The Member of Parliament for Mayaro, Wilfred Nicholas Morris, has been sworn in as a Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister.
The appointment adds to the ministerial team within the OPM as the government continues what it describes as a strengthened delivery approach.
An international relations and energy specialist, Minister Morris previously served as Parliamentary Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs.
He expressed gratitude following the swearing-in ceremony on Friday morning.
‘I’d like to thank the honourable Prime Minister for the opportunity to continue serving our country, serving our government. And I’d like to thank my constituents, the people of Mayaro, who have given me the opportunity to serve them and come to our Parliament. I take this opportunity to really thank the Prime Minister because the government continues to perform for the people of this country. As we seek to reform our economy, we seek to restore safety and security. The Prime Minister has turned the Office of the Prime Minister from a mere office to a delivery ministry as well.”
He also dismissed speculation circulating online regarding changes within the OPM.
“Minister Padarath remains the senior Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister. He remains the Leader of Government Business, and Minister Allahar is also at the Office of the Prime Minister, and he’s also the Leader of Government Business in the Senate. Again, this is an appointment to really work to ensure we can deliver within the Office of the Prime Minister, given the development into a delivery ministry as well.”
Minister Morris shared the reason behind appointing an additional Minister to the Office of the Prime Minister.
“There are a number of services within the Office of the Prime Minister, and the hands-on approach to governance undertaken by the Prime Minister necessitates it, or there’s a need for a number of us to work with the Prime Minister to ensure that delivery, and I said, the reformation of our country continues.”
Addressing questions about his priorities, the newly appointed Minister said his focus remains service.
“My greatest priority is to serve the Prime Minister in the execution of her work as head of the government and to serve and work with whatever is needed and, more so, serve my constituents again. When you look at the government, there’s an all-hands-on-deck approach to governance, and we will work – I will work – within the Office of the Prime Minister to continue supporting that people-centred approach as we, again, I use the word ‘reform’ because nine months into office, and you’ve seen a number of significant enrichment and empowerment of our country so far.”
As to whether balancing ministerial duties with constituency work would be a challenge, he was confident it would not.
“There will be no difficulty. In the last nine months as the Member of Parliament for Mayaro, I have managed to serve as a Parliamentary Secretary in two Ministries and in my constituency. And for those who have followed our work, we have been on the ground in the constituency non-stop, matter of fact. In our constituency, we introduced Service Sundays, so even weekends I am there, we have office days. We have been going to every community within the constituency. This actually is an inspiration to work harder to serve the people who put us here, especially my constituents, because without them I could not stand in this room.”
Minister Morris now joins Minister Barry Padarath and Minister Darrell Allahar in the Office of the Prime Minister, as Government moves to strengthen what it describes as a more delivery-driven approach to governance.