In May two dozen turtle heads, including the protected green turtle and hawksbill, were discovered dumped in the Bon Accord Lagoon in Tobago. Rambharat commented on the incident to Sunday Newsday while attending the Eastern Horticultural Club 8th Annual Plant and Garden Show held at St Augustine Senior Secondary School.

He said that in his experience fishermen and Trinidadians generally are more sensitive to turtle conservation. He reported that he has made several trips to the North Coast during the turtle nesting season and he is “seeing signs of a change in behaviour.” He said that organisations like Nature Seekers “are doing a fantastic job” and Environmental Research Institute Charlotteville (ERIC) in Tobago is doing “excellent work”.

“So that has been one of those one off instances. I hope in Tobago that it does not grow and it does not become the behaviour in Tobago.” He said that they are doing more work in sensitising people from a conservation and a tourism point of view.

“A lot of people come to Trinidad and visit the Caroni Bird Sanctuary as something fairly unique that a country has to offer.

And turtle watching is fairly unique for us.” He said the Tobago incident was one that is not reflective of what is happening in the country.

The Environmental Management Authority had also condemned the killing of the sea turtles “despite the legal protection afforded to these endangered species with the declaration in 2014 of five species of sea turtles as ‘environmentally sensitive species’.” The five protected turtles locally are the leatherback turtle, the green turtle, the hawksbill turtle, the olive ridley turtle and the loggerhead turtle. Killing protected sea turtles could lead to a fine of one hundred thousand dollars and imprisonment for two years.

French teacher and interpreter, Joleen Meharris is one in this 176 million and she sat with WMN to explain endometriosis, the features of her own condition, her upcoming life-changing surgery and her commitment to raising awareness about the condition.

The cause of endometriosis is yet unknown but one such theory is retrograde menstruation, where the menstrual blood, instead of leaving the body, _ ows back through the fallopian tubes into the pelvic cavity. Immune disorders as well as a genetic predisposition to growing the abnormal tissue are among several other theories.

Pelvic pain is the most common symptom, and can often be accompanied by painful periods; discomfort during bowel movements, heavy menstrual bleeding or bleeding between periods, pain after sex, pain in the lower abdomen before and during menstruation, cramps one or two weeks around menstruation, heavy menstrual bleeding or bleeding between periods, and infertility.

The condition can make its presence known as early as the beginning of menstruation but many women don’t begin to experience the symptoms until years down the line. Conversely, endometriosis can be asymptomatic in many women, only showing itself through infertility. “It started when I was 24,” Joleen recalled. “I had just begun working and I would get extreme cramps that would have me doubling over in pain at the office.” Without aggressive treatment, which is in short supply locally, the symptoms can become incrementally worse. “As the years progressed, the pain increased from being just during menstruation.” Joleen referred to the sensation as a “similar cramping” but lasting anywhere from a week to ten days afterward.

“Basically, you’re unwell for half of the month.”

With all the intricate difficulties, there is no solution-in-a-bottle. Many of the current treatments are temporary at best, and often offer some complications of their own. “Painkillers don’t help,” Joleen explained. “If I take Tramacet, I get a little relief but nothing else works.” She continued that although many women who suffer from endometriosis take morphine, she refuses to take the drug to avoid the high risk of addiction.

Taking artificial hormones or GnRH (Gonadotropin-releasing hormone) is another means of controlling the symptoms. “The drug induces a faux menopause with the aim of suppressing the symptoms and to reduce the growth of endometriosis,” Joleen explained, having made use of this option herself. “It gives you a sneak peek of what menopause is like – cranky moods and hot flashes – which are not very nice,” she chuckled.

While GnRH does offer relief from the symptoms, it can only be taken for up to six months at a time, after which the symptoms naturally return, often worse than before. Additionally, the drug brings with it yet another, more lasting menopausal feature, that of osteoporosis.

Hysterectomy is another course of action in the attempt to eliminate the symptoms. But Joleen explained it’s been proven that they don’t provide a cure. “Because… the tissue is found outside of the uterus, removing it won’t help,” she told WMN, explaining that she knows women who were unsuccessful in their pursuit of relief through hysterectomy. “It pushes your body into early menopause as well,” she warned.

