(INEWS)President Irfaan Ali bestowed Guyana’s second highest award, the Order of Roraima, to the Prime Minister of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr Ralph Gonsalves.
At a special dinner this evening at State House, the Guyanese Head of State said he was honoured to present the prestigious award to the long-standing regional politician.
“The conferral of Guyana’s Order of Roraima is in deserved recognition of the tireless commitment and unflinching contributions which Dr Gonsalves has made to the cause of regionalism and regional integration.”
The President also praised Prime Minister Gonsalves’s solidarity with Guyana in protecting the country’s democracy and territorial integrity.
He called Dr Gonsalves a Caribbean man who has been committed to “democracy, peace, security and development of the Caribbean.”
The Head of State also lauded the other regional and national individuals who stood up for “democracy, the rule of law, and freedom” in Guyana. He said they would be recognised for their contributions later in the year.
Vice President, Dr Bharrat Jahdeo; Ministers of the Government; former President Donald Ramotar; Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Dr Carla Barnett, Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force, Brigadier Godfrey Bess; Police Commissioner Clifton Hicken and other Government Officials were also at the event.
Prime Minister Gonsalves is on a four-day Official Visit to Guyana. Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Amor Mottley, is also a recipient of the Order of Roraima.