Antar, the current General Manager for Corporate Operations and Process Improvement at Republic Bank Limited, will assume the role from Anthony Subero, who will retire from the bank after more than 35 years of sterling service.

In announcing the appointment, RFHL yesterday said Antar has “contributed immensely to myriad functions at the bank”, including Marketing, Branch Operations, Information Technology, Operational Risk and Corporate Security as well as Administration, Premises, Business Continuity Planning, Business Systems and Process Improvement, and Portfolio Management.

Antar is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ACIS) and holds Chartered Institute of Bankers UK (ACIB) certification.

Republic Group yesterday congratulated Antar on his new appointment and wished him success in his career.

We well know that in Trinidad and Tobago it is far easier to gripe without having effective medication for the verbal diarrhoea.

While on staycation, the UNC-led Partnership government has griped and groused only about the needs of their own particular constituents.

It is as if the rest of TT does not exist.

What I need to know, urgently, is where the money is going to come from to continue to fool the public that a UNC administration can keep all their pet projects at the expense of the rest of the country.

Lay out how the UNC will be able to quickly counteract the upsurge in criminal activity brought on by the disbandment of SAUTT and the porous borders for drugs and human trafficking.

Tell us how we can continue to build schools and provide thousands of free laptops. Which other small third World country can do this? Why should applicants over age 50 and wealthy students sit in the university for free? They refuse to acknowledge the destruction of ForEx because of unworkable interference.

The constant fake news is being put out that TT is becoming a failed state.

If we are a failing state why is everybody running to reside in TT ? Ms Haynes needs to tell a discerning public where the money is going to come from to stroke the disappointed egos of an Opposition that was voted out because of allegations of rampant nepotism.

What has changed?

Lynette Joseph Diego Martin

Our decision to use the social media carries with it the power to be a publisher, something that many users fail to understand or appreciate. Along with this new found publishing power we must also bear a responsibility for the propagation of the truth. We must not only restrict our own posts to the truth, but also not repost untruths posted by others.

The ease with which persons can express their views to large numbers of people in an instant is a power most of us are all too eager to embrace. Unfortunately, many of us do not see the harm and hurt we sometime inflict when we publish false and malicious statements.

Not seeing it does not mean the hurt/harm is not there. If we can avoid doing violence to the minds of unseen persons others may learn to do the same.

As teachers we are faced with the challenge of mastering this rapidly evolving technology, while at the same time having to teach our charges its responsible use. Given the propensity for us to share our personal views with others, we would be well advised to exercise restraint in terms of the postings we place on social media, mindful of the social and legal implications.

In our schools we have become accustomed to students taking to social media to deliberately hurt others via their posts. Cyber bullying is real. Children regularly take to the internet to engage in a form of verbal violence, the scale of which we have never seen before.

Hateful and vitriolic statements dominate social media posts of many teenagers, compounded with threats of physical violence.

Teachers are then required to intervene in these internet-based and initiated conflicts, the resolution of which can be arduous and time consuming. These situations transcend the boundaries of school type, becoming the new norm. The obsession people have to see images of themselves on screens leads many to post pictures on social media. In many instances these images seem to be pushing the boundaries of ethics and moral decency. This new social standard has been adopted by young people, with ‘selfies’ being their favourite pastime.

Our children are all too eager to befriend strangers on social media, blissfully unaware of the dangers of so doing. They proceed to share very personal information and images with these strangers, not realising that once that information or image is out there it cannot be retracted.

Parents would do well to truly educate and guide their children from a tender age in the ethical and responsible use of social media as well as its dangers. In fact, they must only allow children to engage social media only when they are mature enough to understand the responsibility that accompanies its use. Children should not be allowed to engage social media until they are socially, emotionally and intellectually ready.

As a society we must all take responsibility for what we communicate with others for it has consequences. We must be aware that if we are to engage the power of publishers we must be prepared to adopt their ethical standards.

Before we post anything we must ensure that it adheres to certain levels of journalistic integrity.

Social media has and continues to be a double-edged sword and if we are not careful we can become a society where untruths become the order of the day.

In such a place, self-destruction becomes an inevitable outcome.

Local species of marine flora and fauna were displayed to educate the public on indigenous wildlife and raise conservation awareness.