With an arsenal of discomfort-causing effects, endometriosis can essentially alter the quality of a woman’s life, which is why Joleen has been so keen on pursuing the surgery that is carded to take place at the Center for Endometriosis Care in Atlanta next month. “It’s challenging being a wife and stepmother,” she told WMN. “I’m unable to do anything and it’s difficult to make plans; I have to ask myself, ‘am I going to be well this week?’”

The American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) established a four-tiered staging system to classify the advancement of the condition and the severity of the characteristics. Joleen suffers with stage-four endometriosis, marked by severe pelvic inflammation and adhesion.

Adhesion refers to the blood causing the surrounding organs to be “fused together.” In Joleen’ case, her uterus is stuck to her bowel. “During menstruation, I have debilitating pain; I can go to the washroom if need be but I’m unable to do my daily duties,” she explained. “About two years ago, I developed severe chest pains and back pains, which make it impossible for me to lie down.” Joleen said she would sleep sitting upright even for up to ten days after menstruation.

Amid the numerous options and the daily coping, Joleen has managed to find the silver lining. “My faith has definitely grown and I’ve learnt place a lot more trust in God,” she admitted. “I’ve grown more humble because I know what it is to be lying in bed, at your wit’s end and being unable to do very much.” She also acknowledged her husband of four years, Daniel Simpson as an unwavering support system. “It hasn’t been easy but [the condition] has brought us closer.” Her capacity for empathy has also grown, particularly for others who are ill, whether they suffer from endometriosis or not.

After a surgery attempt in May of last year that showed her and her doctors how advanced her condition was, Joleen did some research and resolved to have a procedure done abroad. “I was to have a regular laparotomy (an incision into the abdomen) to remove the fibroids and the endometriosis, but when the doctors saw that my ovaries and fallopian tubes weren’t identifiable, they were unable to do anything.”

The procedure that she will undergo is called excision and it refers to lasering off the adhesion and separation of the organs, which has been proven to curb the problem. Excision has been shown to be more effective than ablation, another invasive procedure which superficially removes the abnormal tissue, also using laser technology.

The #HelpMyEndo movement, an online presence to create awareness that serves as a crowd-funding enterprise to finance Joleen’ surgery was founded after her unsuccessful surgery last year. “I needed the help of friends and well-wishers to get my life and my health back,” she asserted. After a barbeque and a well-received health fair, both held earlier this year, she is grateful for the support and concern sent her way.

After her surgery next month, her desire is to return home to develop initiatives that support women in the early stages of the condition, to enable them to nip its progression in the bud. She also wants to help women whose endometriosis is at an advanced stage.

Additionally, Joleen wishes to raise further awareness of the condition. “There’s still a long delay in the diagnosis,” she explained. “Doctors need to be more aware of the condition as well as to be up to speed with treatments.” She advocates for a possible collaboration between the Ministries of Health and Education to have the word spread in schools about the condition and how severely it can affect young women. “Coming out of this, I want to give back,” she affirmed.

Joleen’ final fundraiser is a gospel concert, entitled Never Give Up, scheduled for June 18 at National Academy for the Performing Arts at 6pm. Among the acts are Kay Alleyne, H2OPhlo, the Lydians Male Quartet and Voces Jovenes parang band.

Visit Help My Endo TT on Facebook for further information. Joleen Paula Joleen can be reached via (868) 719-5397 for tickets to Never Give Up and T-shirt sales. Donations can be made to FCB Account Number 1592999

After calling Lifeline, the suicide hotline, without getting an answer, the mechanical engineering student drank poison and was found on the football field at the university. He died three days later.

Lifeline Co-ordinator, Lucretia “Lucy” Gabriel, admitted that the service should have always been a 24-hour service, but said it was not a simple matter to arrange because of a lack of funding and volunteers. However, as of May 1, Lifeline has been available 24/7.

To make it even more accessible, people who find themselves in distress can now call the volunteers of the NGO at two toll free numbers donated to by TSTT and Digicel.

