While she awaited the results of an autopsy performed at the Forensic Science Centre, St James yesterday, the mother of the slain construction worker told reporters she was baffled, confused and shocked by her son’s death.

“I pray to the Almighty for my children, and I ask the Lord to cover them with the blood of Jesus,” said Harewood, “never knowing that I would come and see my son covered in his own blood.” According to reports, James was walking along 5th street Pranz Gardens, when he was approached by a lone gunman who shot James several times in his upper body. James reportedly died on the spot, just outside the house where Anil Sankar’s wake was held.

Sankar’s decomposing body was found hours before, in a house which is a stone’s throw away from where James lived. Although no reports have yet indicated that the two murders are linked, Newsday understands that James and Sankar were seen talking before Sankar went missing.

At Forensic, Harewood described her son as a loving person.

“Is a love more than a love,” said Harewood, “It is a child that was just about love and anyone that came in contact with him would tell you that he was a real loving child.” Harewood told reporters yesterday that she understands Sankar and James were friends. She also noted James never complained of anyone threatening him. She said that there would be trivial spats between James and other villagers, but it was never anything that could escalate to murder.

Homicide detectives up to press time have not yet ascertained a motive for James’ murder. Detectives however said the investigation is still in its initial stages.

James was among five persons who were murdered between Friday and Saturday evening. The murder toll now stands at 430 as compared to the same time last year which stood at 386.

Bloody Weekend.

Troy James, killed on Saturday in Claxton Bay during wake.

Danny Pacheco, killed during robbery in Mayaro on Saturday.

Kerol Austin, died after being shot in a bar in Carenage on Saturday Anil Sankar, found dead in Pranz Gardens, Claxton Bay on Friday Ronnie Hogan, shot dead in Sea Lots on Friday.

Justice Frank Seepersad yesterday ruled that Chunilal Guiness, who wanted to destroy the wall which separated both properties, had no greater right to the structure than the Salvation Army and by moving to demolish the wall, was guilty of trespass.

Guiness was ordered to pay the Salvation Army damages in the sum of $7,500 as well as costs and has been restrained from damaging or interfering with the wall.

The Salvation Army had, last year, filed a lawsuit against Guiness, the owner of the other parcel of land, who intended to have the wall demolished, claiming it was partly on his property.

In its claim form, the Salvation Army stated that it had been given permission by the previous owners of the land to construct the wall which measures approximately 150 feet in length and about 15 feet high. However, in August last year, Guiness became the new owner of the parcel of land and attempted to destroy the wall without a licence or consent of the claimants and despite repeated demands to cease, Guiness failed to cease demolition of the wall.

The Salvation Army also claimed that the defendant trespassed on its property and caused damage to property belonging to the claimants. With the granting of the injunction,Seepersad ordered that Guiness or his workmen refrain from carrying out any type of demolition work on the wall and trespassing on its property until the owners of the properties are determined during trial.

Chris Selochan and Tamara Dolsingh appeared for the Salvation Army while Anthony Manwar represented Guiness.

Dillon made this disclosure as he commented on the latest set of murders that took place in TT over the weekend and yesterday.

Among the persons murdered was a relative of Selwyn “Robocop” Alexis, who was murdered earlier this year.

Speaking with reporters during a break in an Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative seminar at Tower D of the Port-of- Spain International Waterfront Centre, Dillon said, “My concern is really reducing the murder rate as much as possible. All efforts are geared towards that.” After he noted the murders of Alexis’ relative and other persons, reporters asked Dillon whether any drastic measures would be taking place next year to bring the murder rate down.

Dillon said, “We continue to improve our operational capabilities, we continue to provide what is required for the police service to do what is necessary to provide continued support to them by the Defence Force.” Dillon, a former Chief of Staff of the Defence Force, then disclosed, “To that extent, we are in fact going to be setting up a sort of a forward base in Enterprise with the Army.

Informing reporters that the Army now operates out of El Socorro, Dillon envisioned the establishment of, “a firm base in Enterprise within the next week or so, where we will have a presence in Enterprise.” Reiterating that there is always room for improvement in terms of anti-crime measures, Dillon said, “Strategies are tested on the ground and we continue to adjust as we go along.” He told reporters, “You would have seen the police doing operations in Enterprise. This morning, you will them in Sea Lots and they continue to do so in various areas where they have identified, based on intelligence, a number of activities are taking place.” Noting intelligence is what drives security operations, Dillon explained, “To a large extent, if your intel is sound, you have a better chance of success in your operations.” Dillon said he was pleased to see the commanders of various police divisions starting to take charge of the areas under their jurisdiction and hoped this would go further.

“I want see that drill down, not only to just the commanders but down to station inspector, down to the sergeant, down to corporals, down to the constables on the beat,” the minister said.

Dillon said there is a statistical element to crime that cannot be measured, “in terms of the lives of somebody’s brother, somebody’s sister, somebody’s nephew.” On the community policing initiative which Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley spoke about on October 30, Dillon said that strategy is being adopted and advanced by Acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams.

