Retreat means to draw back. It translates to withdrawal from attacking enemy forces. We can look at it as moving back from a difficult situation.
It can be a movement to a secluded and quiet place. It can be deemed a place to be alone and pray for a time. What is the Government running from? The Opposition,the price of oil? Those that run away live to fight another day. Time will tell.
No retreat, no surrender.
AV Rampersad Princes Town
In 2015, after seven years as president general, Roget, in dramatic style, publicly tore up a Petrotrin letter that sought to end his secondment to the OWTU. Requested by the OWTU of Petrotrin, Roget’s secondment, allows for leaves of absence with pay to perform full-time work for OWTU for a period of up to two years, which can be extended for an additional two years. According to reports, normally no more than four years are granted.
In 2015, it was also reported that Roget was in the middle of his second four-year term. My guess is that the second fouryear term is about to end, and a fourth request for a problematic extension of secondment is in the works. It was reported that the oil company complied with three OWTU requests for secondment extensions for Roget. In addition, since 2008, while Petrotrin has been paying Roget’s substantial salary and employer’s pension, the OWTU has been making their own contributions to the president general’s pension, in addition to other substantial emoluments.
If Roget is to be believed, settling outstanding negotiations, honouring collective agreements (however opportunistic and serving a common interest), is not mainly about money, as he said in 2013. Horrifically, neither does it appear in 2016 the OWTU looming strike action, intending to bring a country to its knees, has any ideological purpose. Roget’s attempt to shut down a besieged country, in his words – as long as three months, even if the country suffers – is downright treasonable.
Yes, there’s a method to the mayhem madness. Clearly, timing is key. Roget has no plans to give up his OWTU presidency, or to retire from Petrotrin, until his due date in 2025. His posturing, featuring identifiable time frames and strategy, magnifies and explains a deeply personal and private agenda, like the maintenance and or accumulation of benefits, intricately interwoven with long term power and control goals.
It’s a classic case of having one’s cake and eating it. Sadly, Roget’s conflict of interest conduct as employee and citizen, and Petrotrin’s inability to act in its own best interest are being overshadowed and ridden over by threats and theatrics, supported by some immoral workers who putting themselves before country and their jobs at risk. Isn’t about time Roget comes clean with oil workers?
Kathleen Pinder Via email
Upcycle means to reuse (discarded objects or material) in such a way as to create a product of higher quality or value than the original.
Foreign currency pressures would be mitigated if many of the commercial buy and sell businesses closed up shop and online shopping expended. So people could have use of the money commercial businesses spend to buy what they need online at reduced cost. Also T&T should take seriously recycling and inventing new uses for materials and goods it would normally discard as refuse. Billions of dollars in useful recyclable materials are sent for burial or burning in the country’s dumps. The Local Government Minister is forecasting a national cleanup week starting January 16th.
Steupes…. this not what the country needs. This is more short term political vision.
After a day of gathering up rejected materials what happens next? The next day the whole country will go back to usual dumping in the wrong place, stinking up the country again, undoing clean-up effort. So what’s needed is a collection and recycling system. It’s been talked about for half a century in T&T. Governments come and go and no effective material rejection collection and recycling system has ever been formulated to transform talk to implementation.
What is more, T&T should be taught to think differently about garbage. If T&T could rise to the occasion to become creative with discarded articles, the country could invent new application for discards rather than sending them for burial or burning at dump sites. And in so doing, reduce the amount of products it imports, which then adds to national waste.
Alan Peters via email
Those present included new chairman, Paul Leacock, and Vice Chairman, Onika Haynes. Representatives first toured the corporation’s headquarters at Centenary Street, Tunapuna, then boarded mini-buses to visit the corporation’s premises at Macoya which included the Transport, Stores and Disaster Management Units. At the latter, disaster coordinator, Rishi Siew, demonstrated, via a television monitor, real-time accounts of regional weather systems and earthquake activity. He disclosed that since the 6.2 magnitude earthquake that startled Trinidad in early December, this country has experienced 120 other earth tremors, detected by equipment even if unfelt by the human senses. Siew said his unit’s role includes monitoring activity at the “Big Stage” of the Queens Park Savannah, Port-of-Spain, at Carnival.
After the tour, councillors and aldermen received their briefing packages, had lunch and then heard a lecture by Independent Senator Stephen Crease, himself a former local government official.
Leacock, who served under his predecessor, Edwin Gooding, as former vice chairman, told Newsday the council is now easing into a continuation of the past pattern of works.
“I was mentored under his (Gooding’s) leadership, and therefore a lot of what we’ve started to pursue was already in train.” He noted the challenge of getting workers to settle down now after Christmas, but have found the staff to have a quite willing approach. “The CEO has been working well with us. She has some concerns about how things are done but we are working through the issues, and we are headed in the same direction.” He said it’s great to have a council comprised of relatively young persons. “We are finding ways to get them to understand what the process is. This orientation really should be the first step in setting them in a direction for how the council functions, what are the departments, and who your contacts are,” Leacock said.
