The Year 2016 posed numerous challenges to our beloved Twin Island Republic, Trinidad and Tobago and by extension the Co-operative Credit Union Movement. But, consistent with its people centered moorings, the Movement was able to rise like the true beacon of light and hope, providing hundreds of thousands of persons of modest means an opportunity to maintain, sustain and in some cases enhance their social and economic standing in our society. We took strength from Matthew 6:31-34, which states:

– 31: So do not worry saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or ‘What shall we wear?” 32: For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly father knows that you need them. 33: But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all those things will be given to you as well. 34: Therefore do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own!

So, as we meandered our way across the troubled waters of everyday life, we were able to achieve a degree of success in the face of all the local, regional and global economic upheavals that continue to bedevil our world. This certainly has demonstrated that the foundational pillars of the Movement are indelibly emboldened with unshakable and non-malleable principles and an ideological underpinning that takes its learning’s from the life of Jesus Christ. We continue to reemphasise that this Movement practices the virtues of humility, honesty, transparency, sharing, caring and loving, and has a strong spiritual underpinning. We thrive on our motto of ‘Not for Profit, Not for Charity, But for Service’ and we once again demonstrated that the Movement takes its teachings from life of Jesus Christ. We refer to Mark 10:44-45 which states:

– 44: and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45: For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Hundreds of persons of modest means continue to selflessly volunteer their time and resources to give their lives as a ransom to many. I salute those persons and implore them to continue on this positive and progressive path of human development. This has caused us to see positive growth within this people based and people centered Movement that cherishes its indigenous character and ensures that we maintain that shareholder democracy that serves as the bedrock of this noble Movement.

The Credit Union Movement has entrenched itself within the socio-economic landscape of the country in a significant manner, providing that critical buffer for persons of modest means to live a better life as envisaged by Christ’s sacrifice.

As such, we are emboldened in our view that the Co-operative Credit Union Movement is sacrosanct and as such must be preserved and developed to ensure that the dream of social and economic justice as articulated by Jesus Christ be realised.

Therefore, as we reflect on the message of Christmas of peace and goodwill to all mankind, let us commit to the teachings of Christ in Mark 10:44-45, let us reach out to those persons who are less fortunate and less possessed and extend a hand of love and care. Let us focus on our lifelong motto of “Service to our Members.” We must never ever be distracted from this fundamental philosophical pillar and deviate towards greed. We have all seen the destructive nature of this behaviour.

I want to wish all co-operators and citizens of our twin island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, a very merry, holy, spiritualand socially conscious Christmas as we continue to say: One Movement , Speaking With One Voice.

The gala affair was attended by several diplomatic representatives, including the Jamaican High Commissioner, David Pendergast; German Ambassador, Dr. Lutz Hermann Gorgens; and Head of Mission Embassy of the Netherlands, Phillip Bastiaenen. Also in attendance were the acting inspector of Financial Institutions, Michelle Chong Tai- Bell; chairman of First Citizens Bank, Anthony Smart; and the managing director of Scotiabank Trinidad, Anya Schnoor. Executive chairman, Rani Lakhan-Narace in her address said that despite the economic challenges, TRINRE was able to see a number of strategic initiatives come to fruition. These she assured would continue to chart a clear course of continued success for the organisation.

Expanding further, she shared that premium financing for TRINRE’s customers was recently added as a value added service and signaled the company’s strides towards expanding its product offerings to the life insurance sector to fulfill market needs in an entirely new way. Lakhan-Narace expressed that significant progress was made towards completing a state of the art insurance software which having been assessed by a global financial institution was found to meet rigorous international standards, particularly in the area of data security and real time service delivery. She also highlighted the company’s ever present social conscience, evident through the TRINRE Foundation’s initiatives such as “Help Haiti Again”, “Christmas Cheer” and the “Joy of Reading Programme”. Each year TRINRE seeks out new and upcoming talent to provide its entertainment.