“When there is an outcry and statements about a 24-hour hotline, people have no cognisance of the challenges to do that. But we were quietly working on it because we had that aim of 24/7 availability. We stretched everything we had as far as it could go because as far as we are concerned, worst thing is for someone to call and there is nobody there.” Previously, Lifeline was available from Monday to Friday from 7 am to 3.30 pm and 6 pm to 6 am; and from 6 pm to 6 am on weekends.

This was because a high number of people have suicidal thought at night. However, as a result of Caesar’s public death, a bit more help was forthcoming.

30 HEROES Lifeline became available full time thanks to previous volunteers returning and all 30 volunteers doubling up on their shifts.

Also, on June 1, they received two toll free numbers so callers can now contact Lifeline free of charge at 800-5588 and 231-2824.

Gabriel said they had Digicel, Flow, and TSTT lines, with TSTT allowing them to pay their bill when they can, free Internet and bundled minutes from Flow, as well as with Flow to Flow and Digicel to Digicel calls free.

However, they had been asking telephone companies for a toll free line for a long time. She noted that, in the past, people called and asked the volunteers to call back because they did not have money on their cell phones. Also, if volunteers felt the caller was highly suicidal, they would ask the caller’s permission to call them back another time, as they attempt to support the person until they could stand on their own two feet.

However, because of the state of their finances, that was not always possible unless they used their private phones, or used their personal funds to pay the organisation’s phone bill, which they sometimes did.

She said the organisation had the capacity to accept six calls at a time. Since volunteers listen until the caller was emotionally stable, they could not put anyone on hold or tell them to call back. That meant that calls could last between one minute to four hours. However, because of the new lines and increased number of volunteers, they could now listen to callers for up to six hours.

Lamenting the lack of assistance over the years, Gabriel said while people and companies would donate to causes such as child abuse, domestic violence and rape victims, Lifeline received very few donations because in Trinidad and Tobago, mental health and suicide were “unmentionable things.” HELP LIFELINE “When we’re not there it can cost a life because we deal with people who are despairing and suicidal and we take that very seriously… We have appealed and appealed and appealed for the resources to do it and didn’t get it.

For instance, right now we barely have money to pay the rent. We’re waiting for the release of a subvention.” In addition to bills, Gabriel said Lifeline had been running outreach programmes to schools and the Youth Training Centre (YTC) since 1992. She said this was necessary because, for almost 40 years, TT has had an annual average of two suicides of children between the ages of ten to 14.

Because people under 16 rarely called the hotline, Lifeline started concentrating on youths through the programmes.

Gabriel said the organisation needed about $1.4 million to run but received about $291,000 from Government and some assistance from a few financial institutions.

Despite the financial problems, she was very thankful for whatever they got. “Remember you are asking. You have no right to tell anyone to give you anything. We are grateful for what the government gave us because the private sector gave us not one black cent.

We are going to do the best that we can with what we have.” At the moment, the number of Lifeline volunteers, called listeners, were just over 30 in number.

Gabriel said there was a continuous training process as volunteers leave because of time restraints and personal responsibilities. Despite these setbacks, Lifeline’s next goal was to build the number of volunteers to at least 120.

NOT EASY LISTENING Gabriel told Sunday Newsday it took a lot of dedication to be a listener. She said while listeners should work four to six hours plus one overnight shift per month, those at Lifeline work those hours per week. She said they needed to turn up for their shift “no matter what” and if someone on the team was unable to make it, other would work double shifts to make sure someone is available to callers.

She stressed that Lifeline volunteers were listeners, not counsellors or psychologists but they have psychologists as consultants.

“The key in the quality of the service is in the selection of the listeners. They have to be people who have the innate quality of being good listeners. Then we spend three months preparing them…

psychologists and psychiatrists are trained to analyse people and give them a solution. We supply emotional support when someone is in a crisis.” Gabriel said suicidal people feel alone and cut off from society, so the listeners at Lifeline give callers their total attention. “If you create a space in which somebody in crisis feels that someone else really listens, empathises, and understands how they see the world, and why they see it that way, that is an extremely powerful tool.

