Shamfa Cudjoe-Lewis, political leader of the People’s National Movement (PNM) Tobago Council, has launched a sharp public rebuke of Tobago House of Assembly (THA) Chief Secretary Farley Augustine, framing his continued lack of public comment on Trinidad and Tobago’s controversial abstention from a recent United Nations vote on an International Criminal Court (ICC) related resolution as a “deafening silence” that betrays a defining national legacy.
In a widely shared social media statement released last week, Cudjoe-Lewis emphasized that the very establishment of the ICC was spearheaded by Arthur N.R. Robinson, a revered Tobagonian statesman who previously served as both the nation’s prime minister and president, cementing Tobago’s longstanding reputation as a champion of global justice on the international stage.
Cudjoe-Lewis argued that Augustine’s refusal to speak out while Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s administration steps away from Robinson’s decades-long, principled legacy to align with Washington’s priorities represents a complete failure of leadership. She accused the THA head of prioritizing partisan loyalty to his United National Congress (UNC) coalition allies over the core values and collective pride of Tobago’s residents.
“Arthur N.R. Robinson did not just create an international institution—he gave every Tobagonian and every citizen of this twin-island nation a respected moral voice at the global negotiating table,” Cudjoe-Lewis stated. “It is long past time for the Chief Secretary to find his public voice, stand up for Tobago’s dignity, and explicitly condemn this disgraceful, unprincipled surrender at the UN.”
The PNM Tobago leader went further to criticize what she described as a dangerous pattern of deference to the United States, including overt idolization of U.S. President Donald Trump, that comes at the direct cost of Robinson’s historic legacy and the best interests of Tobago’s people. She pushed back against Augustine’s apparent strategy of avoiding public contention by staying silent and waiting for public attention to shift to a new unrelated issue, noting that choosing to feign ignorance of the central government’s alignment with Washington’s foreign policy agenda places short-term political expediency above Tobago’s hard-won moral authority and historic identity.
Cudjoe-Lewis closed her remarks by noting that Tobago’s electorate is closely monitoring the situation, calling on Augustine to step forward from his self-imposed silence and demonstrate the principled leadership Tobago deserves, rather than continuing to stand behind what she described as a reckless, unaccountable UNC-led national administration.
Shamfa slams Farley’s silence