For this edition, the appreciative audience was treated to the musical sounds of new band, The Flick, who kept the energy soaring and feet tapping as their versatility shone through a diverse genre of songs.

Applauding the gesture of Farm Fresh Foods to donate 100 bags of fresh fruit and vegetable produce to the less fortunate in our society, the Minister said he is “very pleased; this is a good start since it signals that your management recognise the need to contribute to those who need our support.” The Minister noted that there are diff erent players in the agricultural space, including the farmers and farm-to-table entrepreneurs, evidenced by the various farmers’ markets operati onal across the country. He extolled the advantages of the comfortable and safe environment that exists at all the Farmers’ Markets operated by NAMDEVCO.

He shared with the audience his parti cipati on in the launch of ‘Achiote Paste’, from the Bush Bush line, a roucou-based product used as food colouring and fl avoring, from the Biche community. He committ ed to introduce the rural producers and Farm Fresh Foods to allow for an additi onal marketi ng opportunity for their products.

Calling att enti on to the mandate to give back, Senator Rambharat stated, “We have had a really good run of Family Nights Under the Lights this year, expanding to Rio Claro and Palmiste, San Fernando,” inviti ng Farm Fresh Foods to be one of the partners for next year’s series of events.

Farm Fresh Foods owner, Crystal Maharaj, said that the organisati on was birthed out of the desire to fi ll a need for persons who did not have the ti me to go to the markets themselves. She said that this is a “marriage of technology with agriculture.” Farm Fresh Foods is an online market place that allows customers to buy their fresh fruit and vegetables via its website and have it delivered to their homes or offi ces. The e-commerce store is the fi rst of its kind in Trinidad and is growing rapidly by now supplying not only individuals but also restaurants and other service industry businesses.

Held on December 11, at the the Maracas Presbyterian Primary School for residents of Acono Village, Maracas Valley, the event was sponsored by the Coosal’s Group of Companies (Coosal’s), whose Maracas Quarry operations are located nearby.

Coosal’s said “it brings great pleasure” to its CEO, Sieunarine Coosal, and his wife, Sintra Coosal, “to have the opportunity to spend this quality time with (the) esteemed neighbours of our Maracas Quarry operations.”

John Reid, CEO of C&W, who was recently confirmed as top executive of the region-leading full service operator, said: “Our business is entering a new phase of its development and evolution, and I am excited about the expertise, experience and passion for customers that Garry brings to what is a critical role.” As head of the Caribbean, Sinclair will be responsible for the strategic execution, financial performance and reputation of the Caribbean business, developing the Company’s growth opportunities, in particular tripleplay, mobile data and fixed-mobile convergence, as well as capturing the growing demand for businessto- business services.

Sinclair, a Jamaica national, is uniquely qualified to lead the Caribbean business given his 20 years’ experience in developing growth opportunities and transformation in organisations across the region. In his role as president and COO of investment bank Dehring Bunting & Golding, Sinclair grew a start-up business to be key player in the Caribbean financial services industry.

More recently, for the past seven years as CEO of Cable & Wireless Jamaica he has successfully led the operation’s transformation, growing the mobile subscriber base from two hundred thousand to almost one million customers, as well as leading the company’s 800 plus employees through the integration of the Columbus and C&W businesses to become the country’s leading converged telecoms operator.

In addition, his range of Board appointments including financial institutions, youth empowerment and the Jamaica Football Federation demonstrates Sinclair’s leadership experience and passion for Caribbean development, qualities key to C&W’s development and growth across the Caribbean.

“I am honored to lead our Caribbean business into the next chapter of its development. I look forward to working with our 3,300 employees across the region as we look to seize the opportunity to develop our products and services, continue the transformation of our operations, and lead the region in innovation and quality of customer experience”, said Sinclair.

Sinclair’s appointment will take effect on January 1, 2017; in addition he will continue to oversee C&W’s Jamaica business directly until the appointment of new leadership for that operation later in the New Year.

