Among them, UNC Chairman and Pointe-a-Pierre Member of Parliament David Lee, questioned why the Prime Minister constantly degraded women as he (Lee) called on the country to unite and condemn the statement.

“Why would a leader, who is supposed to promote respect towards women, look to degrade a female leader who has contributed so much to our national development?” Lee asked.

He said the language is unbecoming of a person who holds high office.

“More so, it reflects that the Government has been caught red-handed and they have no plausible answer to these accusations hence they result in name calling.” He defended his leader, whom he said was only doing her duty, as a concerned citizen, by informing the population about the millions of taxpayers’ dollars being wasted.

Condemnation of Rowley’s statements made during the post-Cabinet news conference on Thursday, also came from Lee’s colleague, Dr Tim Gopeesingh.

In a release from his Caroni East constituency, Gopeesingh said he joined with all right thinking and conscientious citizens in expressing his abhorrence to what he termed, “the new low to which the PM has taken national governance.” “Dr Rowley’s crass and vulgar statements during his comments on the ‘fake oil’ fiasco once more showcases someone ‘completely out of control’, as previously defined by then-Prime Minister Patrick Manning. In addition, Dr Rowley has contaminated the enquiry into the oil scam, since he has made it clear to all – including the investigators – that the accused is his personal and special friend. It is obvious that the Prime Minister does not intend to facilitate a full and independent investigation into this scam, in the same way that he has sidestepped the “ferry fiasco.” Persad-Bissessar’s former Cabinet colleague, Carolyn Seepersad- Bachan also weighed in on the issue, calling on the PM to apologise to Persad Bissessar .

“While I strongly denounce the utter disrespect and insensitivity reflected in the Prime Minister’s reference to the Opposition Leader, I remain hopeful that there is still the possibility of a positive outcome. I call upon Dr Rowley to take full responsibility for his faux paux and show remorse in an apology to Mrs Bissessar. “ Seepersad-Bachan, who is also running for leadership of the Congress of the People (COP) also called on the government and the opposition to support them in a proposal to adopt the word “Respect” as one of the national watch words, to replace tolerance.

“Through respect, we learn to appreciate people of all genders, ethnicities and cultures. Let it be a seminal value that will inform our initiatives for the elimination of crime and the current ills plaguing our society,” the former San Fernando West MP said.

Asked by sceptical locals if he was just another vote-seeking politician, he said he had recently turned down an offer to sit on the Petrotrin board made by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, and had previously declined an offer by the then prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to become Minister of Social Development, a post eventually filled by Dr Glenn Ramadharsingh.

Abdulah said a strong nation could only be built on the foundations of strong communities and strong families. “Tonight we are hearing a cry from the people – not give them ‘this’ or give them ‘that’ – but for leadership and a vision. “ He said people must come together with a common purpose, vision and goal.

“We believe the system has to be changed. The relations between political and economic power must change.” Saying it is every citizen’s right to live in a decent society of accessible healthcare, education and road transport, he said, “The question for us is, how do we change the system?” Lamenting that doctors in public hospitals tell patients they can only get surgery by going to their private practices, Abdulah said this is a conflict of interest that should be formally banned. “If enough of us say we are fed up, we could get change,” he advised.

“We have to make a stand.” He said the gap between the rich and poor is growing, consequently with a reduction in social mobility, such as would block advancement of the children of a poor, single mother. Abdulah said the millions of dollars in the fake oil scandal could have funded community facilities to uplift people’s lives.

However, citing Christ’s Apostles and US civil rights icon Rosa Parks, he advised, “A few people with passion, commitment and a love of country, community and their children, can start that process of change. When enough people identify with a movement, it is enough to bring about change in Trinidad and Tobago.” Earlier in the question session, a resident lamented the deplorable state of Mt D’Or Road. A woman blamed alleged indiscipine at the local primary school on the fact of teachers residing outside of the area and so not knowing the character of local youngsters.

One woman bemoaned parents who take welfare money meant for their offspring, saying.

“The children have no food but the parents are looking good.

Patrons came out to party in all styles of clothing, but for the most part adhered to the wear white theme.

The charity event that benefits the Margaret Kistow Children’s home in Arima this year, went well beyond the scheduled end time.

Man of the moment, TKR captain Dwayne Bravo played himself at the event and among his fellow players present were Barbados Tridents captain Kieron Pollard, Andre Fletcher (St Lucia Stars), Lendl Simmons (Jamaica Tallawahs), Sunil Narine (TKR) and hero of the final Kevon Cooper (TKR).

The best way to counter violent extremism, Knight said, is to tackle the root cause of societal violence. “Get away from blaming a particular religion or a particular culture. Try to understand why individuals are feeling marginalised from their society, community, family,” he said.

