A leader, whether man or woman, can be of a level of integrity attracting vigorous allies, but with a sense of judgment that works through very low community standards.

In such a case the modes of civic assessment would not be based on the worthiest denominators.

Indeed, they would tend to postpone improvement if not devolve more and more to the lowest common denominators.

These would show in the signs of the things that occupy political correctness and in the types of laws and debates being sought and sustained.

The compliant could accept to operate to that level of conscience and progress, because it works for them and it can be profitable. Gaining ground, constraints become stronger, eventually in the long term gripping the society in ethical malaise, dulled consciences, conformisms and resignation; later turning downright evil.

Are there aspects of this in our nation? The smart gets richer. Gangs are cultivated and then suffer with death. Abortion — malice aforethought — is protected quietly. The most ridiculous things are discussed and actually happen. The international position is left totally disparate. The leadership subsists within and without various types of accountableness.

And the rest of the people and the environment pay for it.

E GALY via email

Details of the reasons for Stollmeyer and his colleague Justice Roger Hamel-Smith’s resignations were contained in a statement from the Office of the President yesterday. On Thursday, that office announced the resignations. The resignation letters were delivered and accepted by the President on June 22 and became effective June 30.

Following Thursday’s announcement, there were calls for the two to make public, reasons for their resignations. Former attorney general Anand Ramlogan, SC, who in a lawsuit challenged Stollmeyer and Hamel Smith’s appointments as JLSC members, said on Thursday that full and frank disclosure was a necessary part of the principles of transparency and public accountability.

“It is disappointing they opted for the diplomatic obscurity of ‘personal reasons’. In so doing, they have short changed the population,” Ramlogan said on Thursday.

STRESS IN PUBLIC SERVICE Yesterday’s statement from the President’s Office, quoted from Stollmeyer’s resignation letter, which read, “Recent events have given me reason to pause and reflect upon my commitment to public life and duty to my country.

“It has become increasingly obvious that fulfilling that duty or those duties, faces great difficulty in light of the ever-increasing tendency in our society to criticize and condemn unjustifiably…those who undertake the task of serving. Inevitably, it causes distress both to the individual and to his or her family and friends.

“It is unfair of me to continue to inflict that distress upon those for whom I have so much love and regard. I find myself with no alternative but to depart public life,” Stollmeyer’s resignation letter stated.

The statement from the Office of the President only gave Hamel- Smith’s explanation for his resignation as being, “for reasons personal to me.” The statement also alluded to a difficulty in retaining people to sit on commissions and boards.

It said there is a reluctance by good, competent, qualified and experienced citizens coming forward to serve. It noted that the reluctance was in large measure, sometimes due to the vitriol, unfair and unjustifiable criticism leveled against persons brave enough to serve and the resulting hardship and undue distress caused to family members and genuine friends.

SEARCH FOR REPLACEMENTS The President’s Office assured that President Anthony Carmona will continue to persevere and ‘will not give up in sourcing suitable persons for public office.’ “The Office of The President is of the view that everyone has a right to criticize and be critical but no one has a right to malign and denigrate another.

Criticisms must always be grounded in civility, decency and comity,” yesterday’s statement said. It also noted that the Office of the President has already begun the process of finding suitable candidates to fill the vacancies in the JLSC.

In an earlier interview, communication advisor to the President Theron Boodan, said the process to replace Hamel-Smith and Stollmeyer started when the President received their resignations. He said the process is ongoing.

Boodan also noted that persons are reluctant to accept positions on certain commissions, adding, “And remember we must find suitable persons that fit the strict requirements set out in the Constitution.” Boodan also explained why the announcement of Hamel-Smith and Stollmeyer was only made on Thursday when the retired judges tendered their resignations since June 22.

“You must remember their resignations became effective June 30, and while the announcement could have been made on that day, the Office of the President was also engaged with the swearing in of ministers,” he said.

He added that the Office was then occupied with the revocation of the appointment of Port of Spain South MP Marlene McDonald, as Minister of Public Utilities, as well as the investigations on a breach of security relative to McDonald’s guest, self-proclaimed community leader Cedric “Burkie” Burke.

On Monday, Boodan said the President was in Tobago for a mini-National Awards ceremony. He further noted that there were other issues relative to the resignations that had to be cleared up before the announcement was made. The remaining JLSC members are head of the Public Service Commission (PSC) Maureen Manchouck and attorney Ernest H.