A combination of living marine and coastal organisms as well as preserved and dried specimens were exhibited.

Live species on display included caiman, lion fish, stingrays, eels, various types of saltwater fish, crabs, freshwater turtles, tubeworms and echinoderms among other organisms. Preserved specimen consisted of a lamprey and horseshoe crab, eels, rays, sharks, echinoderms, molluscs, crustaceans, shells and eggs of five different sea turtles and bones (skulls, vertebrae, jaws) of other marine animals.

The public was also treated to useful information on several topics such as invasive species, shark conservation, seismic testing, oil spills and COREXIT, which is an oil dispersant used during oil spill response operations.

Every year, the marine sciences unit extends an invitation to stakeholders who play an important role in the marine environment to participate in the showcase.

This year’s event, which was co-sponsored by Trincity Mall in collaboration with Turtle Village Trust, the Coast Guard, Caribbean Fisheries Training and Development Institute, Institute of Marine Affairs, the University of the West Indies Zoological Museum and the Solid Waste Management Company, saw a steady influx of visitors.

Besides students, faculty and staff of UTT’s Marine Sciences programmes, and volunteers of different ages also assisted.

Volunteers were given training prior to the event and they gained hands-on experience dealing with the animals (both live and preserved).

They also were also exposed to basic aquaria maintenance. Information on applying to Marine Sciences and other UTT programmes was also made available to the public. Annually, the showcase is seen as an avenue to remind citizens to be mindful of their responsibility to protect and conserve our environment and the organisms that live within it. Anyone interested in partnering or volunteering with the marine sciences unit can contact assistant professor Dr. Reia Guppy at marine.sciences@ utt.edu.tt.

Gordon stayed close to the leader, American turbo Fred Kerley, who is reported to have run the seventh fastest ever individual 400m in the history of this event.

With 50 metres to go, and Gordon second, the Tobago-born athlete literally opened his belly and spilled his guts to pass a dying Kerley and bring home gold to Trinidad and Tobago.

As a four-month-old baby, his mother, Cynthia Cupid reminded me that her son suffered acutely from some undiagnosed stomach ailment.

He spent almost a year in hospital, as the doctors eventually operated. She agonised over his survival.

Today, Lalonde Gordon, 28, is a world champion to add to his double bronze medals at the 2012 London Olympics.

Congrats to Team Solomon, Richards, Cedenio and Gordon.

The words of the legendary American football coach Vince Lombardi (1913-1970) resonate in my mind: “The darkest moments of our lives are not to be buried and forgotten, rather they are a memory to be called upon for inspiration to remind us of the unrelenting human spirit and the capacity to overcome.”

REZA ABASALI El Socorro

In a release issued yesterday, the ministry said on August 3, part payment of the monies owed to the PTSC maxi-taxi drivers was disbursed.

Education Minister Anthony Garcia said he is committed to providing payment before the new school term begins.

The PTSC provides a subsidised service to the children of Trinidad and Tobago as a part of the Government’s promise of accessible and quality education for all.

The collaboration between the Ministry of Education and the PTSC was established to assist lesser privileged students in getting to and from school with ease.

The Ministry said it will continue to make every effort to ensure that all money owed to the PTSC maxi-drivers are paid, and that students have access to this essential service once school re-opens.

The Ministry also said it will embark on a comprehensive review of the system in which the maxi-taxi drivers operate.

“This will ensure that the investment being made produces value for money as spending is of national concern in these challenging economic times,” the ministry said.

Philip Ayoun g-Chee via email

They give up their youth and earning capacity at the peak of their earning potential to represent the “Red, White and Black”, but it’s like giving them a pen knife to go to war. I have long suggested that we either have a “Sport Lottery”, or use part of the NLCB lottery to fund our athletes, as in done in other countries.

The funny thing is, sports is always there as a rally to raise us up and give us a reason to cheer, (remember 2006 with the “Soca Warriors), but are we fair to them or just “bandwaggonists? So please, let’s treat them right.

R Patino via email

The TT squad, bottom of Group B without a point, face Canada (three points) tomorrow I their final Group B game at IMG’s campus in Bradenton, Florida.

Gianluca Busio and A Chavez each scored twice for the United States for the comfortable 6-0 win to put the hosts in command of the group with maximum six points.