Carmino has been at Pepper for almost three years and handles several market leading brands including Mario’s Pizza, Swiss (Vemco) and Moo! Milks (Hand Arnold).

As Senior AE, he will continue to be responsible for his clients as well as work on new business and get more involved in strategic planning.

Liliana Ragbir-Sookaran, Team Lead of Client Services, said “Devan is very committed to Pepper and his commitment and passion helps us to serve our clients better.

He has strong people skills and gets along well with people across the agency and his easy going and positive attitude contributes to a fun environment.” Devan holds a Master’s Degree from the University of North Carolina. Chief inspirer at Pepper, Dennis Ramdeen said, “Devan has embraced our credo that a brand must own one thing. He is organised and focused and a great asset to our team.

In addition, he has successfully managed various events, including Mario’s Pizza Eating Competition nationwide and has been developing his skills in social media and digital marketing.” Ramdeen added, “Devan sets high standards for himself and he takes his clients’ business seriously and he is definitely on the right trajectory to becoming a leader in this wonderful business called marketing.”

According to reports, the perm sec in question was informed of his suspension last week Thursday and immediately vacated his office.

It remains unclear why the perm sec was placed on suspension, however, sources revealed there was an issue which resulted in an investigation and at the end a decision was taken to have him suspended. Yesterday, news also circulated that the perm sec was also the subject of a police investigation by officers of the anti-corruption bureau.

Efforts to reach this perm sec for comment proved futile however, the line Minister who worked with the perm sec said he too was told that the public servant was indeed suspended.

The Minister said he was also informed officially that he will be getting a new permanent secretary soon.

Asked by Newsday if he was aware of why the perm sec was suspended, the Minister said he did not have a clue. Asked again if the perm sec’s suspension had anything to do with wrong doing in public office, the Minister said, all he knew was that there was an issue and the perm sec was no longer on duty.

The minister said he was not even aware that the perm sec was the subject of any police investigation.

Earlier this year, the perm sec reported to police that the tyres to his vehicle were slashed at the Ministry compound by two employees who were subsequently arrested and charged for the offence.

Security guard Ashumba Francois, 26, of Pleasantville appeared before Senior Magistrate Nanette Forde-John in the San Fernando First Court to answer the charge.

The charge alleged that on October 6, while inside the Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) outlet at Library Corner in San Fernando, Estate Constable Francois, who was a customer in the fast food outlet, placed his hand under the school uniform of the child and grabbed her private parts.

The child immediately told her mother who was standing nearby trying to place a food order. A report was made to the San Fernando Police and detective constable Brent Noel began enquiries and subsequently arrested and charged Francois.

Told of the charge and how he wanted to plead, Francois said he was guilty as charged. Magistrate Forde-John then imposed the custodial sentence on the accused and ordered hard labour.

This was the view of Ag Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) and Head of the Homicide Investigations Bureau Wayne Dick on the successful completion of investigations into the murder of Republic Bank employee Shannon Banfield which ended in a man being charged for her murder and taken to court yesterday.

At a press conference convened at Police Administration Building in Port-of-Spain, Ag DCP Dick confirmed that Dale Seecharan, an employee of IAM & Co Limited was re-arrested and formally charged for 20-year-old Banfield’s murder. An autopsy showed that the young woman was smothered.

“It was a very painstaking investigation that entailed alot of patience and commitment from members of the Homicide Investigations Bureau supported by members of the Special Branch, Criminal Gang and Intelligence Unit, Port-of-Spain Task Force and the Criminal Records Office, which led to the arrest of one Dale Seecharan, who was then an employee at IAM and Company Limited, located at Charlottte Street in Port-of-Spain,” Ag DCP Dick stated.

