Former St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves has revealed that he has been advised he is entitled to Trinidad and Tobago citizenship by descent, saying his mother was born in the country more than a century ago.
Speaking during an interview on the Corie Sheppard Podcast while visiting Trinidad and Tobago, Gonsalves said his mother, Theresa Balbina Francis, was born in Trinidad and Tobago on March 31, 1919.
The veteran Caribbean politician said that connection means he considers himself Trinidadian by descent.
Gonsalves, who now serves as Leader of the Opposition in St Vincent and the Grenadines, explained that he has not applied for a Trinidad and Tobago passport because of the potential implications for his position as a parliamentarian in his home country.
He said acquiring the passport could raise questions surrounding allegiance to a foreign state and potentially affect his eligibility to contest elections in St Vincent and the Grenadines.
Gonsalves also revealed another close connection to Trinidad and Tobago, saying his wife is Trinidadian by birth.
During the wide-ranging conversation, the former prime minister spoke warmly about his decades of interaction with Trinidad and Tobago and its political leaders.
He recalled working with several administrations and said he developed relationships with politicians from both the People’s National Movement and United National Congress.
Gonsalves spoke particularly warmly about his friendship with late former Prime Minister Patrick Manning, whom he knew from their university days. The two attended the University of the West Indies, Mona, and Gonsalves recalled that they even played in the university steelband.
He also discussed his working relationship with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, including her support for placing reparatory justice on CARICOM’s agenda during her earlier period as prime minister.
Despite political disagreements over the years, Gonsalves said he has maintained friendships on both sides of Trinidad and Tobago’s political divide.
The 80-year-old served as Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines for almost 25 years before his Unity Labour Party lost government in 2025.
His latest visit to Trinidad and Tobago came as a guest of the PNM during activities surrounding the party’s 70th anniversary and Trinidad and Tobago’s 64th anniversary of Independence.
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