That is a simple thing in keeping the person alive.” She added that, while listeners did not give advice, they might discuss reasons why the caller felt the way they did as well as options for the caller, but at the end of the day, any action was the caller’s decision. “We have to accept that the person has the right to control their life. Their calling you does not give you the right to control and determine their life. Giving them that sense of being in control actually helps to deflect them from attempting suicide.” Gabriel said since October of 2016, the number of callers who were high risk of suicide increased from less than ten percent to 80 percent. In addition, over the past three months, the number of calls also increased.

The brilliant flowering trees are the visible signals of the annual change of season, from hot, dry, dusty weather, to cooling showers of rain. Rain which washes the scorched black hillsides and flat country sides, causing grasses to spring back through the baked earth, and on the hillsides, in addition to the brilliant flowers, new green leaves bursting out again.

That before December we may be cursing the rain is not important now. We will have to deal with the damp and the flooding and the landslips when they come, but for now the rains are welcome, cooling, ripening events. And while it has always been so, the fact is that we are developing and sharing a deeper awareness and appreciation for it, and maybe many of us who, when we saw the beauty in our trees, could not exult and share the ways we do today, so all admiration tended to be suppressed? I mean, just a few years ago how could you share the beauty of a Yellow Pouis in full bloom? By the time you took the film to be developed, and printed, and then published or shared it with anyone, all the flowers would have gone, fallen, faded and turning to mulch.

Today, what we see, we share— now for now! We share our experiences “live”, and this means that many of us, too busy sometimes to have seen the beauty around our lives, are awakened by others sharing of the Nature’s Delights which surround us—and have always surrounded us.

I firmly believe that the new media, the instant information, is awakening the reality of beauty surrounding us, the beauty which we were too busy to absorb, or too cynical to acknowledge because we were not sure how others felt about it.

And as we awaken to these feelings, a sort of latent discovery of great beauty all around us, we learn to love our land, just a little bit more than before. When we hear outsiders exclaim in wonder over a sight we had always seen, but accepted at less than face value, our self esteem and pride grow too, even if just a little. These are our trees, our flowers, our joys to share with the whole world, and the world looks in wonder and we become proud that they grow right here, in our land.

But the blooming is so brief, that our joy and wellbeing often passes too quickly, leaving no sustained emotion. Suddenly the blooms are a thick carpet—gold or pink— below the naked branches of the tree, and joyous are the May or June Brides who can have their photographs taken on one of these carpets! But within a day or two, the flowers all dry up, lose their colour and disappear. This annual event, the blooming and the shedding of the flowers, embraces a period when our young people, even our young children, are called upon to blossom forth and show what their education has done for them, so far in their lives.

Whole families stress to get their children—from little ones right through university—successfully through the exams they must sit at this time of the year.

This is where our children are taught stress. And most survive and grow in their new schools, new settings that may not have been their choices. But some, those who excelled in the exams, like flowers bursting forth, are publicly acknowledged. And they will grow to flower again at the new school until it is time for more exams, more stress and choices. Some will repeat this process, into universities, but many will seek work after completing secondary school.

But where have all these Flowers gone? Do we know how our scholarship winners have done, or are doing, over the years? There would have been careers built, approaching retirement now, over scholarship awards since Independence.

Do the scholarship winners at “eleven plus” win the University Scholarships, or do different flowers bloom? And how many who go abroad to study return home? This is not to question the motives of anyone, for truth be told, coming back home is a sacrifice right now, especially for bright, forward-looking graduates.

Looking at the state of our society, it seems clear that most of our f l o w – ers are blowing away, to b e t t e r lives in different l a n d s ? How can we call t h e m back?

Playing at the National Cycling Centre in Couva, the visitors controlled the game from the outset and never let up on their intensity, and the outcome was never in doubt at the start of the final quarter.

They were propelled by goal shooter Shonica Wharton who scored 37 goals from 40 attempts and goal attack Sheniqua Thomas who chipped in with nine from 14 attempts.