Koylass, SC.

“We expect to be talking to Barbados, Grenada and St Vincent about the liabilities of BAICO (British American Insurance Company), which was the entity through which Clico operated,” he said. At the just-concluded Caricom Heads of Government meeting in Grenada, Rowley said that the countries involved have said that Trinidad and Tobago took steps through legislative processes to financially bail out its citizens who were affected by the CL Financial collapse.

They have said that TT has not sufficiently done the same for citizens in other Caricom countries who were CL Financial clients. The basis of the argument, Rowley said, was interpreted from the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas to mean that no Caricom country should favour its own citizens in a regional entity over citizens of other member states.

“These arguments are on the table. They were bolstered by some agreements that dated back to the Manning era which were further supported by the Persad-Bissessar era where certain commitments were made to pay certain monies.” Those agreements, he said, “were cemented by a payment of US$50 million in a promise of US$100 million. We are now being called upon to conclude those transactions.” He has asked for time to look at the requests “a little closer,” he said, not in the context of the promises that were made, because TT will not renege on its commitment to its Caricom colleagues, but to look at the current situation with CL Financial.

He said, “there are some serious developments taking place with respect to this Clico matter, and the last thing we can do now is to pay out money to anybody (regarding) Clico while we are engaged in a very serious matter with respect to the Government’s protection of the national interest, with respect to the monies we paid out to Clico.” Claiming that the population will be advised of developments that are likely to take place, some shareholders, he said, have taken action to expel the Government of Trinidad and Tobago from the board of CL Financial while taxpayers have not recovered their $20-odd billion that were paid out.

The matters, he said, are far from ending notwithstanding previous ministers telling the people of TT that they have settled the issue.

“In fact the future looks quite unsettled but along the way (Government) will take all reasonable and legal steps to protect the interest of the people of (TT),” he said.

“Some people have come here from as far as Princes Town in the rain. Everyday for the past week they keep telling us that the cheques will be issued tomorrow. We have bills to pay and medication to buy.” The relative of a pensioner said they have not received any reason for the delay and feared that unless something was done soon, they would “I’ve been coming with my mom to collect her pension cheque for the past year or so now and I’ve never seen anything like this before. They told us to come back today (Friday) and we still can’t get any answers as to why there has been such a delay.” Newsday also understands that several pensioners were forced to turn back yesterday as they were told by cashiers that they were unable to process all of the pensioners cheques and would have to return next week.

According to sources within the Pensions Division, the computer database which contained the information necessary for the issuance of cheques crashed sometime this week and clerks of the Accounts department were struggling to enter the information and produce the cheques manually.

Newsday attempted to contact the Director of Pensions for an official statement, but was unsuccessful.

The nation turned its attention this week to primary school students who wrote an important examination. We were inspired by their screams of joy, their hope, their innocence. Teenagers, more reserved and mature, also went through their “rites of passage,” deciding what to wear, quietly listening to graduation speeches, wondering how the exam results will determine their own future.

Do the right thing even when no one is looking. Service. Commitment.

Leadership.

These are the often-repeated themes at graduation exercises, designed to motivate and encourage.

Young people are challenged to discover what they can do for their community or their country. They are told that the future lies in their hands, that future generations need them.

Yet, does our system prepare young people for the responsibilities we are asking them to take on? Civics, defined as “the study of the rights and duties of citizens,” must be taught, within the context of nation- building. History must focus on our heroes and heroines — the people who fought for and acted upon their vision of our collective future.

Leaders must be developed early, and from within the school system.

At a recent graduation ceremony, the principal cautioned the young people about looking to politicians for examples of leadership. They were asked instead to emulate the mothers and fathers who sacrificed to ensure that their children received an education.

At one level, it is true that our politicians fill us with dismay.

However, engagement at the political and community levels are key components of national transformation.

But what would this entail? Do our young people get an opportunity to develop projects that help them to learn about the elders and icons of their communities? Are they taught about the value of volunteerism or understanding how people in their community earn a living? Can we move the discussion beyond that of laptops and porn, and deliberately set out to use technology as a force for positive youth transformation? We expect our young people one day to run our country, but we do not teach them not to litter their schoolyards, or respect the environment.