“Some of them have had a baptism of fire.
For example Councillor Candice Allain came in at our elections in the week of rains in Paria.
So from the day after elections, she would have been in Madamas and Paria, crossing large areas of landslips, going out to meet with the children and the community, and she’s done a great job. A few others had issues too. Councillor Josann Moses in her area in Aripo, Councillor Judy Garner had some flooding, Councillor Samuel Sankat had some flooding.
Councillor J-Lynn Roopnarine had a fire in her area. Councillor Josiah Austin had two rooftops blow off. It’s been quite a challenging first month but we are doing well and are looking forward to continuing the work, as a team. Although we may represent different parties we are here for the people of TT.” Leacock said the council had a nice mix of freshness and experience.
“The vice chairman (Haynes) has had 11 years of service at local government – seven years as a councillor and four as an alderman. We have six returning councillors who have three years service.” Other councillors had served in two councils ago, he said, including Councillor Roopnarine.
“So we have about six people who are genuinely new. They are young and vibrant and bring their professional lives.”
This was revealed by PLOTT co-founder, Gillian Wall, during an interview with Newsday at the group’s monthly meeting, held yesterday at Kam Wah Chinese Restaurant, Maraval Road, Portof- Spain.
“C-SAFE has been downloaded about 3,500 times since it’s December 22 (2016) launch. The app is being accessed at least two to eight times a day, which means it’s being frequently utilised.
So the usage is probably close to 30,000 in terms of the amount of times individuals are going on.
They’re looking at tips, police alerts on theft, missing persons et cetera. People are also utilising the app to submit reports on electricity issues, water shortages, representation type issues, because there’s also that element,” Wall shared.
Users have the option to submit reports without including their personal information, such as sex, age and location. Regarding what the app is most frequently used to do, Wall told Newsday “the majority of the reports so far have been crime-related (as well as) water and electricity related. Those reports are all going to the relevant bodies; TTPS, WASA, TTEC.”
Smith’s body was found floating in waters off Trinidad’s west coast on November 21, 2015. His family did not believe he drowned.
They believed he was killed by a group of soldiers.
The PCA has also recommended that further investigation be conducted by the Homicide Bureau “relevant to the identities of the soldiers and their reports/ statements, reports from the district medical officer and first responders to the scene of the incident etc, and confirmation that the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force is investigating the alleged involvement of their officers” in Smith’s death.
In a letter dated December 1, 2016 to one of Smith’s relatives who filed a complaint, PCA Director, David West said that the PCA has concluded its investigations into the complaint “which contained allegations of neglect of duty against (officer named) for the failure to efficiently and thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding (Smith’s) death.” After careful perusal of the evidence gathered in the matter, West said, the PCA has found merit in the allegations made, and has forwarded its investigative file to the office of the Commissioner of Police to consider disciplinary action against the officer. On November 23, 2015, Smith’s mother Gloria had told Newsday that her son had an altercation with a group of soldiers two days before in the Carenage area where they were repairing a house which was damaged by a TTDF helicopter a few weeks before.
During the altercation, she said, her son was struck with a shovel in his stomach.
She said he had told her that some soldiers had beaten him because “he was talking, and he was not taking that.” She also said she told him that “that when it comes to military people, as a poor man you don’t get justice, so I told him, ‘the most you could do is take a little rest, and when you done tell the police’.” She said he had also related to relatives in the area what had happened but no one had come to his defence. She had claimed that the soldiers were drinking alcohol while they worked.
Some 20 minutes after speaking to Brian, she said she got a phone call in which she was informed that he had drowned.
She claimed he was “a very good swimmer” and could not understand how he drowned.
Gloria said someone from the area claimed they had seen the soldiers hit Brian in his face with a shovel and then throw him in the sea.
A first autopsy performed by Government forensic pathologist Dr Eslyn McDonald-Burris at the Forensic Science Centre declared that Smith had drowned.
A second autopsy done by Dr Hughvon des Vignes at the request of the family showed that Smith died from blunt force trauma to the head and was possibly already dead when he entered the water. The autopsy revealed blunt force trauma, a cracked skull, and several other visible signs of violence to the body.
Cipriani was diagnosed with biliary atresia – a life-threatening disease in infants caused by abnormalities in the bile ducts – which resulted in his liver swelling to 11 inches in width, causing him immense pain and threatening his life. To put his liver’s size in context, adult males have livers of six inches in width on average.
The CLF funded the surgery as well as the family’s three-month stay in Argentina to allow for Cipriani’s recovery. However, his doctor has since advised that he stay a further month so that his recovery can be properly monitored.
Attempts to reach the CLF for comment were unsuccessful, but Cipriani’s grandmother said that the CLF told her they were seeking the assistance of a similar fund to their own in Argentina to fund their stay. Anyone willing to donate to Nathaniel’s stay and recovery in Argentina can send money to his grandmother’s Republic Bank account number 660034509431. Her name is Lisa Cipriani. Her contact number is 393-2602.