For the hosts, starting goal shooter Jamila McCarthy scored 23 goals from 30 attempts while captain Joelisa cooper added eight from 10 attempts.

Barbados were away quickly to take a 11-6 lead at the end of the first quarter and again outscored their counterparts in the second quarter to lead 22-16 at the halftime whistle.

The visitors maintained their rhythm in the second half and were ahead 34-26 at the end of the stanza, and they dominated Trinidad and Tobago 12-6 in the final quarter to win easily.

Barbados were chasing a winning 2-0 lead in the series in the second game last night at the same venue.

In an open letter to the pair yesterday, Khan said they should tender their resignations on the sole ground that the membership of the Lawyers Association has lost confidence in their ability and integrity to perform their, “Onerous duty as independent and responsible members of the JLSC.” “I politely remind their Lordships,” Khan says, “That they owe it to the legal profession and by extension the people and most of all their respective families and ancestors, to demonstrate that they still possess the intrinsic virtue of decency not to cling to status and power in the face of the overwhelming vote of no confidence against them.” Khan says that Hamel Smith and Stollmeyer personally need to protect and maintain the reputation and good names of their ancestors, “Who were the pillars of the ruling class of our young nation. The Hamel-Smiths during the period of slavery and colonialism; the Stollmeyers during the post slavery and colonial periods.” Khan reminded Hamel-Smith that he acted on several occasions as Chief Justice and was recommended to then President, ANR Robinson, by former Chief Justice Michael de la Bastide to replace him as Chief Justice upon his retirement.

The Hamel-Smiths, according to Khan, have established over a 100- year period their merit, ability and integrity in rendering legal services to the country.

To Stollmeyer, Khan says that even though he emerged from the entrenched ruling class where his ancestors demonstrated that they were hard-working, industrious, fair-minded and just inhabitants of our country, there exists a personal cultural blot against him when he ruled in his capacity as a judge of the Supreme Court of Trinidad and Tobago that the Nehru suit does not befit the dignity and majesty of the Magistrates’ Court as a decent mode of dress for attorneys.

Justice Stollmeyer, Sir, Khan writes, “I have documented this cultural slur/blot against you in order to politely remind you that if perhaps you are subconsciously Eurocentric, that you take stock of yourself and demonstrate to the citizens of this country that you are not of the ilk as those who still hold the view that massa day must not done in this country and thus cling on to status and power by virtue of being a member of the JLSC.” Khan tells Stollmeyer further that he and his ancestors’ good name do(es) not need this false pride. Addressing Hamel-Smith and Stollmeyer as “Sahibs”, Khan says he knows that they possess the inner strength and courage to do what is morally right and decent and resign now,” telling them also not to allow “the apologists for the Chief Justice to mamaguy you to cling to false status and power.” Khan says it is his considered opinion that at this juncture the issue of due diligence is not sufficient in law to ground a legal removal of Hamel-Smith and Stollmeyer by the President.

He says the issue is one of morality in public affairs.

Khan feels that any proper investigation will reveal misbehaviour in public office which he says carries a penalty of 15 years imprisonment for anyone convicted of such an offence.

“Trinidad and Tobago has awakened to work which has been going on for a considerable amount of time,” Al Rawi said, adding, “We have been telling the population on a continuous basis that action is being taken, there is a lot more action to come to the fore.” Speaking at the San Fernando City Hall prior to a tour of the San Fernando West constituency with Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan, Al Rawi noted that the previous People’s Partnership Administration spent $1.2 billion in legal fees without any success in court.

“This government is taking a very quiet and dedicated approach in dealing with corruption, you will see that we have passed over certain information to the police and you are beginning to see some of that work coming into the public domain. What I can tell you is that you will see in the civil courts, fruits which would have been ripened very shortly,” he said.

“So that we assure you that we are taking a very dedicated but measured approach to how we deal with corruption and the allegation of corruption and I want to tell you that this is not confined to the past Administration only, wherever corruption raises its head, including under a PNM government, you will see that we will take action with transparency,” Al Rawi said.

