My grouse, which may surprise many, is that fact that no one knows who granted authorisation and this is the scary part, which does not speak well for our army.

Basic common sense will tell us that there must be, at least I think, a paper trail of who okayed this at the base. So what is the problem here, after a year or more without an answer? How can this be acceptable in any forum? This leaves our Army with many questions hanging in mid air which is not good for its image.

I will like to suggest that whoever is responsible for this military outfit get more involved and bring closure to this matter.

Arnold Gopeesingh San Juan

It’s rents of some $2.3 to $2.4 million are outstripped by millions more in salary payments every month. These were among a litany of woes revealed at two starring appearances before a Joint Select Committee of Parliament earlier this year. Further, job cuts may be inevitable.

However, Deowattee Dilraj Batoosingh, Acting General Manager of the Authority said the prevailing attitude at the CDA is optimism.

The Authority is making a bid to make Chaguaramas a top of mind entertainment and leisure centre and wants to bring people back to the Northwest peninsula. In August, the CDA intends to host a Curry Festival.

““It is a big risk for us to revive the boardwalk again,” said Batoosingh, who revealed that the event is being put on with a limited budget. However, the Authority needs the revenues.

Batoosingh said she told staff, “Let’s give it our best shot. Even if we don’t get as many people as we would have liked, at least it is showing that we can do it.”

“We are hopeful we can turn things around despite the challenges.”

It certainly has the raw materials to do so. The area has a natural beauty rivalled by few places in the country as well as several sites of interest.

But the “challenges” are threatening to overwhelm the CDA.

For one thing, the development of Chaguaramas is predicated on a plan formulated in 1974. It is not the only plan for the area. There have been at least eight plans for land and economic use of the area. However, it is the only one that holds legal sway, a fact that has been the root of the CDA’s most recent controversy.

Several tenants had leases for development approved under the People’s Partnership administration using a draft 2015 development plan. That plan was never brought before Town and Country, the Parliament or Cabinet, making it invalid. Batoosingh said the Deputy PS of their line ministry revealed that they had never even seen it.

With their “approved” leases, investors would have gone ahead and started construction, only to be told to stop by the new PNM government.

“This administration, would have reviewed the plan and realised that the draft 2015 plan was not approved by the Parliament,” said Batoosingh, “The only alternative was to follow what was under the law, which is the 1974 development plan.”

She explained that the CDA was not opposed to development, in fact, it desperately needed it, but said the law must be followed. The law, was guiding what types of developments were being allowed. If a tenant’s development was in contravention, then their terms of occupation would be reviewed.

Batoosingh denied allegations of nepotism or favoritism in the selection of which developments were allowed and said that decisions were apolitical. It has also made use of legal counsel in making these choices.

“No determination has been made except for the waterpark and another development,” she said, “This would have been done by Cabinet. Some concessions were made. It wasn’t that the entire lease was approved.”

Business Day contacted planning minister under the People’s Partnership government, Dr Bhoe Tewarie, for this thoughts on the state of the CDA.

“When we demitted office in September 2015, we left Chaguaramas with a functioning Boardwalk in two phases. We left with the vendors booths completed and occupied by tenants. We had a tradition of activities and programmes that brought visitors and customers to the Boardwalk, which created more commerce in the area and which was supported by some entertainment.”

On the matter of the controversial leases, Tewarie continued, “We had signed a number of leases between 2012 and 2015 and private sector investments were flowing into Chaguaramas for various projects. Every lease that was signed after 2010, was superior in its value to the State, the Chaguaramas Development Authority and the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago than any lease signed prior to 2010 by a significant number of times. I am talking about the value. So the state was in a good position to capitalize on private sector investment, under lease terms that would have only appreciated over time in value and flow of funds to the CDA and we could have, by now, already have had the makings of an incipient, sustainable tourism and entertainment and leisure industry in Chaguaramas. I don’t understand or have a clue about what they are doing or their problem with anything we have done in Chaguaramas.”

Asked about the legality of the draft 2015 plan and the potential issues created by it if the CDA facts are accurate, Tewarie said, “That is what you call a distraction. It is a non-issue. It does not arise. How were all the leases signed prior to 2010 and does that mean that leases signed under 2010 came under a different jurisdiction from those leases that were signed before? It is a red herring. It is pure stupidity parading as rationality.”

Much of the CDA’s own attempts at development meanwhile, lie in limbo.

When questioned about the state of parts the Boardwalk for example, Batoosingh said the Authority simply did not have the funds to do the required repair work.

Vending booths are not operational. The vendors complained that they were unusable. Further examination showed the electrical work was shoddy and needed re-doing.

Floorboards in Phase One need replacement. Batoosingh said it was likely they would have to pull up the whole thing to replace them, a costly undertaking.

“That represents a cost to us and we have explained before the JSC how dire our financial state (is), where we are barely earning revenue to cover salaries or major repair works along the peninsula.”

Despite this, she said the authority has been trying and has met with success in several areas. Repairs have already been completed on Phase Two and their facilities have been prepared for the July/August vacation season.

But how did the Authority find itself in this position?

Batoosingh attributed the Authority’s problems to a lack of “planning”.

She said, “You can’t run an organisation where your revenue is a certain level, you have to know that your expenses cannot be in excess of that.”

The race to shore up the Authority’s revenues is on.