Their learning environment leaves much to be desired, as too many of our schools do not have green spaces. We do not adequately promote the potential of Carnival, theatre and the arts to unify cultures.

This year, after seven years of primary schooling, just over 2,000 young people earned less than 30 percent in the SEA exam. Dr Lovell Francis, Minister in the Ministry of Education, stated that “we can’t afford to have 2,000 young people on the cusp of secondary school who are unable to read or write.” The truth is, in many instances, a place for all does not translate into education for all. Lingering inequalities in the system contribute significantly to the fact that a woefully small number of young people emerge from our schools properly educated, or with an understanding of leadership.

The truth is, across the system — teachers, students, administrators and parents — are focused on an endless cycle of curriculum deadlines, lessons and exam results.

Our future leaders languish while we struggle to change an education system that was not designed for us and is ill-equipped to serve our needs.

Fortunately, there are young people all over the country who have decided not to wait, as they mentor and engage in creative, social and political endeavours. We need to cultivate more youth leaders, community activists and citizens with the values to take us forward. And we need to do it now.

D a r a Healy is a performance artist and founder of the NGO, the Indigenous Creative Arts Network – ICAN

According to police, at about 4 am, a security guard heard the sound of shattering glass and went towards the main entrance of Gulf City Mall in La Romaine to investigate.

The security guard saw four men, all armed, running up the escalator in the centre of the mall.

THe intruders later held the guard up at gunpoint while they smashed the glass door entrance to the store. They then stole dozens of cellular phones including expensive iPhones. The smashing of glass set off the store’s alarm system.

The owners of the store Robindranath Maharaj and Zyroon Joy Maharaj were contacted and asked if they expected anyone to be at the store at that unusual hour. When Robindranath checked camera footage of the store via his cellphone, he noticed the front glass door shattered. He quickly left his Gulf View home and headed to the mall.

“The security guard said he was held up at gun point. They (the burglars) smashed two showcases and took iPhones and Samsung phones, but mostly iPhones.

They didn’t take any cash. I don’t know what exactly they did, but somehow the store’s camera footage was also wiped,” said a source from the mall.

No other stores were broken into. Despite the shattered glass and stolen items, R&J Cell Tech was open for business as usual yesterday.

Gulf City Mall Public Relations Officer Sarah Ragoonath said the style of the robbery was a first for the mall. “This was a frightening experience for the security guard, but we are glad that he is safe and nobody was hurt. “We have cameras in the carparks, but we are in the process of installing cameras at the main entrance and along the area where the store was broken into because these are incidents that you learn from. We are still the safest mall in South Trinidad,” Ragoonath said. San Fernando police are investigating.

In 2013, the store was among several to be burglarised and over $250,000 in items stolen.

Speaking at Piarco International Airport after he returned from a Caricom meeting in Grenada, Rowley said, “If that is so, it is for office holders involved to bring it to a head and have it dealt with even if it means Parliament (which is on a break) has to come back into Special Session.

“To pretend there is some other way when there is none,” he added, is bordering on a description which he does not want to use. “There is a problem and it has to be addressed. The best way might not be an investigation at this time,” he said.

A Government investigation, he said, would only suffice if it is the best option under the circumstances. However, he said, the Executive jumping to initiate an investigation might only worsen the situation.

On the resignation of Humphrey Stollmeyer and Roger Hamel- Smith from the JLSC, Rowley said he was, “a little surprised”, when he woke up yesterday at 4 am in Grenada, to discover the JLSC, “was not properly constituted and information to this effect had been available since June 22.” When these things happen, he said, they contribute to the public losing confidence in institutions of State and causing institutional paralysis. With the JLSC and Ayers-Caesar matters in the public domain and calls for people to resign from the JLSC, Rowley said, “I would have thought it would have been useful and necessary for the population to be told immediately that this (the resignations) is what happened on June 22 or June 23, and that it comes in effect from June 30.” Had the resignations been made public prior to Thursday, Rowley said, “We could have followed the process without acrimony and without suspicion.” “The suspicion could be completely unnecessary or troubling that something would have been happening. The jobs are hard enough as they are, but we don’t make them more difficult by these unnecessary developments,” he said.

“In our country,” he said, “conspiracy theories come up very easily and we exercise them.” However, he added, “the institutions of State need to be more responsive to public appetite for timely information and full disclosure.”