Asked about the ongoing controversy regarding the Chief Justice and whether he should tender his resignation as being requested by the Law Association, Al Rawi said he did think the executive arm of government should become involved with the judicial arm.

“The executive has no role in the judiciary, we simply take note of developments. There is an active democracy in this country, certain quarters have come out and been very democratic in their purpose, but government has no role in the positioning between the judiciary and certain elements that are questioning it,” Al Rawi said.

Why? Once again there were heavy grief, family sorrow, and the unexpected and terrible bloody deaths of innocent persons. Why? If these killings were rituals of terror, what was the motive, the mind behind it? I then looked at a documentary (Clover Films) that separately covered the daily lives of Isis and Taliban soldiers and the residents of the mountainous villages around Kabul. An Isis group leader told two reporters they are all aware, as one example, of the “massive murders committed by Russia, France and America against their brothers.” Some left Taliban to join Isis, founded by Al Zarqawi in 2004 who violently exploited the broken-down Iraq left behind by US military. Suicide bombers and public beheading, a most frightening ritual, quickly attracted international attention. Isis surrealistic mission, the motivating idea and “God’s wish,” is an Islamic world (Caliphate). Killing such an idea is not easy.

It seemingly attracts youthful recruits. Why? Simonson and Spindlove (Terrorism Today) explained that “secular terrorists” view indiscriminate violence as “’immoral and counterproductive,” while “religious terrorists” view their violence as both “morally justified and necessary.” They use the language of religion, not so much the religion, to justify terrorism and a guilt-free mind. This lifted language preaches purity and order in a “disordered and vulgar world,” justifying violence. Simonson and Spindlove suggested that while secular terrorists seek to appeal to a constituency of their sympathisers and the aggrieved people they claim to speak for, religious terrorists act for no audience but themselves.

They added: “The absence of a constituency, combined with an extreme sense of alienation, means that such terrorists can logically justify almost limitless violence against virtually any target who is not a member of their own religious belief or sect.” For them, violence becomes a “religious duty.” In other words, briskly branding Abedi or other bombers as “crazy, irrational” or even “criminals” do not fit. They see their violence as “a holy mission,” leaving the rest of the world to wonder at Isis “impossible mission.” Both Isis and Taliban speak proudly of the revenge-bombings they inflicted from Russia’s St Petersburg to London and Europe.

Their relationship with Al Qaeda is hot and cold. “We have Mujahideen all over the world now,” said the Isis soldier. The documentary showed a Taliban attack on a barricaded camp of the Afghanistan National Army (ANA). Returning to their base and worried villagers, the Taliban leader announced two of their soldiers got killed but praised them as holy martyrs. They killed two but we killed seven, he said. Mainstream Muslims across the world have publicly expressed embarrassment over Isis and the Taliban, especially since terrorist victims include thousands of Muslims too.

Then there is the “Sunnis killing Shiites” and vice versa. Geopolitical differences and a fractured Middle East add to the complexity. There is growing consensus that a political, not a military, solution could help dampen a lot of terrorism. The flaw in this exists, for example, in Palestine which, facing Israel, contains sharp political divisions within Palestine itself. Quite a complex challenge.

In the occupied villages near Kabul, the locals express comfort with the Taliban’s presence. In another documentary (Clover Films) with a Danish journalist, the locals said since the Taliban appeared, there has been “no stealing, no adultery, few outstanding debts.” There is the panchayat ritual. Taliban leaders hold court and deliver sentences – chopped arms for stealing, execution for murder. In the documentary, US Ambassador to NATO, Kurt Volker noted how, before Taliban, the Afghan judicial system was very inefficient, very slow and corrupt.

No formal education for girls beyond puberty, advocates the Taliban.

In “Khalid Groups,” children five to twelve are taught how to hold guns and shoot. – a rite of passage.

They are reminded of how “the infidels k i l l e d t h e i r f a m i – lies.” The r i t u a l s b e g i n early.

