Akash Sama­roo

Lead Ed­i­tor-Pol­i­tics

akash.sama­roo@cnc3.co.tt

Prime Min­is­ter Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar is rub­bish­ing so­cial me­dia al­le­ga­tions that the out­fit she wore to speak at the Unit­ed Na­tions Gen­er­al As­sem­bly cost tax­pay­ers around $30,000. Per­sad-Bisses­sar said her cloth­ing was pur­chased with the mon­ey she earned and even men­tioned that it was on sale.

A vi­ral so­cial me­dia post claimed the Prime Min­is­ter’s Knit Mi­di Pen­cil Skirt cost around $10,300, and her Crys­tal Bow Cardi­gan had a price tag of $17,000. It al­so stat­ed that the cloth­ing brand was Car­oli­na Her­rera.

Speak­ing with Guardian Me­dia out­side the UN Head­quar­ters in New York yes­ter­day, the Prime Min­is­ter said, “It’s not $30,000, so let’s start there, but it was beau­ti­ful.”

The Prime Min­is­ter said she works hard for her mon­ey and is en­ti­tled to buy clothes that she likes. “No gov­ern­ment mon­ey was used. I work hard for my mon­ey. I can spend my mon­ey as I see fit. So those query­ing the cost—there were many oth­ers who were very con­grat­u­la­to­ry and very much in sup­port.”

The PM added, “When the Prime Min­is­ter goes abroad, they want their Prime Min­is­ter to look good. So, what I tell you: see good, be good, do good, and look good. Very im­por­tant.”

In Au­gust 2023, for­mer Prime Min­is­ter Dr Kei­th Row­ley faced sim­i­lar crit­i­cism when so­cial me­dia com­men­ta­tors said he wore a Richard Mille watch to an Eman­ci­pa­tion Day func­tion that cost around US$360,000. Dr Row­ley said the watch, a Tsar Bom­ba, costs around US$300.