While he could not give a time frame for the rollout of this initiative, he admitted that community policing has been tried before.

Dillon said the focus needs to be more refined to the extent, “where the police and the community are in a symbiotic relationship.” On October 30, Rowley also spoke about the launch of a Nationwide Crime Prevention Education and Mobilisation Programme that will give every citizen “from elementary school age and upwards” an opportunity to become involved in finding solutions to deal with crime.

The supplies were airlifted to the residents on Sunday by members of the Trinidad and Tobago Air Guard, a media release from the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force revealed.

The release also stated that members of the First Engineering Batallion is working closely with the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation and the Ministry of Works and Transport in an attempt to clear debris along transport routes. In addition to continued efforts from authorities, residents of Grande Riviere have also reported that water and electricity have returned to their homes following last week’s landslides which left many power lines along the North Coast badly damaged.

Newsday spoke yesterday to several residents of Grand Riviere who said that they are grateful for the support they have received during their time of need. “We got back our electricity at about 3am yesterday (Sunday) morning and our water not long before.

We’re very grateful for the work the army and the ODPM (Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management) have been doing for us thus far.” Other residents, however, said that while they were happy that a sense of normalcy has returned to their community, they remain uneasy as many farmers have lost crops during the landslides.

One such farmer, Leroy Peters, said that he and other farmers are now uncertain what their fates will be. “Right now we’re just waiting to see what happens next.

I’m supposed to get a visit from some officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries tomorrow (today) but they haven’t indicated to me how long the process may take or even if I will be able to receive any compensation for the crops lost.”

Parents are the ones to protect their children from the evil ones; they cannot protect themselves.

Too many children have been abused in all forms and fashion. Imagine a 14-year-old child is pregnant and a preacher is caught having sex with her.

Then there is the 18-year-old with three children for a “big man”.

Where are the parents in all of this? Parents continue to fail and disappoint their children.

Only last week three children suffered before death ended their pain, two by fire and one by murder. This should never have happen. That four-yearold little girl should have been alive today if she had gotten proper attention.

We cannot take everything for granted. If parents feel that something is not right, follow your gut. You cannot trust people with your children. Not everybody will like your children.

People need to be careful who they are bringing into their children’s lives.

Do not leave children unsupervised, that is playing Russian roulette with their lives. Parents, please put things in place when you have to go out, make some kind of arrangement with a friend, or a relative.

If you cannot find someone to supervise your children, take them with you. If you can’t take them with you, then stay home with them. Do not put their lives in danger.

This kind of thing is happening too much. These children did not get the opportunity to grow up because their lives were snuffed out before their time.

Remember that they did not ask to come here. Parents, children are a blessing, children are the heritage of the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is His reward (Psalm 127: 3).

MODICIA MARTIN via email

Studies confirm that some find it perfectly comfortable to openly discriminate against those who identify with a party or political ideas opposing their own. Sadly, this is now increasingly the situation here in TT , where we have seen brother suing brother in political cause.

How does one prevent strong political disagreement from undermining relationships, forged over a lifetime, between you and your friends? Perhaps, the easiest way to stay friends is to avoid discussing politics altogether. Too often, it just does not pay to raise such issues, especially with someone who invariably gets excessively, unreasonably feisty about political affairs; adopting a right and righteous attitude.

One expects reasonably intelligent adults to be able to engage in political discourse without the conversation degenerating into belligerence or nastiness.

Regardless of political affiliation, it should be relatively easy for friends to acknowledge differences of viewpoint. And to do so rather quickly, with no pressure to compromise or reconcile ideas.

In which case, they can press on effortlessly thereafter to find common ground on other issues, based on mutual respect.

There is then no threat to that unshakeable bond which glues the friendship in the first place. This is the civility and grace sought in human relationships which underpin the understanding of the human being as a social animal.

Unfortunately, the tenor of politics in the country, emphatically displayed during the recent local government election campaign, tells a different story. It is more likely that intense acrimony will prevail in the foreseeable future.

And that polarised politics will be with us for a long time to come.

There is little hope or indication that we are nearer understanding that there is more to life than politics.

It can be very difficult, sometimes impossible, to maintain relationships with friends who relentlessly persist in trying to dissuade you from your position while zealously attempting to impose theirs.

A similar situation holds with those whose insensitivity rages as they continually belittle your point of view. Then there are others with whom political discussions are impossible without their recourse to becoming combative.

Good, longstanding friendship is built on a foundation of trustworthiness and an easy-going affability, fuelled by compassion and understanding.

Friends with different perspectives enrich each other, adding value to society as a whole.

We do not maintain relationships with our friends to change them, but rather to provide one another with alternate openings through which to view contradictions and issues; another window for understanding life.

More than that, they are our friends and we value them for who they are; their politics being but one aspect of their complex identities.

WINSTON R RUDDER Petit Valley

Trump met with senior management and staff of the company and offered some incentives and after some “give and take”, in a matter of hours a decision was taken by the company to keep its business in Indiana.