Speaking prior to a tour of the San Fernando West constituency yesterday, Sinanan while commenting on the water-taxi’s reduced sailing on Friday, also expressed surprise that two of the four water taxis had not been operational for some time. “We had a challenge yesterday,” Sinanan said, adding, “The boat went down the night before so we had to pull one of the water taxi out so we had to cut short two of the sailings from San Fernando and we used the PTSC service to supplement.” “However, we have four water taxis in Trinidad and for some reason or the other, two were not working, we have sorted that problem out, we’ll soon have the four water taxis working so even if we lose one or two, we will still have two water taxis,” he said. “There is a problem in Trinidad with maintenance and we intend to fix that.” Regarding the much maligned seabridge, he said, “We are going through some challenges and I am fairly certain between the next week or two, we should no longer have these problems. I just want to wait until the I’s are dotted, the t’s crossed and this problem will be a thing of the past. Just bear with me about two weeks again and we will solve this problem going forward,” he said.

Sinanan continued: “We will have another ferry here within the next two weeks I expect, so once that is sorted out, we’ll have two ferries working, we should not have this problem going forward.

I just ask the population, just bear with us a little while again, we will solve the cargo problem and we will solve the passenger ferry problem,” he said.

Flanked by both San Fernando West MP Faris Al Rawi and San Fernando Mayor Junia Regrello, Sinanan said the Ministry presently has an ongoing “road maintenance program” to rehabilitate roads before they fall into a state of disrepair.

“What we are trying to do is avoid letting the road get to the position where we have to spend significant amounts of money, we trying to implement in the Ministry of Works more maintenance and road rehabilitation, if we can get that right, the country will save a lot of money trying to just pave all the roads just before elections, we want to start now to rehabilitate the roads so that we can at least save going forward,” he said.

He said the Ministry was also addressing damage done to secondary roads by trucks saying the Licensing Department and traffic wardens would soon be enforcing the law regarding the use of these vehicles. “We intend to put our foot down on that one because trucks are licensed for certain roads but what we find happening because of the traffic congestion and everybody want to get to and from, and in local parlance, pull the most trip for the day, they pass in all the back roads and once they pass twice, they damage the roads,” Sinanan said.

“We going to utilise the traffic wardens with the proper signage and the Licensing department will be definitely cracking down on this. When you license a vehicle, especially those vehicles you see sometimes with the S on it, those vehicles were licensed for specific roads and if they are found on roads they are not supposed to be on, then that is a violation,” he said.

He also touched on the flooding along Mosquito Creek saying he had instructed NIDCO to place personnel at the pumps given the advent of the rainy season.

Meanwhile, Al Rawi, who also holds the portfolio of Attorney General, said the Works and Transport Ministry had been able to secure one billion dollars from the OAS contract through the courts and this money would be used to continue the San Fernando to Point Fortin highway.

And with the tour expected to visit kings Wharf, Al Rawi said public transportation was another significant issues in San Fernando as the city was plagued with “traffic congestion and circulation.”

In a media statement yesterday, the Caroni East MP noted that Piggott’s resignation had come in the wake of, “Serious allegations of corruption, big rigging, abuse of office, squander and worker victimisation.” “Details of these include the fixing of million-dollar contracts to favour cronies of the PNM; disbarring certain previous contractors, re-opening closed tenders, misuse of funds, awarding a deal in excess of $50 million to a contractor who scored the lowest in the evaluation process and overall abuse of the public’s trust,” Gopeesingh claimed.

He said the remaining directors had, “No moral authority to continue to cling onto public office in the face of these extensive and shocking revelations which, if substantiated by the audit that is currently being undertaken by the Ministry of Finance and Attorney General, point to misconduct, illegal activities and gross misbehaviour in public life.” “As such, to preserve the integrity of the aforementioned Government-commissioned investigations, as well as the ongoing viability of the EFCL, the directors must immediately step down or be summarily fired,” he stated.

He said Education Minister Anthony Garcia and Junior Education Minister Dr Lovell Francis, to whom the EFCL Board of Directors reports, should also be held responsible.

“As the public officers with ministerial responsibility for EFCL, the buck stops with Mr Garcia and Dr Francis,” he stated.