the fielders, de Kock (47*) and Clarke (36*) held their nerve.

The pair paced the innings to perfection, slowly turning the screws back on the visitors. Their unbroken 76-run partnership ensured the Tridents cruised to victory at 139-2 with 13 balls to spare.

The Tridents will look to build on this momentum when they continue their homestand against the Patriots on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Kings must quickly regroup for their final group-stage fixture against the Warriors on Wednesday.

The Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) has announced that the trophy presented to each year’s player inducted into its Hall of Fame will be officially named the Sir Garry Sobers Award, in tribute to the man universally recognised as the greatest all-rounder West Indies cricket has ever produced.

The naming follows the recent launch of the CPL Hall of Fame, which will honour two inductees annually, one player and one off-field contributor.

Dwayne Bravo and Ian Bishop were confirmed as the inaugural class, and the CPL has now secured the Sobers family’s blessing to attach Sir Garry’s name to the award, marking one of the most significant moments in the league’s history.

As one of the finest cricketers the game has ever seen, and a defining figure of West Indies cricket, Sir Garry’s name lends the award a weight and a history befitting the Hall of Fame it represents.

The Sir Garry Sobers Award will be presented for the first time at the CPL Hall of Fame Gala Dinner on Tuesday 15 September 2026 at the Hilton Barbados.

The evening is being held in support of the Sir Clive Lloyd Healthcare Foundation’s prostate cancer awareness, testing and early detection work across the Caribbean.

With the trophy now carrying Sir Garry’s name, the gala brings together two of West Indies cricket’s most respected figures for a single showpiece night in support of the region.

Pete Russell, CEO of CPL, said. ‘Sir Garry Sobers was, without question, the greatest all-rounder the game has ever seen, and having his name on this award means a great deal to everyone at CPL. We are enormously grateful to the Sobers family for trusting us with his name and his legacy. It gives this trophy, and this Hall of Fame, a weight our players will carry with real pride. To present it for the first time at a gala dinner in support of Sir Clive Lloyd’s Healthcare Foundation makes 15 September an even more prestigious night for West Indies cricket.’

The main opposition New National Party (NNP) Monday said it would boycott Tuesday’s joint sitting of Parliament where the Hydrocarbons Technical Working Group will present its report to legislators.

A statement issued by the Office of the Prime Minister urged ‘members of the public…to attend and hear firsthand the findings being presented to Parliament”.

But speaking at a news conference here, NNP and Opposition Leader Emmalin Pierre, told reporters that the NNP wanted to ‘make it abundantly clear that its members who are representing us in the Houses of Parliament … have serious concerns about the special joint sitting of Parliament, which is scheduled for tomorrow, September 8, 2026’.

She said the opposition legislators would not attend the ‘sitting under the current arrangements.

‘We understand also that several individuals with great knowledge and experience in parliamentary procedures have also advised the government and the Parliament accordingly. ‘We have absolutely no problem with the government updating Parliament on oil and gas exploration, but this matter must not be handled through a process that misuses Parliament and departs from proper parliamentary procedures and practises,’ Pierre told reporters.

The NNP said it has no objection to the government updating Parliament on oil and gas exploration, but strongly objected to inviting the Technical Working Group to present directly to Parliament instead of first formally laying its report before the House.

‘A technical briefing by the group can be accommodated at another appropriate venue,’ Pierre said, adding ”we will not be used to give legitimacy to a process that is illegal’.

Former foreign affairs minister Peter David, in a letter to the Speaker, Leo Cato expressed his ‘grave concern over the convocation of a joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament’ saying ‘it is my considered opinion and that of respected authorities on parliamentary practice that this is highly irregular and seriously departs from settled, established parliamentary practice.

‘This Technical Working Group is neither a Joint Select Committee of the Houses nor an appointed committee by the Houses. It is therefore irregular to invite such a committee to address the House of Representatives.’