In a media release on Thursday, Doodnath stated that Murray Trace, Siparia, a former agricultural access road, had been paved with the construction of drains, and had become an extremely busy thoroughfare, linking Siparia to San Fernando, “saving commuters time and money.” “It’s a green and scenic drive.
Unfortunately it has now become an unsightly dumping site,” Doodnath, the Siparia East/San Francique South councillor, said.
“The idea is to engage NGO ’s, business enterprises, religious organisations, private citizens, sporting clubs, schools, on a voluntary basis, to clean up and beautify Murray Trace,” he said, adding that works would commence later in January.
Originally a Dutch company with roots as far back as the 19th century, Hunkem?ller is rapidly expanding throughout Europe and through its franchise programme now has over 722 locations globally.
InvesTT said the local store opening was made possible because of a partnership be tween “US-based master franchising company, Brand Management Ventures Limited (BMVL) (and) a prominent Trinidadian entrepreneur, through BMVL’s locally registered subsidiary Brand Management Limited (BML).” This partnership followed an introduction facilitated by InvesTT, this country’s national investment promotion agency which falls under the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
“The engagement between InvesTT, BMVL and BML began in 2013 when the agency was instrumental in identifying local partners, providing assistance with the business registration, customs clearance and coordinating site visits, as BMVL’s plans for Trinidad and Tobago will continue to create opportunities for local business persons to partner alongside world class brands,” InvesTT stated.
Noting these partnerships have to potential to extend beyond TT to the rest of the Caribbean, InvesTT’s Acting President Stacy Adams, “We continue to give BML all the support they need to expand their business in TT while creating investment opportunities for local investors.” Hunkem?ller is the second global brand to be introduced in TT by BML.
“Earlier in 2016 they successfully introduced the Polish brand Inglot Cosmetics in partnership with Starlite Drugs. Collectively, both brands have produced approximately 15 jobs in Trinidad with the potential for increased employment as additional Hunkem?ller and Inglot Cosmetics stores are expected to be set up over the next two years. In fact, Inglot will launch a second store in SouthPark in March 2017,” InvesTT said.
Richard Aquilina, Partner of both BMVL and BML, said Trinidad remains a key retail market for BML.
“We have been particularly encouraged by the performance of Inglot in Trinidad and believe Hunkemoller too will be received well by local consumers.
In both cases, Inglot and latterlyHunkem?ller, fill gaps in the retail marketplace offering quality products at affordable prices.” “Focussing on Trinidad initially, we see this as a springboard for further expansion and development not only within TT but also across the Caribbean.
InvesTT has been paramount in supporting our strategy to date offering advice and support across a wide spectrum of areas and certainly we would not be in the position we are today without their help and support,” Aquilina said.
This year “The Story Continues” with the addition of Austin “Superblue” Lyons at the event that takes place Under the Trees at Hotel Normandie on January 28, from 5 pm.
At a media briefing held at The Normandie in St Ann’s yesterday, Pelham Goddard, bandleader and musical director said: “The music of Roots carries a long story.
The music will take us back from the 70’s when it started, through all the road marches, other songs like Singing Francine’s “Run Away” and Tambu’s “Makes Me Groove” and more.
So we will have a continuation of the story from last year to present to you.” Goddard spoke of people like Chris “Tambu” Herbert, David Rudder, Penguin (Sedley Joseph), Maestro (Cecil Hume) and Calypso Rose (MaCartha Sandy-Lewis) who he said all did the music that Roots produced for them.
He said: “Roots was a band that always moved with a cast of entertainers starting off in Guyana with Kaisoca, then we went to America and then wherever there was a carnival. On those Carnival days we would have people on the truck singing the same music Roots produced for them.” He paid tribute to musicians who were around at the time including Albert Busche, Eman Ector, Vonrick Maynard, Hayden Robin and Enrique Moore, but stated that this year an equally good cast of musicians and singers will be on the playbill.
Apart from David Rudder, 3Canal, Roger George, Moricia Cagan and Nigel O’Connor, Goddard said: “This year we have on board Superblue, who was part of the band after winning Road Marches with “Soca Baptist”, “Ethel” and Rebecca”, all of which was Roots music. So too, “Wine on Something” and “Get Something And Wave”. He will be singing those songs this year.” Goddard also stated: “There will be no chairs in the party.
Chairs are our enemies.” Earlier Nikki Crosby gave a brief history of Roots before letting the audience know that for the 2017 edition of the event there will be a slight twist, with the inclusion of Superblue. She reasoned: “Superblue is eight times Road March Champion and six of those were arranged by Goddard and the music played by Roots.” She added: “The continuation features an in depth look at artistry and connectivity of Goddard’s music, the lyrical instructions of Rudder, the melodious party lyrics of “Tambu”, the spiritual rhythmic soca influences of Superblue and the venomous lyrical vibes of 3Canal.