G Reyna opened the scoring from the penalty spot before assisting in a quick double from Chavez — all within the first eight minutes — for a 3-0 lead at the break.

Busio, who scored on either side of the break on Sunday for a 2-0 US win over Canada, arrived off the bench in the second half to score twice, separated by a C Garica goal, against Trinidad and Tobago.

The United States will complete group play against Costa Rica (three points) tomorrow.

(ttproleague.com)

The film’s première will be held at a red carpet gala on September 19.

In a phone interview with Newsday the acclaimed author said, “I wrote the book as a writer hoping his work will be published… you think about telling a good story, a story that people would want to read and carry on reading it.” Not only did audiences want to continue reading Anthony’s novel 50 years on, but it has become so beloved in the hearts and minds of Caribbean readers that the novel is now finished.

Recalling what it was like initially crafting the novel, Anthony said, “When I finished Green Days by the River, I sent it and kept my fingers crossed that it would be published, and when it was published it began doing what you would call fairly well and I kept having hope. And then 50 years later, Mr Mooleedhar and his producer came to me and told me about the film and I said ‘my goodness, just in time I am ready to die’. I warmly accepted this and look forward to the film but I just did not have any real deep faith that we’d get to journey’s end.” Anthony now expects out of the film, a new wave in Caribbean literature with an eye on film. With a widely growing local and regional film industry, Anthony said, “I am hoping for success so that it will start a new day for writers and that there are some writers that will write with their minds on film. I did not because I never thought for one moment that my book was going to be filmed. There are young writers who would think, ‘Oh I hope they turn my book into film’.

This is the sort of effect that comes from that sort of event which is going to be with us shortly.” The film’s director and producer have similar expectations, that the film would draw a large local and regional audience to it. For the film’s producer Christian James, although he had not known about the book because he had not done it in school, he knew that it had a large fan base.

When he and fellow University of the West Indies (UWI) graduate, Michael Mooleedhar began looking at films, Green Days was not the only option, but James said the pair kept coming back to it because of its simplicity.

“When I came back States in 2014, I had just done a degree, a masters in film producing and creative producing and I met back up with Michael. It was actually at a UWI event that we met back up. They were launching the new film building or something and we decided that alright, Michael was making short films and experimental films and documentaries and stuff but he didn’t do his first narrative feature as yet. And likewise with me, so we were both looking for that first narrative feature project.

“So Green Days wasn’t the first one on the list, we had a few scripts that we were reading on the table, a few ideas, some of them were original, some of them the script wasn’t written for as yet.

But Green Days, luckily he had a script written, it’s called a spec script or a speculated script and it was written already by Dawn Cumberbatch, who is another local screen writer. I didn’t know about Green Days, the book per se. I knew about Michael Anthony but I didn’t really know about the book because I didn’t do it in school, but I know a lot of people who did it in school. When I saw the script, okay well we both read it and it’s like we made our short list and somehow Green Days always… we always gravitated towards Green Days because of the its simplicity and because of the context that it came from such a strong intellectual property as the book. The book was published in 1967 and has been around for the past 40 years, people still know it and still talk about it, that means that there is a life for it, a market for it. It was that perfect project where we knew we could have…,” he said.

While issues of funding posed some difficulty, the duo got it done, although it took them three years from initial thought to completion.

James and Mooleedhar plan to release the film at a number of film festivals in the region and globally. The film will also be screened at the Bahamas Film Festival and the Belize International Film Festival. James told Newsday he wants to do more films like these but “the scales would have to be bigger and funding will have to come from outside.” In Mooleedhar’s heart, he knows that he and his team have made a quality film and he hopes local and regional audiences would buy into as its first showings happen here.

On the novel’s 50th anniversary, he hopes that the film would last as much as three to four weeks in local and regional cinemas to large audiences. But also important for him is telling a story about Trinbagonians for Trinbagonians.

Mooleedhar knows only too well that “films have a lifespan.” While, he said it’s hard to get a movie accepted internationally, what he hopes to bring to local audiences is what the international cinema landscape hasn’t seen before. Mooleedhar’s end goal is to hopefully have the the film picked up by Netflix in about two years. But more importantly, Mooleedhar hopes 50 years from now the film could also celebrate its 50th anniversary and the success that goes with that.