In a recent interview, the EJ reported Knight as saying that local historian Professor Brinsley Samaroo led him to an al-Qaeda sleeper cell in Trinidad in 2005.

The EJ interview with Knight followed a August 21-25 conference, Ignite Change 2017: A Global Gathering for Human Rights held in Edmonton, Canada, where he made a presentation.

His research on TT jihadism, Knight said, began in 2005 during a conference he had organised, in collaboration with the University of the West Indies (UWI) St Augustine Campus, on Free Trade in the Americas. During that conference, in a casual conversation with Prof Samaroo, Knight said, he mentioned the work he was doing on the recruitment of child soldiers in civil conflicts across Africa.

“This led to a discussion on recruitment of Trinidadians by al-Qaida, something of which I was totally unaware.

Samaroo asked me if I would like to see a jihadi sleeper cell that was operating in Trinidad.” The next day, Knight said, Samaroo showed him a map where the cell was located.

SLEEPER CELL NEAR AIRPORT He was surprised to see it was located close to the Piarco International Airport. Samaroo, he said, drove him to the area to what was a “a seemingly innocuous gated Muslim community, a commune of sorts with a sentry at the entrance to the roadway leading into the commune.” A guard in the sentry box, he said, “obviously knew Samaroo and after a few questions, lifted up the bar that crossed the entrance way to allow us to drive inside.” The EJ quoted Knight as saying, “The place seemed very peaceful, with a mosque, a school, a grocery store, and homes that housed what looked like a number of Muslim families. The wom en wore al-Amira hijab and niqab and the men wore long white thobe.

I felt like I was in Qatar, Dubai or Saudi Arabia.” This was, he said, “an al-Qaida sleeper cell operating under the noses of the Trinidadian government.” Seven years later, he took up the offer of director of the Institute of International Relations at the UWI St Augustine campus on secondment from the University of Alberta.

During the period, Knight said, he continued research on the rise of extremism in Trinidad and with a colleague, John McCoy, they “explored the reasons why this fun-loving, culturally and religiously diverse country, Trinidad and Tobago, was ripe for the recruitment of some of its mostly young men first into al-Qaida and more recently in ISIS.” Knight told the EJ that, “Converting to Islam or being a long standing Muslim in Trinidad and Tobago is not a recipe for embracing extremism.” MOST TT MUSLIMS ARE PEACEFUL Most Muslims in TT, he said, “are peaceful, successful citizens who just want to practice their faith and do good in their communities.

Extremism has nothing to do with the Muslim faith in that country.” Most of the 130 Trinidadians who left the country as foreign fighters for the extremist group ISIS, he said, “found their way to Syria and Iraq and joined forces with the extremists who have been misusing the teachings of Islam to justify some of the most horrific crimes against humanity in that area.” The majority of Trinidadian jihadis were recent converts to Islam, he said. “Some have been drawn to ISIS on the promise of financial gain. Some are from the lower economic and social strata in Trinidadian society and see joining ISIS as their way out of a poverty stricken existence.

Some have been recruited while they were in prison for petty or serious crimes and see Islam as a way out from that life of crime.” Terrorism is not limited, he said, to predominantly Muslim countries. It can be found amongst believers of different faiths, while some are not religious.

“We have a whole breed of home-grown terrorists who are not Islamic,” he said citing a number of examples from around the world who had nothing to do with Islam.

He is hoping, he said “that the UN will use our findings to develop a counter violent extremism strategy that will address the underlying reasons why people, especially young people, are being drawn to violent and extremist ways of addressing their problems.

Flatters said in order to properly address the issue of domestic violence, the authorities and public must have a full understanding of the complex nature of such conflicts. “Responding to domestic violence is a community and a societal issue, so what do we need to know? We must have facts in our mediations, we need to know what brings our parties to us. Through knowledge and understanding we must bring a series of questions and understanding of the impact on each piece of received information.” She said part of understanding the nature of domestic violence, and its influences on the family unity and society by extension, was understanding that the roles of aggressor and victim in such situations were not gender-specific, citing the growing reports of females as the perpetrators of domestic violence and men as the victims.

“Domestic violence happens across the full socio-economic continuum, from poor families to very wealthy families. In terms of domestic violence, it’s not just men who are perpetrators: statistics more and more are showing that women are also perpetrators.

Words like ‘perpetrator’ and ‘victim’ don’t have a specific gender.” Citing a recent publication by activist Diana Mahabir-Wyatt, Flatters said it was important that previously- held notions of children and the causes of domestic violence were in need of re-examining under a more critical light and highlighted the impact of environments and interaction to a child’s development.

“Mahabir-Wyatt in her article said that she was told by a leading academic that our children’s brains were different from children elsewhere in the world, so that thousands of validated studies, showing that beating children actually impeded their intellectual development, did not apply here. That time I did not believe.” “And so it is, children are all born the same, they all have 23 chromosomes.

