Senior Reporter
otto.carrington@guardian.co.tt
The story of Trinidad and Tobago’s presidency is not only the story of the seven individuals who have occupied the nation’s highest office but also of the generations of staff whose quiet dedication has sustained it for five decades.
That was the message from President Christine Kangaloo yesterday as she launched a year-long commemoration marking the 150th anniversary of President’s House and the 50th anniversary of Trinidad and Tobago becoming a Republic.
Speaking at an interfaith thanksgiving service at President’s House, Kangaloo paid tribute to past and present employees of the Office of the President for long-service awards and for service to the office.
Honorees included former and current aides-de-camp, aides to presidential spouses, comptrollers of household, secretaries to the president and other members of staff who served the institution with distinction.
Awards were presented to individuals whose service ranged from ten years to more than 30 years, recognising their contribution to the smooth functioning of the country’s highest office.
“When people look at this office from the outside, they often see the president. They see the ceremony, the motorcades, the protocol, the speeches, the uniforms, the flags, the formal rooms and the public duties,” she said.
“But those who have lived and served inside this office know a deeper truth that the Office of the President has never been sustained by the president alone.”
Kangaloo said the presidency had been upheld by generations of workers who opened gates, maintained the grounds, arranged ceremonies, protected the property, supported presidential families and ensured the dignity of the office remained intact.
“Across the last 50 years, the staff of this office, civilian and military, have served seven presidents. Presidents have changed, families have changed, times have changed, the country has changed. But through all of that change, the staff of the Office of the President have remained faithful to a standard of service which deserves the gratitude of the whole republic.”
She described the event as “not merely a staff recognition ceremony” but “an act of national gratitude.”
The President reflected on stories shared by relatives of former heads of state, including accounts from the family of Trinidad and Tobago’s first president, Sir Ellis Clarke, and from the family of former president George Maxwell Richards. The recollections highlighted the close bonds formed between presidential families and staff over the years.
Kangaloo said those stories demonstrated that employees served not just an institution, but the people who carried the responsibilities of the national office.
As part of the anniversary celebrations, Kangaloo also unveiled an exhibition chronicling the history of the President’s House and the Office of the President.
She said the project supports efforts to create a comprehensive archive of the nation’s presidential history, warning that countries that fail to preserve their records risk losing not only facts and photographs but also the stories of those whose contributions often go unnoticed.
“A nation that fails to record its history does not merely lose dates and photographs. It loses texture. It loses memory. It loses the names of people who gave the best of themselves in places where the public seldom looked.”
Calling on citizens to embrace unity and mutual respect, Kangaloo said Trinidad and Tobago’s diversity remained one of the republic’s greatest strengths.
“In a world too often tempted by division, Trinidad and Tobago must choose unity. In a time too often marked by noise, we must choose dignity. Where indifference offers an easy path, we must choose duty,” she said.
