The Tobago House of Assembly is willing to support the Tobago Island Government Bill, which seeks to replace the THA Act and provide greater autonomy to the island.
However, the THA's Deputy Chief Secretary says amendments must be made.
Dr Faith B.Yisrael says the bills are decent but there are parts which should be tweaked.
She believes if this is done, the THA will be happy to go forward.
“One where the president will pick the Chair, there will be two representatives from the Tobago House of Assembly, and two representatives from Government of Trinidad and Tobago,” she noted.
“Right now, the way the Bill is written, that entity is going to be the Minister of Finance and is going to have three members from Government and two members from the Tobago House of Assembly,” she said.
“That automatically shows that it is not an impartial committee,” she asserts.
Dr B.Yisrael is advocating for the part of the Bill which guides resource sharing to be impartial.
She says there is still a perception of inequality between the two islands.
“We just want a line that says that the island of Tobago and the island of Trinidad are equal—that is all. Equity of status. That Trinidad and Tobago are equal,” stated the THA Deputy Chief. “Because honestly, we sometimes feel very much like we are not equals. That is one thing that is really important.”
“Another one,” she says, “is the ability to make laws for all the areas that are already under the jurisdiction of the Tobago House of Assembly.”
The Tobago Island Government Bill seeks to maintain the unitary state of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, even as it proposes the repeal of the Tobago House of Assembly Act.