David, who heads the Democratic People’s Movement (DPM), said the established procedure requires that reports from a body extant and outside of the House of Representatives are first tabled by a member of the House with Ministerial responsibilities accordingly.

‘ When a report is so tabled, each member of the House has an early opportunity to examine the report,’ he said, adding ‘it is therefore highly improper to convene a sitting of the House of Representatives to receive a report from a Committee not of the House and a stranger to the House.

‘I take this early opportunity to register my objections to the manner in which you have summoned the House of Representatives to sit. This correspondence shall be circulated to members of the House,’David wrote, adding ‘in the interests of preserving parliamentary practice and procedures. I’m available to meet with you at short notice anytime before the sitting of the House’.

Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell had on September 26, 2023, named the Hydrocarbons Technical Working Group under the chairmanship of former finance minister Nazim Burke.

Among the objectives of the group is to fully assess Grenada’s hydrocarbon potential and, if found to be commercially viable, devise a strategy and action plan to explore, develop and monetize such findings for the benefit of the country.

The technical group will also be required to develop a communication strategy to engage stakeholders, including communities, civil society organizations, and the private sector as well as outline recommendations for potential partners and investors, including a plan to attract and retain them.

‘A stakeholder engagement plan that outlines the approach, mechanisms and processes for engaging with relevant stakeholders throughout the exploration and development process,’ is also included among the terms of reference of the technical working group.

Last month, the Grenada government reiterated its decision to terminate its production sharing agreement (PSA) with the Russian-backed Global Petroleum Group (GPG) with Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell saying then that Burke had indicated that efforts to get GPG to sit down and discuss the issues surrounding the project had failed due to the fact that the oil and gas company had said it would only speak to the relevant government minister.

He said that under the agreement the company was supposed to have drilled two wells by 2017 and that the government had attempted to discuss, to settle, and to agree to move forward first, ‘but we are not going to wait another 18 years.

In 2008, the government provided GPG with a licence over 11 offshore blocks to explore for oil and gas and five years later, the company was granted a development licence and signed a production sharing agreement.

Mitchell said that the development licence and production sharing agreement provided the legal permission and the guidelines to actually bring that oil and gas out of Grenadian waters and to share the proceeds with the country.

‘Since 2023, that technical working group has engaged directly with GPG. We requested the updated development plans and the technical documentation necessary to assess whether this project could ever deliver for our country.

‘We extended every reasonable opportunity. Grenada notified GPG both formally of every breach of the agreement …we gave them the opportunity to respond in writing and in person. GPG has failed to remedy those breaches,’ Prime Minister Mitchell said.

The ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP) maintained its significant majority in the 21-member parliament when newcomer Ashma McDougall easily won the Roseau North constituency by election here on Monday night.

Preliminary results showed that McDougall, a business executive had easily trumped Daniel ‘Danny’ Luggay of the main opposition United Workers Party (UWP), who had been a parliamentary representative for the constituency on two previous occasions. She polled 1,506 votes as compared with 983 for Lugay

A third candidate Sherman Boston, who contested the seat as an independent, failed to make any meaningful impact polling just 50 votes.

The Dominica Electoral Office said that 7,489 persons had been registered to vote with 2,595 voters exercising their rights to cast ballots.

In a statement posted on the Facebook page of the ruling party, McDougall thanked voters for opening their homes, hearts ‘and for sharing your vision.

‘Walking through the communities and hearing your hopes and aspirations has been a deeply humbling experience,’ she said.

The by election arose after former Labour, Public Service Reform, Social Partnership, Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Minister, Miriam Blanchard, resigned on June 12 due to ill-health.

Last August, Blanchard, who had been a member of the cabinet since 2016, had sought medical treatment overseas for an undisclosed illness.

In the last general election held on December 6, 2022, the DLP won 19 out of 21 constituency seats, with independent candidates holding the remaining after both the UWP and the other opposition party, the Dominica Freedom Party (DFP) boycotted the polls over calls for electoral reform.