The two TT Under-19 teams will form part of the 50-member Trinidad and Tobago contingent that will take part in various events at the Games that runs from Wednesday until next Sunday.

The 2017 Games will feature nine sports and will introduce three new sports – Beach Soccer, Judo and Beach Volleyball whilst dropping Archery, Lawn Bowls, Weightlifting, and Squash. Cycling will also make a return during these games.

The TT Beach Soccer Teams have been preparing for the tournament for just over two months under the guidance of coaches Chad Appoo and Jesse Bailey, two current TT Beach Soccer men’s team players.

The TT Boys team are in Group B alongside hosts Bahamas, St Lucia and Antigua/Barbuda while the Girls team are in Group G with Jamaica, Turks and Caicos and Bahamas.

The TT girls will go into action on Wednesday against Turks and Caicos with the TT boys coming up against Antigua/Barbuda on the same evening. The Final will be played on Saturday.

Appoo described the preparations as satisfying in the lead up to the competition for which the matches will be played at the Malcolm Park Beach Soccer Stadium, the same venue used for the recent FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup.

“The preparations have been great thus far. The players have put in the work and ready to express themselves,” Appoo said.

“The entire camp – management and staff included are all just buzzing to get there. We have a few sessions in the Bahamas to fine tune a couple things before the competition kicks off on Wednesday. ‘Great moments are born from great opportunity’ and I think we’re on the brink of something special where Beach Soccer is concerned in TT. Thanks for your continued love and support,” Appoo added.

Bailey meanwhile was also optimistic about the girls’ team chances.

“I think both teams have done well so far an have adapted really well in terms of the understanding an tactics surrounding the game and playing on the sand….

which is new to them but there is always room for improvement.

“They are looking really good and have started jelling really well during these past few weeks and it’s just for them to execute what we did on the training pitch and take each game as a final … from start to finish in the games. God’s willing we will bring home gold for our country,” Bailey said.

The 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games will be the sixth edition of the Commonwealth Youth Games which started in 2000.

With more than 140 countries around the world now playing this fast-paced sport, Beach Soccer will make its debut at the 2017 Commonwealth Youth Games.

Ango, who is of mixed Nigerian and Trinidadian heritage, was ordained in a two-and-a-half hour long ceremony, celebrated by Archbishop Joseph Harris at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Independence Square, Port-of-Spain.

Ango took his vow before a large congregation which included priests, other members of the clergy and parishioners from as far away as Fishing Pond, Manzanilla, Biche and parts of south Trinidad.

Delivering the homily, Harris, alluding to the growing need for vocations to the priesthood, hailed the ordination as a welcomed reprieve for the Church.

“It is a moment of thanksgiving because the God which never leaves his flock unattended, once again smiles on us and gives us help for work in the vineyard,” he said.

Harris told Ango his main priority as a priest was to God, not worldly trappings.

“Simon Peter, your first and primary allegiance must be to God, the living God, the God of the prophets. Do not follow the culture and let the false Gods of power and money and pleasure and popularity ensnare you.” He also urged Ango to lead by example.

“Teach what you believe and put into practice what you teach.

Let the example of your life attract the followers of Jesus the Christ. In other words, Brother Simon, be a man of prayer and action.” The Archbishop told the newly- ordained priest the confessional must be seen as his second home rather than a place to reprimand sinners.

“As Pope Francis says, ‘Do not make the confessional a torture chamber’,” he said.

Harris also gave Ango some useful guidelines in executing his ministry.

“Be an instrument of peace in the community where you work.

The church is meant to be an agent of that harmony for which Jesus Christ gave his life on the Cross.

“And always with your people, devise strategies which will make your communities hospitable places __ places which will be attractive to others and welcome that care and concern of the Risen Lord for them.” The priesthood, Harris told Ango, was not about power and status but a “complete emptying of self by taking the form of a servant.” Ango celebrates his first Mass at 10 am today at St Paul/St Peter’s RC Church, Mayaro.

Newsday understands the President, in accordance with Section 110(3) of the Constitution has consulted with the prime minister and leader of the opposition on Doyle’s appointment as a member of the JLSC which is two members short after the sudden resignation of retired Appeal Court judges, Roger Hamel-Smith and Humphrey Stollmeyer.

Hamel-Smith and Stollmeyer tendered their resignations letters to the President on June 22, effective June 30.

A statement from the Office of the President on July 6, announced the resignations while a statement issued the next day gave an explanation for their decision.

Both men were subjects of a vote of no confidence passed by the Law Association on June 1, calling on them to resign as JLSC members for the bungling of the appointment and resignation of former chief magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar, who admitted to leaving behind several part-heard cases on the magisterial docket, but it was later discovered that the number of cases was far greater than what she had initially acknowledged.

She has since said she was forced to resign and has initiated legal action against the JLSC.

