THE country's seventh President Christine Kangaloo said she intends, during her presidency, to focus on making that office more accessible to the public by demystifying and modernising it and the role in plays.

She said one of her main goals will be reaching out to youth.

In her inaugural speech at the Queen’s Park Savannah, Port of Spain, on Monday, Kangaloo said there were several objectives she wants to focusing on during her term.

“Looking ahead, some of the things I hope to see are a demystification of the role of the President; advocacy for the adoption in our communities of year-round, youth delinquency prevention programmes like the panyard model;

"Protocols attending the office that are refined and modernised to better reflect our culture and our history; a president who by virtue of these reformed protocols, becomes more and more accessible to, and less and less isolated from the public; an office that becomes a cradle of intellectual, cultural and artistic exploration among the youth; an office that is modernised inside and out; and an office that records and preserves our presidential history and customs and conventions of the office,” Kangaloo said.

She added one way she wants the office to be more accessible is by opening up the grounds for use by the public, especially youth.

[caption id="attachment_1006706" align="alignnone" width="1024"] SONG FOR CHRISTINE: The Southernaires Choir sing a joyful song during the inauguration for President Kangaloo. PHOTO BY AYANNA KINSALE -[/caption]

“I would like to see President’s House and its grounds serve the public by becoming a cradle for intellectual, cultural and artistic exploration among our youth, and, in so doing, helping to improve observation, perception and communication skills among young people.

"I would like to see the bandstand put to regular use as a platform for new and emerging young artistes; the main ballroom and the house used to host displays, such as art exhibitions by primary and secondary school students; and the public areas opened up to facilitate endeavours such as book club meetings, and programmes to introduce young people to music.”

She said a Standard 4 class in the San Fernando Girls Government Primary School, embarked on a project to heighten awareness about the President's role, and she would be happy to meet with these students to discuss how it can be expanded country-wide.

I WILL BE RELENTLESS

Kangaloo said she would be a relentless advocate for the achievement of the goals she has set, in her own way.

“I am not of the view that relentlessness means I must be combative or belligerent. My way is to be your diplomat-in-chief, making the case for a better TT firmly, but without acrimony or bitterness.

"My words do not need to be shouted in the public square. There is already too much shouting in our country today. I believe we all need to be calmer and more reflective, and I propose to lead in that regard, by examp