The kind of reception you get fluctuates from day to day. If it is not a long wait in the immigration line, it is harassment from Customs officers.

Returning citizens are often sleepy, hungry and tired and are in a hurry to get out of the airport.

Some may have pick-ups waiting for hours.

All over the world the priority is to get people out of the airport environment as quickly as possible.

Not in Trinidad. The aim here is to punish for having left the country.

The people who run the Immigration and Customs Departments forget that along with returning residents are tourists and investors.

The Government’s goal to attract tourists and investors sounds hollow.

Some years ago a sensible government recognised that people who travel abroad are bound to buy gifts and wisely allocated a personal allowance which is inscribed on the Customs form.

It also instituted a green line to facilitate speedy exit.

Apparently these have been thrown in the dustbin and the present administrators of the airport have gone back to the old bureaucratic system with the addition of total scanning.

Since people coming from the US are given a thorough checkout before embarking, I suspect the aim here is to raise money to replace what is wasted elsewhere.

The airport is a sensitive area.

Visitors get their first impression of the country there.

Residents are accustomed to the discourtesy and sometimes crass behaviour of airport personnel, and do not complain.

Workers at the airport need to meet certain aptitude standards and should be trained accordingly.

But one is not sure what the official objective is. As for the taxi drivers, that is a whole sorry story.

R RAMSARAN St Augustine

It’s emblazoned in my memory that Wendell Mottley won silver in the 400 metres, Edwin Roberts (perhaps the athlete with the biggest heart ever to represent TT ) won bronze in the 200 metres, and the team of Edwin Skinner, Kent Bernard, Roberts and Mottley won bronze in the 4×400-metres relay (many still refer to it as the “mile relay” even though it’s about 9.3 metres less than a mile).

Fast forward to 2017, and we have the quartet of Jarrin Solomon, Jereem Richards, Machel Cedenio and Lalonde Gordon winning gold at the World Championships in London.

In 2015, Cedenio with “an incredible sprint kick down the straight” saw us take gold in the 4×400 at the Toronto Pan Am Games. His teammates were Renny Quow, Solomon and Emanuel Mayers.

But I suspect that not many would remember that TT broke (and still holds) the world record for the actual one-mile relay (4×440 yards) at the 1966 Commonwealth Games in Kingston, Jamaica.

The TT team comprised Lennox Yearwood, Bernard, Roberts and Mottley (running in that order). In the individual quarter- mile run, Mottley had already won gold in a Games record of 45.2 (times were measured to 1 decimal place in those days) and Bernard had taken home silver, so we were favourites to win the relay.

After two legs, and cheered on by the partisan home crowd, the Jamaicans were leading TT . But Roberts ran a magnificent third leg and handed over to Mottley with a significant lead. With that beautiful, effortless, gliding stride, Mottley romped home an easy winner in 3:02.8, smashing the then world record by nearly two seconds. Jamaica faded to fourth.

You can watch the race here: https:// www.youtube.com/ watch?v=dTYCGsTI56g.

Or you can just search for “1966 4×440 relay” on YouTube. The commentary begins, “The last track event of these eighth Commonwealth Games …

In lane 7, Trinidad, the favourites …” Some time in the 1970s, distances in all international athletics were changed from yards to metres so this world record would stand forever or until there’s a change back to yards (if a movement in the US has its way).

It would also be interesting to compare how much money we spent on the 1964/66 teams and the 2015/17 teams. Even after adjusting for inflation, it should be a lesson to those who believe that throwing money after athletes/problems is the only way to make them better/solve them.

NOEL KALICHARAN via email

At the risk of appearing to be a hair-splitting pedant, I add to this distressing list the disappointment we so often have in the command of English displayed by the constabulary.

The Newsday of August 14 quotes Inspector Michael Seales of the Police Social and Welfare Association as noting, “Our member, in her dire situation which has caused her irreputable damage, has approached the association . . .” There is no such word as “irreputable.” Perhaps Seales is creating such a word in response to the claim of Acting Police Commissioner Stephen Williams that the member of the association brought the Police Service into “disrepute.” Competence, corruption, detection and English are all serious subjects that the Police Service should address.

An inability to speak clearly could be an indicator of an inability to think clearly.

A BLADE via email

Up to last evening, the residents were still without an electricity supply and employees of T&TEC were busy trying to restore it.

Residents said that shortly after midday, they observed a “tornado” which ripped off the rooftops of several houses. Debris were swirling all around for only a few minutes.

When it ended, galvanised roofing sheets were hanging off electrical lines and the supply went in the Aripero, Rousillac area.