The Law Association also called for the resignation of Chief Justice Ivor Archie but he has remained adamant that he will not be doing so anytime soon.

Stollmeyer, in his resignation letter, said he resigned as a member of JLSC as he could no longer continue to inflict the distress of the criticisms and unjustifiable condemnation, associated with holding public office, on his loved ones.

The Office of the President also said Stollmeyer “expressed utmost regret and reluctance to resign.” The office of the President only said Hamel-Smith’s explanation was “for reasons personal to me.” The statement from the Office of the President also alluded to the difficulty in retaining people to sit on Commissions and Boards, saying there was a reluctance by good, competent, qualified and experience citizens coming forward to serve.

The statement noted that the reluctance was “in large measure sometimes due to the vitriol, unfair and unjustifiable criticism levelled against persons brave enough to serve and the resulting hardship and undue distress caused to family members and genuine friends.” The remaining JLSC members are head of the Public Service Commission Maureen Manchouck and attorney Ernest H. Koylass, SC.

This follows his remarks at last week’s UNC Monday Night Forum at Bamboo where he alleged two officials linked to the army investigation into the handling of firearms by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi’s children were recipients of high-end public housing under dubious circumstances as a possible inducement.

Housing Minister Randall Mitchell in a response on Wednesday, said HDC allocations are done transparently and he accused Moonilal of misleading the public.

In a media release on Friday, Moonilal said this had brought him, “great bemusement and bewilderment.” “He (Mitchell) defended the process by saying that the units at Victoria Keyes were advertised for sale on the open market and, as such, anyone with the necessary finances could purchase the apartments.

“Minister Mitchell clearly misinformed himself as to the transparent nature of the transactions as he studiously ignored a Cabinet note from the Manning administration which stated that HDC units are available only to firsttime home owners.” Moonilal alleged the two recipients in question are beneficial owners of properties and so do not qualify for HDC units whether or not it was advertised on the open market.

“Minister Mitchell must explain if the hundreds of persons who had previously applied for those units were contacted to give them an opportunity to be part of his so called ‘transparent process’.” He said thousands of applicants to the HDC, waiting five to 20 years for a unit, may have qualified for the Victoria Keyes units as firsttime homeowners.

“Why did the HDC conveniently fail to offer those units to persons in their database who satisfied the Cabinet policy and are property-less? It is remarkable that an ad is placed in the newspapers and six weeks later there are successful applicants with payment plans in place.

“The HDC cannot even give emergency shelter in such a record time. Minister Mitchell must take some time to acquaint himself with the rules which govern his Ministry!”

It was reported in the media on Friday that Caribbean Airlines pilots had decided not to operate the company’s ATR aircraft because of technical problems and that customers should expect delays.

CAL corporate communications manager Dionne Ligoure in a telephone interview with Sunday Newsday was asked about the threatened strike and responded that flights were cancelled due to “crew constraints” which led to delays and some cancellations.

She said their operations team responded in order to minimise disruption to their valued customers and one of the methods was by up gauging of aircraft whereby the flights on smaller craft were cancelled for the larger 737 jets. She said that she did not have confirmed numbers on the number of passengers affected by the situation.

She reported that they were managing confirmed passengers and trying to accommodate everyone within a particular time frame. She expressed hope that the crew constraints would be alleviated in the “shortest possible time frame” so they would be able to provide the kind of service needed by their valued customers.

Ligoure apologised on behalf of CAL due to any inconvenience caused due to the delays and thank customers and stakeholders for their support.

Sunday Newsday visited the Piarco International Airport yesterday and met a number of passengers who had been waiting on standby, some since the previous day.

Samantha Neverson from Long Circular said she had been on standby since 6am and every hour she was being told the flight would be the next hour. Neverson explained that she was scheduled to attend a wedding in Tobago at 2pm; it was after 3pm when Sunday Newsday spoke to her.

She said that has never experienced anything like this while traveling.

“Whoever running this thing don’t care about nobody.” A Scarborough businessman, who asked not to be named, came to Trinidad for a two hour a meeting on Friday and was at the airport on standby. Unable to get a flight he had to get a rental car and stay at a hotel. He returned at 8am yesterday and still could not get a flight.

“This situation cannot continue. No one seems to care.” He said that he travels regularly and the issues with the air bridge had been getting progressively worse with this weekend being his worst experience yet.

He added that he had family visiting from the US who wanted to go Tobago for Heritage Festival but those plans had to be scrapped.

Rennie Ramoutar, a businessman from Cunupia, said that he had been at the airport since 7am and he had a van in Tobago with $30,000 worth perishable goods to be delivered.

“I cannot go to deliver it,” he lamented.

An elderly lady from Tobago said she had a ticket for Sunday but was on standby and was hoping to leave yesterday. She said she runs a hotel and restaurant in Tobago but they were “suffering” to get sales.

