Questioning what Guyana gets in return for granting national carrier status to Caribbean Airlines (CAL), APNU MP Carl Greenidge complained about the way Guyanese are treated at Trinidad’s Piarco Airport. Greenidge related in his question that Guyanese who had arrived in Trinidad on a January 15th, 2014 CAL flight on their way to Guyana were treated poorly.

“After all the other passengers had disembarked, Georgetown bound passengers were told to leave the plane and to wait at the top of the stairs in the terminal. Once in the terminal they were immediately shepherded into the waiting area room, movement in which was very restricted for over an hour”, Greenidge related.

There have been numerous complaints over the years at the manner in which Guyanese transiting Piarco are treated.

In light of the flagship agreement from 2013, Greenidge asked whether the negotiations “involved any requirement by the Government of Guyana and a matching commitment from the CAL management to eliminate discriminatory treatment imposed on Guyana bound and departing passengers on this route”.

The in-transit woes of Guyanese in Trinidad and the cost of CAL’s flights between Timehri and Piarco have led to threats by officials here that the flagship agreement with the carrier could be terminated.