Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves - file photo
According to a report in the Barbados TODAY newspaper on Thursday, the authorities in that Eastern Caribbean State have launched an official probe into an embarrassing episode, which occurred at Grantley Adams International Airport (GAIA) earlier this month, involving Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves of St. Vincent & the Grenadines.
Gonsalves, the region’s longest serving prime minister, who has been in office since 2001, was headed back home at the time. He arrived on April 14 on LIAT flight 512 from Guyana and was due to connect on the regional airline’s later 737 service from Barbados to St Vincent when he was reportedly not recognized by the security officers on duty at Gate 9.
The popular regional leader was ordered by a female G4S officer to return for further screening after his bag went off during his initial security check.
Despite the female security officer’s insistence, the prime minister refused to do as she told him.
It was then that she called for back-up security support in her quest to ensure that the “unrecognized” passenger underwent more rigorous security checks.
After the matter was cleared up senior airport officials issued an unequivocal apology to Dr. Gonsalves, not only on account of the fact that he was not recognized, but also for the lapse in his official protocol arrangements.
Normally, protocol officers accompany prime ministers and other dignitaries, but none was present for Gonsalves’ arrival. They were late in attending to him after his flight did not arrive on time.
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