The supporters thought that it would be an early night compared to the two previous evenings after TT started purposefully and served accurately which ensured victory in the first set at 25-22 to take a 1-0 lead for the first time in the competition. The local boys, however, dropped the intensity and the French Caribbean team stepped up their challenge and dominated the game by winning the next two sets at 20-25 and 19-25 to stun the hosts. The defending champions and host team regained the composure they started the match with as they went on to win the fourth set at 25-21. Beaming in confidence after being in this position twice before in as many days, TT closed off the match by winning the fifth set quite comfortably at 15-8.

TT captain Ryan Stewart led the way with 18 points including 17 spikes while Brandon Legall added 16 points (13 spikes).

Martinique`s Stephane Alfa had 17 points, comprising of 15 spikes.

In Group E, Barbados booked a semi-final spot after surprising Jamaica 3-2 (25-18, 17-25, 25-22, 20-25, 16-14). In the fifth set decider, with the winner getting an automatic spot in the semi-final, the Barbadians overcame a five-point deficit and denied the Jamaicans three match points to win at 16-14.

Suriname knocked out Curacao with a 3-1 victory (25-20, 24-26, 25-19, 25-23). Haiti were spoilers as they defeated Bahamas 3-1 (28-26, 25-16, 16-25, 25-19) and knocked them out the competition.

Barbados (Semi-final 1) and TT (Semi-final 2) had to wait until last night results of the matches between Haiti vs Suriname and Jamaica vs Martinique to determine their opponents in today’s semi-finals.

Semi-final 1 will serve off at 5pm and Semi-final 2 will begin two hours later.

The players retained ahead of the draft were: Kyle Hope, Isaiah Rajah, Yannic Cariah, Roshon Primus, Imran Khan, Amir Jangoo, Tion Webster, Marlon Richards, Sheldon Cottrell and Bryan Charles Selected in the Cricket West Indies (CWI) Player Draft were: Kissoondath Magram, Khary Pierre, Steven Katwaroo, Ewart Nicholson and Akeil Cooper. Merryboys wicketkeeper/batsman Jangoo is one of five players earning their first Red Force professional contract.

“I am really delighted to be awarded a contract by the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force. Last season I got a look in for the final two matches and I made the best of my opportunity.

Honestly I am really happy the selectors showed faith in me and awarded me a professional contract,” said the 19 year old Jangoo.

He continued, “The last year has been a rollercoaster for me.

I missed out on selection for the West Indies Under-19 team and I had to come through the Combined Campuses and Colleges route. Being awarded a Red Force contract is vindication for all the hard work I have invested and being mentally resilient through adversity.

The easy decision is to give up when things are not going your way but I continued to work hard and now I am a professionally contracted player.” Red Force: Kyle Hope (Overseas), Isaiah Rajah, Yannic Cariah, Roshon Primus (Overseas), Imran Khan, Amir Jangoo, Tion Webster, Marlon Richards, Sheldon Cottrell (Overseas), Bryan Charles, Kissoondath Magram (Round 1 Draft), Khary Pierre (Round 2 – Draft), Steven Katwaroo (Round 3 – Draft), Ewart Nicholson (Round 4 – Draft), Akeil Cooper (Round 5 – Draft).

When Frank Worrell, Clive Lloyd and Viv Richards led the West Indies to a position of dominance in world cricket, it built our stature as a people.

The breathtaking performance of the West Indies cricket team in the historic Test match against South Africa reminded the people of TT and the rest of the West Indies of the supremacy of cricket as a force to be reckoned with and an inspiration that we can achieve positive things together and leave a legacy.

Coaches need to identify talent in as many of our young people as possible at an early age and get them involved in the sport of cricket because it will have a beneficial effect in getting youngsters to stay away from trouble.

When the West Indies cricket team was in its glory days it served as a catalysts for social and traditional cohesion.

West Indian cricket needs to be revived as soon as possible since it has tremendous crime prevention potential because it connects positively with the social fabric of groups and communities.

Instead of allowing outside forces to breed young criminals, our coaches need to aggressively scout for young talent and mentor them into the future Desmond Haynes, Gordon Greenidges and Brian Laras who all possessed a will to win and a sense that they were playing for something more than themselves and more than just money.

SIMON WRIGHT Chaguanas