On the other side of the coin, here at home, our approach is to leave matters outstanding for days and in some cases years. Two come to mind: a decision on Clico and a project for behind MovieTowne, Port-of-Spain, called Streets of the World, both of which should have been signed off on, one way or the other, years ago.

I guess that is the difference between developed, where action is taken, and developing, where procrastination is the order of the day, nations.

C PETERS via email

I am now fully convinced that there are people walking around like normal but who have some loose screws upstairs.

How in the world can people do this kind of thing and not consider if something were to happen, what then? Who would help the children? What I am even more displeased with is that this may not be the first time they were left alone. So why weren’t the relevant authorities notified? If that had been done maybe the children would be alive today. We are our brother’s keeper.

The time has come for citizens to speak out about the amount of ungodly acts being meted out to our children.

Mothers and fathers must realise that when they bring babies into the world, life is no longer about them.

They now have a serious responsibility to protect, secure, nature, provide for and love those little ones. If you are not up to the task, don’t have them.

It is wrong for children to go through what is becoming a trend in TT . Too many children’s lives are being snatched away or they are suffering injuries at the hands of adults.

I would like to sound the trumpet once more to our leaders to put their foot down and hold those responsible accountable.

These babies are our future teachers, politicians, entrepreneurs etc. Please protect them with all your might and power.

ARNOLD GOPEESINGH via email

One wonders how can a political leader who is seeking the support of the people of TT be happy or satisfied with more that 75 percent of the eligible voting population not placing a vote for their political party.

It is even more disconcerting when, what should have been the most pertinent election, “local government” seems to be dismissed as a waste of time. It is at local government that communities should be restructured. It is at the local level that the immediate needs of the communities should be addressed.

The rejection at the recent polls should alarm most politicians.

There is of course the possibility that politicians are so detached from the people that it does not matter to them who voted as long as they can claim victory.

The challenges we face did not end after any election results. We still have to find longterm solutions for our economy.

We have to invest heavily in modern infrastructure especially roads, bridges and rail to meet the challenges of ever-increasing traffic congestion and families must feel safe again in their communities.

These will not go away with political posturing. There is need for serious introspection, analysis and planning for the journey ahead.

The population is demonstrating that it is not confident that either of the political parties or perhaps leaders are up to the task.

The last election campaign lacked the substance required to inspire people to vote.

There were no detailed plans to reform communities.

The time has come for concerned citizens to unite in the best interest of TT .

The divisive politics of the People’s National Movement and the United National Congress based on ethnic support must end now.

It is time for citizens to unite and together pave the way for a better quality of life for all our citizens.

There is no doubt that we have the personnel, skill set, resources and access to financing to restructure our nation. Our biggest hurdle is to get over the egos of those seeking political power and to break and discard for all times the pattern of ethnic political support.

These are hurdles we must overcome or perish.

A word to the wise.

STEVE ALVAREZ via email

Speaking through interpreter Qushiba La Fleur, Tobias said the deaf society is faced with a lot of problems and challenges.

During a press conference at the Diagnostic Research Educational and Therapeutic Centre for the Hearing Impaired (Dretchi) Compound, Wrightson Road, Port-of-Spain, Tobias lamented that deaf and hard of hearing persons cannot accomplish much due to their low income.

“The deaf cannot find jobs or acquire HDC houses.” Tobias said.

“They search but do not get through. There are problems within the education system when it comes to the deaf and hard of hearing persons.

At Dretchi we want to help the deaf in those areas. Now that we, for the first time, have deaf persons involved on the Board, a lot of deaf people are now seeing and understanding what is the right way, and how the association is going forward.” He continued, “Before the Board had no deaf persons on it, they did not care much about the deaf. Now there are deaf persons on the Board to improve the lives of the deaf.” Tobias indicated that he will like to see Government focus more on deaf, blind and differently- abled persons because even though a deaf person may have gone to school, there are no interpreters at schools, hospitals, police stations, courts and certain businesses to support the deaf, hard of hearing and differently-abled persons.

“Even in the workplace there are no interpreters to support the deaf. The two most common problems deaf persons face on a daily basis are with education and finding jobs.” He said, “When they do find jobs they do not pay much and a deaf person cannot qualify for an HDC home because they have a low income. There need to be more equality when it comes to the deaf and disabled persons.” Also addressing the media, President of TTAHI, Patricia Charles said one of their main goals for 2017 is that TTHAI becomes an employment agency for the deaf and the hard of hearing.

“There are a lot of deaf and hard of hearing people working in different fields but, as things are currently constituted, they are generally confined to a certain kind of job,” Charles said.

“We are hoping that with our involvement we can place more deaf and hard of hearing people in jobs and hopefully in better jobs. Another area we plan to work on is the improvement of our deliverables and to implement continuation classes for school leavers.” Charles indicated that through a survey, they found that at the school leaving level, many of the students need more assistance to improve their qualifications.