Dick thanked all officers involved in the investigations, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard SC, Director at the Forensic Science Centre Arlette Lewis and a “special thanks” to Ishmael Ali, owner of IAM & Co and the management of Pennywise Limited for their input in the successful investigation. He alluded to an effective partnering between the Police Service and the business community which led to a successful outcome.

Banfield was found dead on a shelf in a room on the third floor of IAM & Co Ltd’s warehouse store on December 8, three days after she was reported missing by her family after she failed to return to their Santa Cruz home. Two men were immediately identified by police as ‘persons of interest’ in the case and arrested. Both were later freed while one of them was rearrested only to be freed again.

Asked about the strength of the State’s case, Ag DCP Dick responded, “My experience in Homicide affords me the opportunity to say to you…the case is strong. The Director of Public Prosecutions in whom I have great respect, will not in any way give directions or advice on the prosecution of someone, if the standard burden of proof required to bring a charge against a person, is not met.” The top cop also denied widespread rumours that Banfield’s body was found eviscerated (internal organs removed). “There is absolutely no truth to that claim,” he said. Ag DCP Dick also rubbished rumours of skeletal remains being found in IAM & Co.

On the conduct of the investigators, Dick said: “I would personally like to commend the officers in this investigation. I am pleased with the manner in which the investigators conducted their enquiries. I am pleased with the support of the executive officers of the police service and I am indeed pleased with members of the public along Charlotte Street and in other areas. Investigators ended up in Laventille…

so wherever they got information they went and pursued leads.” He revealed that only an hour before yesterday’s press conference, was the crime scene on the third floor of the warehouse store was handed back to IAM & Co management because, “when we take charge of a scene, we are in full control of that scene until it’s properly explored. That entire store was properly explored, properly searched. So while it may appear as if you’re going back because you didn’t do (a thorough job), it’s not because of that. It’s because it’s a big store and a thorough search was done.” The arrest and laying of a murder charge came hours after Shannon’s mother Sherry Ann Lopez led a justice march on Monday evening through the streets of Port-of- Spain in Shannon’s honour.

Magistrate Nanette Forde John did not say if bail will be granted to the 43-year-old woman when she is arrested.

The magistrate has been presiding over the case in which the stepfather who is 53, is charged for indecently assaulting his step-daughter on June 17, 2014. The allegation is that the stepfather who is from Penal, touched the child’s breast. Teachers from a school where the child attends, made a complaint to police which led to the charge being laid.

The accused man has been attending the San Fernando Magistrates’ court and so to has the mother and child. During several hearings that were conducted, the mother had been taking the child to the courthouse. Two other women who are witnesses for the police, have also been attending. They trial is yet to start.

When the case was called on November 10, neither the accused man’s wife nor his step-daughter (the virtual complainant) were in court. The two women were present and so to was the accused stepfather.

Magistrate Forde- John issued a summons for the mother to attend court to explain why she had refused to bring the child to court. The summons was served on the woman on November 26. The case was adjourned to yesterday’s date.

When the case was called yesterday, the stepfather appeared along with his attorney Jeevan Andrew Rampersad.

The two women sat in court as witnesses.

Magistrate Forde-John observed that once again the mother and the virtual complainant were not present and she enquired from court prosecutor PC Cleyon Seedan, about this absence. PC Seedan said that despite the summons that was issued, the mother still refused to attend. He then asked that a warrant be issued for her arrest.

Attorney Rampersad told the magistrate that because of the continued absence of the main witness (the virtual complainant) the case against his client should be dismissed.

Magistrate Forde-John stood the case down for a few minutes.

When the matter resumed, PC Seedan told the court that the police was requesting that a warrant be issued for the arrest of the victim’s mother.

Woman Police Constable Cooper was then called and asked to go into the witness box. WPC Cooper took the oath and testified that she had sworn to the summons and served same to the victim’s mother on November 26. Magistrate Forde- John then obliged the prosecutor’s request and signed a bench warrant for the arrest of the victim’s mother.

The case was then adjourned to January 17.