What happens next is part of gene expression and our environment and based on the data, children are very much affected by their environments.” Magistrate Lisa Ramsumair- Hinds, during her remarks, echoed Flatters’ sentiments, adding that the environment in which children grow up largely influences their later lives.

“It depends on who the child is, where he is situated and what he sees and in this digital age, to further complicate that dynamic, the line between what is real and virtual has so successfully been blurred, that distress has been dehumanised.”

In a media release yesterday, Maharaj observed that the ruling PNM administration seemed to be turning a “blind eye to the fact that the workers have bills to pay, food to buy and children to take care off.” “These workers are human beings with feelings, emotions and responsibilities, not mere numbers and statistics,” he stated, adding, “furthermore, it seems as though it is a deliberate plot of the Ministry and Government to frustrate the workers of Mora Valley Farm out of their gainful employment.” He said their wages were not “a gift or handout” but what was legally due to the workers of Mora Valley Farm.

Maharaj also noted that the union was also locked in negotiations for a new collective agreement for the period 2011-2014.

There are approximately 15 workers at the farm which is located in Rio Claro.

The pillars of good governance, according to the United Nations, include accountability, transparency and integrity. Conversations is a forum for the Government to truly establish these pillars and regain the confidence of the people.

This conversations event held in St Augustine was highly impressive and the organisers deserve to be commended for their consistency. In the midst of all the media publicity, both good and bad, surrounding the Government, Rowley made it his duty, as first priority upon his return, to make himself and members of his Cabinet available for questions and recommendations from the public.

The Prime Minister did well by choosing relevant Cabinet colleagues for the panel. The Ministers of Education and Works and Transport, while on the panel, were really part of a larger contingent of government officials there to take part. Rowley made sure no one who had a contribution to make was turned away, conversing with them even after the broadcasted programme was scheduled to end.

I was also impressed by the turnout and the high level of discourse that the people in those long lines brought to the table.

Some of the issues raised and recommendations made were in relation to drainage and flooding, school facilities and curriculum, corruption, technical and vocational training, Petrotrin, medical sciences and Mt Hope training facilities, housing, youth participation in leadership and the economy.

The answers by the panel were honest and where criticisms came, the Prime Minister was able to shed some light on why the Government made the relevant decisions. What stood out for me was when the Prime Minister identified that one of his major challenges is the level of corruption that exists in the public space. Rowley went on to say that the corrupt will find no protection under his watch as leader of a responsible People’s National Movement administration.

The actions of any government must be able to withstand public scrutiny and this series of Conversations with the Prime Minister is highly commendable in that regard.

RONALD HUGGINS St Joseph

Several artistes will entertain at the event which takes place at Mellow Moods at Bourg Mulatresse, Santa Cruz, from 11 pm to 4 am. Tickets cost $60.

Joseph-Crawford, 43, sister of local artiste Keturah Gamba, is a stage four cervical cancer patient but despite her deteriorating health she remains determined to win this fight against cancer.

According to one of the organisers, Dane “Mr Kronic” Layne, Joseph-Crawford’s determination is based on the fact that she has to care for her son and a teenage daughter.

“Carlene is at the stage where her organs are being affected and traces of cancer can be found in her lymph nodes. Her kidneys and parts of her lower intestines have been affected a while but now she is having major problems as her lungs are now contaminated thus affecting her breathing,” Layne explained.

Layne is one of several entertainers scheduled to perform at the event. Other acts include Ziggy Rankin, Lady Lava, the TYT crew from Boom Champions and Kerry John, among others.

Layne said Joseph- Crawford who is from San Juan, urgently needs to purchase a nebulizer machine and a home oxygen system. However, she does not have the financial means to do so on her own.

“In addition to this, she is in heavy debt due to past medical expenses.

All monies paid at the gate will be given to Carlene to aid in medical expenses. Any support given to this event will be highly appreciated,” Layne said.

Gamba who via her Facebook page is promoting the event says her her sister is not able to breathe for more than a few hours on her own without an oxygen system.

On one of her many posts, she wrote: “The intentions of my family is to raise the required money to purchase a home oxygen system, nebulizer system and to repay some medical debts owing for the past months.” In another she stated: “I am also singing and my face is not on the artwork…It is a fund-raiser not an event for show!!! To all my fellow artistes who are still passing through even though your faces are not on the artwork….

THANK YOU!” Anyone who wants to assist can deposit funds to Joseph-Crawford’s Scotia Bank account number 42135004009709.

Chris Gayle will be 40, Dwayne Bravo 36 and Kieron Pollard 33, so selectors will have to assess how the youth will be ushered in. T20 is a format where you can play at an older age but the wear-and-tear from all the T20 cricket the likes of these stars will be playing globally will surely take its toll. The deep pool also has to be worked in by being proactive, given that player-board disputes or players refusing international duty are issues that plague the team as well.