“She said that both the airlift and ferry service between Trinidad and Tobago “stinks.”

Laudable as this concept may be and essential as it is in a Christian context, the word carried with it echoes of sadness, given the ages of the speakers. It begs the questions of what the long-term value is in the practices which gave rise to the students’ ‘sacrifice’ and of the entire perception of student ‘success’.

In an ideal world, all students would achieve ‘success’ and would progress from the primary level to schools that empower them to realise their potential.

The value of the student whose talents lie in the vocational field would be seen as equal to that of the ‘academically inclined’ student.

The concept of the craftsman, the artist, the musician, or the sportsman as a high-achiever, worthy of recognition as a valuable and cherished contributor to his society would hold true. Such a student would see his unique and God-given talents as a blessing and essential to the balance, efficiency and upliftment of his country. He would know that his country’s bank of knowledge and skills are enriched as much by his contribution as those of his more ‘academic’ brother or sister. In addition, the student would be given the opportunity to play, relax and to ‘be a child’. Tragically, in our society, this would be seen as quixotic, even ludicrous. We do not cherish all our children and their talents. In our materialistic and competitive environment, we may say that we cherish all in equal measure but in practice, we uphold some as ‘more equal’ than others. We force them, as well, to turn their backs on the healthy balance of play and work.

This is not to decry the outstanding achievements of the students who employed their intelligence, capacity for hard work and ambition to good effect.

This country needs their intelligence, creativity, innovativeness, direction and work ethic. We need our young people to set the standards that will make us hold our heads high in the global village.

The scientists, the teachers, the philosophers and the researchers are among those who are the cornerstone of a just and progressive society. They are jewels in our national crown. The danger we pose to ourselves is in recognising only the academically inclined as the valuable jewels in the crown. In today’s Gospel, Jesus presents us with the parable of the sower and the seed. His words should force us to ask ourselves some uncomfortable questions.

Are we offering our children the good seed of the Divine sower or are we substituting inferior and infertile seed, which will never bear valuable fruit? Is the ground of our children’s minds prepared in such a way that the true seed finds the depth, richness, and the opportunities to produce in abundance as the Lord has intended for them? In our bid to ensure that our children enter ‘good schools’, are we forcing them to live lives of stress, which deprive them of the joys of childhood? Are we sacrificing our children’s need to interact healthily with their families and with one another? Are we curtailing their ability to think independently, to create their own identities and to develop their own talents, and leading them instead to sacrifice their gifts on the altar of our fears and our vanities? Let us sow the good seed that will redound to the benefit of all our children and the society to which they belon

So said PNM chairman Franklin Khan, yesterday, as he weighed in on one of the topics for discussion in Tuesday’s meeting between Rowley and Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

Speaking with reporters after the party’s general council meeting at Balisier House, Port of Spain, Khan said Rowley spoke comprehensively about the issue and was adamant that it must be debated and passed in the Parliament before the PNM’s term ends.

“Historically, in Trinidad, parties talk campaign finance reform when they are in Opposition and when they get into Government, they drop it like a hot potato,” Khan said. “This is the first time, under Dr Rowley’s leadership, we have articulated our position on campaign finance reform and he has put it on the front burner as one area in which he wants to definitely accomplish before the end of the first term.” PNM public relations officer Stuart Young said when the PNM assumed office in 2015, the Office of the Attorney General hosted an international forum where several countries, including Jamaica, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom, were invited to participate.

“So, we have already begun the process,” Young said, adding the Government was already looking at draft legislation.

“We, as a party and Government are prepared to take the legislation to Parliament and to to pass it as we can in this term.” Campaign finance legislation is among a slew of issues on the agenda at Tuesday’s highly-anticipated meeting.

However, Khan said given the fact that yesterday’s meeting dealt with matters relating to the general council, Rowley also chose to focus on two other issues namely self-government for Tobago and a code of conduct for parliamentarians.

Tuesday’s meeting will also address anti-gang legislation, matters pertaining to the Judiciary, performance of service commissions and the Integrity Commission.

“These are legislative issues that require a special majority,” Khan said. “So it is incumbent on the prime minister as the leader of the Government to engage the opposition leader early in the game to discuss and to see if some consensus can be reached on these very, very important national issues.”

One manager at Nigel R Khan in Port of Spain explained because our education system is based on the British system, 95 per cent of secondary school textbooks came from the United Kingdom.

However, she said some US suppliers, especially the small ones, require prepayment rather than credit, and so the book store had not gotten some tertiary level and music books.

A manager at Ishmael M Khan & Sons Ltd said, “It’s a small problem with secondary school books but we can’t just close the doors of the store.

We bought the books on credit and will worry about payment later.

We’re doing our best.” She said there was no problem acquiring primary school books because most were published locally.