Mother of a three-month-old baby girl Alana Mayers, 31, recalled that she heard a whistling sound and then observed her roof “peeling off.” “The sun was very hot and I was by my cousin’s house located in the same yard. I saw the roof peeling off due to the strong breeze. After it happened the rain drizzled a little bit. The entire roof came off,” Mayers said. She lives on Southern Main Road, Aripero Village, Rousillac.

Following the freak storm, chairman of the Siparia Regional Corporation Dr Glenn Ramadharsingh, together with other officials, met with affected residents to bring relief.

“They promised to bring mattresses and see what they can do.

They said they had to make some calls. T&TEC people were on the scene just after it happened,” Mayers said. Another resident, Elvis Harricharan, recalled that the strong winds ripped off part of his roof at his home resulting in an estimated $25,000 in damage. “Leaves and branches were in the air. I saw my roof blown off from where I was at the back of the house. All of the galvanise that blew off landed on the electrical lines which began to spark and then electricity went,” Harricharan said. Harricharan, a hair stylist, said the ordeal happened quickly .

“In a minute or two it did all this destruction in the bedroom and toilet area. To experience something like this was really unbelievable,” Harricharan said. “Right now, we are securing the area with tarpaulins that the corporation gave us.” He added, “We are also doing some work to repair the damage on the rooftop.” Ramadharsingh promised that the corporation would obtain items on credit for the affected residents. The chairman added that SRC distributed mattresses and tarpaulin to the affected residents to “ensure they can rest tonight in a safe and dry home.” There were no reports of any injury, up to last evening.

After a brief ceremony at the ministry’s head office, St Vincent Street, Port-of-Spain, Social Development Minister Cherrie-Ann Crichlow-Cockburn said they received about 2,600 applications.

She said SEED was one of Government’s strategies being used to reduce poverty, get people off the food card or public assistance and have them in sustainable employment.

“So far payments would have been made to about 1,000 persons,” Crichlow-Cockburn said.

“We have about 400 payments outstanding and those payments would be processed by the comptroller of accounts and that should be done by the end of this week.” Crichlow-Cockburn said they were seeking to clear the backlog so some of the people who received their grants on Wednesday morning would have applied in 2013-2014, while at the same time trying to treat with applications from 2016-2017.

The grant was up to $15,000 and depended on each individual’s needs.

The minister said this was not a one-off event.

“We have not noticed a marked increase in the number of applications.

We are doing it based on constituencies and we have visited 30 so far seeking to educate the public in terms of what we offer.

So we expect we may see an increase next year because, as people become more aware of what the ministry offers and provides, we may likely have greater applications.” One recipient, Francis Vidal, whose wife is disabled, said he hopes to start a landscaping business, while Candice Lashley planned to purchase equipment for her small catering business.

Through the SEED programme, individuals were given access to tools, equipment and material to start or expand a mini/micro enterprise. These individuals were then supported through a multi-pronged system which provided business training, education and mentorship that maximised their potential for success.

Grants were given for use in welding, flag construction and decoration, agriculture, catering, an internet café, mini-mart and photography among others.

The recipients have already completed the mandatory entrepreneurial training and development in cash management, record keeping, customer service excellence, marketing and costing and pricing.

The recipients viewed the grants as a blessing.

“I am so happy for this opportunity. It would’ve been almost impossible to get equipment without this grant,” Lashley said, while Vidal said it would enable him to “create a better life for my family

The 12-year-old was charged with manslaughter, granted bail in the sum of $75,000 and placed in the care of his parents. His brother was charged with murder and remanded into custody. They appeared before magistrate Siumongal Ramsaran in the Couva Magistrates Court and are scheduled to reappear on September 14.

The charges were laid early yesterday morning by Sgt Susan John of the Region 3 Homicide Bureau after receiving advice from Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Joan Honore-Paul shortly after 11 pm on Wednesday.

In court yesterday the parents of the accused wept as the charges were read to them.

Okera was last seen alive at about 3pm on Thursday last while he was selling vegetables near the Bethel House of God church at Calcutta, Freeport.

When his mother Abia Williams called him on his cellular phone at about 4 pm, she got no response and decided to go to the church and look for her son but he was not found.

She went to the Couva Police Station and reported him missing. Police visited the area and searched. They found traces of blood on the church compound and later found Okera’s body floating in a pond at the back of the church.

An autopsy revealed that he was stabbed at least 15 times.

Okera was laid to rest on Wednesday after a funeral service at the same church which allowed him to sell his vegetables, including melongene which he planted, to held support his siblings with their schooling.

At the funeral, Couva South MP Rudranath Indarsingh described Okera as a respectable businessman even at his tender age.

“He should be given a national award for single handedly being able to provide for a family of six,” Indarsingh said.

Minister Kenneth Bynoe said, “While Emmanuel did could not go to school himself, he was seen accompanying his siblings to school each morning on foot.”

