President Christine Kangaloo, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Opposition Leader Penelope Beckles all used their Corpus Christi messages to urge citizens to strengthen national unity, serve others and reflect on the challenges facing Trinidad and Tobago.
President Kangaloo said Corpus Christi calls people to move beyond worship and allow their faith to shape how they treat others and contribute to society.
She said the observance requires more than remembrance, urging citizens to let “reverence become service” and make “the sacred visible in mercy, restraint and self-giving.”
The President said the lessons of faith remain relevant at a time when the country faces social and political divisions.
“We do not serve Trinidad and Tobago when we choose suspicion over fairness, noise over truth, or contempt over disagreement,” she said.
Kangaloo added that citizens should embrace “the discipline of unity: not sameness, but shared purpose; not silence, but speech worthy of a free people; not private devotion alone, but public virtue.”
She said Corpus Christi should move people “from concern to duty, from distance to neighbourliness, and from division to the patient work of national renewal.”
Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar also focused on service, compassion and national development.
She said Christians observing Corpus Christi remind the country that “faith is not merely something we profess, but something we live out through service to others, love of neighbour, and commitment to the common good.”
The Prime Minister drew on the local tradition of planting on Corpus Christi, saying it reflects the need to cultivate positive values that will strengthen the nation.
“Just as a seed must be planted and nurtured before it bears fruit, so too must faith, compassion, integrity and love be cultivated in our hearts before they can strengthen our families, communities and nation,” she said.
Persad-Bissessar also thanked the Roman Catholic community and Christians across Trinidad and Tobago for their contributions through education, charity, community service and leadership.
She urged citizens to “give thanks for God’s many blessings, pray for those facing hardship, and recommit ourselves to sowing the seeds of faith, kindness and unity that will strengthen our nation for generations.”
Beckles: Crime demands national focus
Opposition Leader Penelope Beckles used her message to call for greater unity in tackling crime and violence.
“We must also confront the reality of violent crime with honesty and urgency,” she said.
Referring to recent killings in south Trinidad, Beckles said: “Within a span of 12 hours, six people were murdered in south Trinidad. Three separate incidents—a stabbing, a double murder and a triple killing—left families shattered and police overwhelmed.”
“This is not normal, and it must not be treated as such. It demands national focus, not political distraction.”
She said crime could not be solved through political division, adding: “Crime will not be solved by pride or politics. It will only be solved by unity, coordination and honest leadership.”
Beckles called on the Government, Opposition, security services, labour movement and civil society to work together to address the country’s challenges.