Vivek Charran, managing director of Charran’s book stores, agreed, saying very few books were imported from the US so the shortage of foreign exchange was not a problem.

About the few books that were from the US he said, “We have been running smoothly, and things will run smoothly for those compliant with the banks.” Charran said if there was any shortage, it would possibly be with the local books since some publishers arrange smaller print runs because they did not want any extra books left on their hands.

At first glance, it would be easy to assume that she was badly injured in an accident, but her experience goes much deeper than that.

Leslie-Ann is on a journey to recovery from a stroke, which left her bedridden for several months.

The 41-year-old Claxton Bay resident spent most of her childhood in San Fernando and entered the nursing profession because of her strong desire to help people. “I always liked to help people, especially those who were in need of care,” Leslie- Ann tells WMN.

She has almost 20 years of experience in the Health Sector, climbing the ranks by doing a number of nursing programmes. One of the last programmes she did before she got the stroke was midwifery. Leslie-Ann had assisted in numerous deliveries during her two years of the midwifery programme at San Fernando General Hospital, and was preparing for the final exam when she got an ischemic stroke on October 1, 2011. Her final exam was in January 2012 and she was unable to complete the programme to become a certified midwife.

“An ischemic stroke is one where there is a blockage of the cerebral arteries by a blood clot within the brain or neck. The blood carries oxygen and important nutrients to the brain and when the brain is deprived of this. It can lead to serious damage,” she explains.

“What led to my stroke? I believe was also poor stress management. It was a very intense midwifery programme and then I had my home to manage, so it was everything in one.” She recounted the moments leading up to the stroke, “I was with my husband, we were driving home and I found that his words started to sound strange. I could hear his voice but could not make out what he was saying. We didn’t pay much attention to it and we went home oblivious to the fact that a stroke was in progress. When I went to the washroom and came back out that was it. I couldn’t move my entire left side.” Despite all this, Leslie-Ann is currently a student at the University of the West Indies (UWI), St Augustine and is at the end of her second year, pursuing a degree in Psychology with a minor in Criminology.

“I enrolled in UWI to pursue something that could work with my abilities and so far, I am doing beyond human expectations. I am anticipating full recovery and then I could marry psychology to nursing.” One of her greatest accomplishments is resuming driving and being able to go to places like the beach and the grocery on her own. “Some people take for granted everyday activities like walking, talking and moving. I am able to better understand people with disabilities. I know for a fact people take advantage of them so I make it my priority to help whenever I can by giving them free rides to places where they need to go.” “Initially, having a stroke was a grim and drastic change, in my mobility and body image. It’s like you are fighting back for your independence.

From 2011 to now, I am still trying. I had to make necessary changes in my diet. I started eating more natural foods, drinking a lot of water and making fibre foods like wholegrain, nuts and beans a part of my diet.

ping up with clinic dates and taking medication prescribed by a doctor is also a must.” Through it all she continues to put a positive spin on her experience. “Someone once told me that when you are put to lie down it’s because God wants you to look up. God has brought me a long way back and he has been my support system. I also have a 24-year-old son, Sheldon Junior Huggins, who goes out of his way to help me,” she says.

Leslie-Ann refuses to let her circumstances keep her from living her life. “I enjoy cooking, poetry, cleaning and meeting new people. I want people to know that there is life after a stroke and sometimes life can knock you down but you can get back up again. You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you. Do not be distracted by the process, stay focused on your destination of recovery.” And although the challenges may become overwhelming sometimes, Leslie-Ann champions on. “My therapy is ongoing. It is sometimes frustrating because at times all you are seeing is a person who got a stroke and everything that you lost. You are not seeing the progress you are making. There are different types of therapy which include water therapy, acupuncture, messages, walking and exercising. Everything collectively works together but I find water therapy works best for me because it helps me to relax as the instructor makes you do multiple exercises in the water.

Water therapy also allows you put more effort into the exercises as well.” Leslie-Ann’s goal is to become gainfully employed with the United Nations Children’s Fund and travel to Africa, where she intends to teach children. “I am working towards making a full recovery.

People overcoming strokes need to know that not because their body image is altered that they are no longer beautiful.

Our bodies come in different shapes and sizes and your body tells a story, it is nothing to be ashamed of. It shows that you have determination, it tells of your strength. Don’t be ashamed.”

Yesterday, Nyoshia Cain was unable to finish among the medals in the women’s long jump T43/44 final.

Cain finished sixth and last in yesterday’s competition, with a best effort of 3.99 metres.

Stef Reid of Great Britain emerged victorious with a best of 5.40m, ahead of Netherlands’ Marlene van Gansewinkel of 5.29m while Japan’s Maya Nakanishi was third with a best of five metres flat.

Australia’s Sarah Walsh (4.85m) was fourth while Japan’s Saki Takakuwa (4.80m) was fifth.