Usually, God alone knows the heart. However, when one can remain relatively anonymous and give free reign to spew out what is inside we are made privy to the true nature of man.

ANISA GRANT via email

They met last week with the Police Social and Welfare Association (PSWA) to discuss their grievances and to ask the Association to intervene on their behalf.

They have even asked that the matter be taken to court if deemed necessary.

The former SRPs, who were on two and threeyear contracts, say they received notices of their termination ten months ago without prior warning.

They are claiming that prior to their their contracts not being renewed, they had applied to become members of the Police Service and believe the move was vindictive.

Yesterday, secretary of the PSWA acting ASP Anand Ramesar told Newsday, “The Association confirms that several SRPs formerly assigned to the Praedial Larceny squad approached the association to represent them in a matter where their contractual services were not renewed. The Association will be representing these officers as we are aware that this is not the first time that the Ministry of Agriculture has acted in a manner which we consider to be both high-handed and lacking in basic industrial relations practices.

“We will be engaging the ministry both from an Association’s position and a legal position if we have to.” Ramesar added, “What has happened is not only unfair to the officers but has left them without employment.”

In his first film, the 16-yearold plays Shell, a poor 15-yearold boy with a terminally-ill father who is new to Pierre Hill.

“Although it was new, I was down for the challenge, I took everything and made it simply easy,” he tells Newsday.

The film, directed by Michael Mooleedhar and produced by Christian James, was chosen because of its simplicity and took three years to be completed. It is set to launch at this year’s Trinidad and Tobago Film Festival on September 19. The book is about a teenage Trinidadian boy who moves to a new village and is forced to deal with adult responsibilities after his father passes away.

The young actor had not done any form acting before but was always interested in acting. This interest led to him auditioning for the role.

“I didn’t know I was applying for the lead role and it surprised me,” Tafari said. “I was told that they had auditions and I checked out the page on Facebook and I sent in my information, but I hadn’t told my parents. I got called in and that’s when I told my parents.” Initially, his mother was not thrilled with him wanting to act, she told him to find something “more practical.” But Tafari pursued his passion anyway.

He said, “My mother would always tell me to look for something more practical and getting the lead role was surprising for her and she gave me full 100 support.” For him, acting was always a source of pleasure. The Mount Hope Secondary School student said, “I was always interested in acting. If you’re feeling down, you can bring me. I’ll cheer you up.” Tafari met with the book’s author, Michael Anthony during filming to get a “feel” of Shell, as well as to get an idea of what Shell would do in given situations.

For Tafari, there were similarities between himself and the character, particularly as it related to Shell’s personality– shy and just breaking out of his comfort zone–love and family life.

The period piece (the movie is set in 1950s Mayaro, Trinidad) presented a bit of a challenge for the young actor, particularly the dress code.

The teenager recalled how it was “awkward” in terms of the clothing as he had to wear short pants but he got used to it a few days after.

While love scenes are always daunting, even for Hollywood big wigs, the inexperienced actor was able to overcome the challenges associated with the scenes.

“Creating the chemistry was a bit easy, sometimes a bit challenging as well, a few days before the kissing scene I would be nervous but the chemistry was alright,” Tafari said with a shy smile.

The film’s director, Michael Mooleedhar remembers the shy boy Tafari was during the audition and his suitability for the role.

“From the very day he came in I think we really saw Shell in him,” Mooleedhar said. “I actually think we caught him at the exact same stage that the character was going through because he came in so shy, so we basically time cast it.

“He was already close to Shell persona, being timid… so I just knew that it would be easier to take that journey, to bring him out of that. You can’t put innocence back into someone.” Tafari was 15-years-old at the time of casting.

Tafari hopes this film captures the eyes and hearts of everyone who decides to watch it. Expect to see Tafari in more films in the future, even as he has plans of becoming a psychiatric .

The National Hurricane Centre in an advisory posted on its website at 5 pm yesterday said an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft found a well-defined circulation in the low pressure area east of the Lesser Antilles, with the center near a cluster of sheared, but strong, convection.

The Centre explained that a tropical storm warning meant that tropical storm conditions were expected somewhere within 24 to 36 hours while a watch meant that conditions were possible within 24 to 36 hours.

The Centre said tropical storm conditions were expected to first reach the Lesser Antilles within the warning area early today.

As for the rainfall, they said Harvey was expected to produce rainfall totals of two to four inches across portions of the Windward Islands from Martinique southward to Grenada.

These rains, they said could cause life-threatening flash floods and mudslides.

In an information bulletin, the Trinidad and Tobago Meteorological Service said the leading periphery of the system was expected to affect Barbados last night with rainfall totals of 50 to 100 mm as well as gusty winds across portions of the Windward Islands, north of Trinidad and Tobago from last night into today.

They said, Tropical Storm Harvey posed no immediate threat to this country.