Chadwick Walton, Evin Lewis (who is set to face England), Andre McCarthy, Andre Fletcher and the experienced Kevon Cooper are just a few exemplary performers that need to be looked at for regular game-time.

Bravo, Bravo Dwayne Bravo is arguably the most elite T20 performer in the business today. His all-round capability, as seen in years in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Lions, is second to none. In the CPL, he’s more known for his bowling than his batting, consistently among the tournament’s leading wicket-takers.

This year, his astute captaincy showed again, especially in the knockout against Guyana Amazon Warriors where he rotated his bowlers off the cuff to stun the batsmen.

No bowler bowled a second consecutive over to start the match, showing how bold Bravo was in a clutch scenario. His discipline has improved drastically and the only thing that can stop this beast of an athlete is injury.

Bravo appeared very calculating at times, with shades of his IPL teammate MS Dhoni seemingly rubbing off. West Indies fans deserve to see him in One-Day colours again too because Bravo clearly has limited overs hunger in him still. A second CPL title justifies this and perhaps offers an alternative captain to the budding yet struggling Jason Holder.

Spin deficit The region’s spinners failed to give an impressive account of themselves, being overshadowed by Sunil Narine who nabbed 12. He was the only West Indian to take over 10 wickets. Samuel Badree (St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots) and Shane Shillingford (St.

Lucia Stars) scalped a respectable eight but the likes of Veerasammy Permaul, Imran Khan and Akeal Hosein failed to deliver. Devendra Bishoo was off on duty in England so there was an opening to see who could rival Narine.

Sadly, the opportunity was embraced by foreigners. Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan (14 and a hat-trick) and Mohammed Nabi (nine), Shadab Khan (12) and Tabraiz Shamsi (11) stood out and made the West Indian pitches seem like home. If regional selectors are looking to see who could replace Narine, this year’s edition wasn’t the place that bowler could be found. This is one area that could be problematic to the Windies’ overall depth.

360 Discipline The CPL has been seen as one of the tournaments with more leeway due to the region’s festive nature but this shouldn’t be abused.

The celebrations seem to be getting more and more outrageous and bordering on ridiculous. The ICC Code of Conduct says a player is in breach by “using language, actions or gestures which disparage or which could provoke an aggressive reaction from a batsman upon his/her dismissal during an International Match.” Although CPL matches are not international, what is the message being sent to youngsters with almost every regional bowler giving batsmen an unceremonious send-off upon their dismissal? Will this be reined in only when an on-field altercation breaks out between a bowler and an aggrieved batsman? The CPL needs to buckle down on discipline if it’s to be seen as more than a party league. From the controversial Kieron Pollard no-ball incident to Tabraiz Shamsi’s petulance on the field in the final to certain commentators making lewd remarks in jest, things should be more professional.

Woman Power The CPL should look at honouring the West Indies’ Women and incorporating them into the league. Sure, it will be more in terms of monies paid, logistics and such but to boast the World T20 champions yet never have them be part of the event is shocking.

WI women’s captain Stafanie Taylor and others have gotten T20 contracts in England and Australia. It’s a gross disrespect to the women who have topped the world to omit them from this showpiece. The Big Bash in Australia has shown the way with a men and women’s edition.

It’s disappointing TT especially couldn’t see home-grown stars like Anisa Mohammed, even if in an exhibition match in the semis or final. These would be double-header spectacles and so inspirational to the plethora of young ladies and girls who come out in droves every year. They should see their own gender on display and feted, much like India, Australia and England do with their female leagues. More female umpires and players on show would show progression for the region.

Despite being the shot-stopper for bottom of the table Rangers, John has tallied the most points gathered from coaches and match officials for the month of June to take the honour.

The 35-year-old has represented the national team but is somehow regularly overlooked. He was honoured at Wendy’s Ariapita Avenue outlet in Woodbrook yesterday.

“The mentality I have [keeps me driven] and the players around me who does push me to [do better],” said John, who was recently influential in Rangers’ 1-0 win over Morvant Caledonia United last Sunday with a number of crucial stops.

The Diego Martin-born John said while joining Rangers last season came a surprise to many, it was in fact a personal challenge for him.

“Rangers are one of my home clubs and [they] are a club people always watch as down (in the standings),” said the former Defence Force, San Juan Jabloteh and North East Stars goalkeeper.

“So I [joined] to give my experience and to try and bring them back up as one of the top teams in the Pro League.” John said it is a great feeling that people continue to notice his performances. “My ambition is to continue to always work hard and to try and always be a top goalkeeper in Trinidad and Tobago and to keep Rangers up in the Pro League to [try and] win Cups. [Also] I will always be working hard to get call-ups to the national team,” ended the Rangers ‘keeper.