Church objects to racing pool next door

THE PASTOR of the St John’s (London) Baptist Church on Pembroke Street, Port-of-Spain, has expressed strong opposition to the setting up of a racing pool next to the church, saying it is a safety and security threat to members of the church. In an April 11 letter to Trade Minister Ken Valley, Energy Minister Eric Williams, Port-of-Spain Mayor Murchison Brown and the Trinidad and Tobago Betting Levy Board, church officials called for an immediate halt to plans to establish the racing pool in a building that formerly housed the Port-of-Spain Public Library.

Pastor Anslem Warrick told Sunday Newsday the church is “totally in opposition to gambling in general and we are in opposition to this particular one being put up next to the church.” He said the establishment would set a bad example for the youths who attend the church. He said of the more than 200 members in his congregation, 40 percent are young adults. Warrick said the church already had problems with vagrants and others who use the walls of the church to urinate. He expressed concern that the racing pool will make this problem worse.

“We have to clean the place every time we come on mornings. We have no authority to remove the vagrants but we have been trying our best,” he said. According to the pastor with increased violence and criminal activity in the country, a racing pool where “all types” of men gather can threaten the safety and security of the church. To date, the church has only received a response from the Betting Levy Board which said it was not responsible for granting licences to racing pools.

Sunday Newsday’s attempts to reach the racing pool owner were futile. The St John’s (London) Baptist Church in Trinidad was established by English Baptist missionaries in 1845. The church has branches in Arouca and Chaguanas and 18 in south Trinidad. The church has a history of community service with the establishment of a home for the aged in Port-of-Spain, three primary schools and the Cowen Hamilton Secondary School in Gasparillo.