It has been in discussions with the Tourism Ministry to become part of its ‘Staycation’ promotional programme. It has also re-entered a deal with PTSC to once again become part of the ‘Know Your Country’ tours.

The response to the Curry Festival has so far been favourable. Batoosingh said the event was fully booked and at least one well known entertainer has signed on to perform.

“We can’t be operating at a loss indefinitely. The best effort now is to get revenues up, which is what we are doing,” she said.

SIMON WRIGHT

If you were on your way to Venezuela in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was likely you would face attack from pirates hiding out in Chaguaramas.

Hard to believe, but Trinidad’s Northwestern peninsula has lived many lives.

The islands have been home to whaling stations in the 18th century. Meanwhile the mainland itself was home to several plantations, the genesis of Chaguaramas’ agricultural roots.

But even before this, Chaguaramas got its name from the Amerindians who lived approximately 6,000 years before the arrival of Christopher Columbus, between 100-400 AD. Their legacy can be seen in place names like Macqueripe and Chacachacare.

The Spanish occupation of Trinidad, though, severely decimated their numbers through war and disease.

The Spanish were not interested in settling Trinidad, preferring to use it as a base for incursions into South America. The result was the island not having significant population numbers until the Cedula of Population, when the Spanish Crown invited settlers to live here.

Several French planters settled in the area, with the main crops being sugar, cocoa and cotton, although ground provisions and other food crops were cultivated as well.

Chaguaramas would continue being mainly agricultural until the first half of the 20th century. With World War II raging in Europe and the Pacific, the Americans sought the assistance of the British in creating a defense perimeter against attack from South America as well as a jump off point for their operations there. The result was the Base for Destroyers Agreement, where the US would provide 40 destroyers for the British war effort and the British would provide the land for a military base in strategic Chaguaramas.

The base and the social and economic activity it gave rise to has been indelibly marked into Trinidad’s culture. The base and the above average wages offered there stimulated the expansion of this country’s middle class. References to it can be found the calypso of the day and our literature. “Rum and Coca Cola”, the Lord Invader calypso, became the basis for the world-famous Andrews Sisters remake. Sparrow’s “Jean and Dinah” took a tongue and cheek approach to the hardship caused by absence of the “Yankees” after the end of the war.

It was in this country’s political history, however, that Chaguaramas’ played a pivotal role. Just as the pleasant Andrews Sisters ditty obscured the fact that Lord Invader had never been properly compensated or credited for “Rum and Coca Cola”, or both the Invader song and Sparrow’s wit alluded to the hard truth of local women prostituting themselves to American soldiers, the surface order of 1940s and 50s Trinidad concealed the anger many felt toward the American presence and the British acquiescence to it.

The Americans were allowed to forcible remove people from their homes. They seized Teteron and Nicholas Bays. Access to beaches and holidaying spots was severely curtailed and then eventually closed in 1943 at the height of the war.

It was a time of rapid change in the world. Colony after colony became independent from Europe and the thirst for self-determination was no different in TT. Eric Williams, whose PNM won elections in 1956 saw the base as a holdover from a slowly passing colonial era.

In 1957, the British and the US met and a commission determined a year later that not only was the base not going to be returned, but that the subject was closed to discussion for a further ten years. Williams led a march to Chaguaramas in 1960 to protest the continued American presence for a war that had ended more than a decade before. As a consequence, the Americans reviewed their agreement with the British and after negotiation Chaguaramas was returned, though with conditions and the Americans did not entirely quit the area until 1977.

The victory in Chaguaramas gave the PNM the edge it needed to cement both its victory in 1961 and its hold on Trinidad and Tobago government. Before leaving the PNM, CLR James said of the march and its participants:

“Despite the fact that the American base at Chaguaramas had brought in more money here than had ever been brought before, when called upon, you answered, and made it clear that, with only a few years partial freedom behind you, you were ready to throw down the gauntlet to the most powerful nation in the world, to assert your rights as a people, to say that Chaguaramas was yours and you were not going to be deprived of it.”

Today, Trinbagonians can enjoy a variety of activities in Chaguaramas, with more on the way, as development of the area continues apace.

Business Day recently sat down with UPick’s General Manager, Lee- Anthony Walker and its Operations Manager, Verrick Jaundoo, to find out more about this and other initiatives being undertaken at the 100-acre farm.

Seated under the leafy shade provided by a large bamboo patch opposite the farm’s small retail space, Walker explained what inspired him to develop the concept of “Planting 101”.

“I was hired four months ago to promote the business more; I come from a background of managing night clubs and I own my own catering company. I spent the first three months observing the operation and one of the things I realised is that growing your own plants isn’t rocket science. Based on feedback, I decided we should start offering this as a new service.”

Walker would like to hold the first class later this month (August), provided certain logistics are worked out in the next two weeks or so.

He explained how “Planting 101” lessons would be broken down into simple terms and easy-to-follow steps, so that people don’t feel intimated.

“Anyone can participate, from children to senior citizens. We’re going to give you a pot, we’re going to teach you soil preparation – why, how it’s necessary, what kind of soil you use and why. Then we’re going to let you choose a seedling and you plant it in your pot. What we’re working out is if (training) would be every two weeks or every month because you’d have to bring your plant to each session; likely on a Saturday morning.”

Jaundoo added to that, telling Business Day that having your plant there is necessary “so that we can see if you’re learning, if you’re taking care of the plant properly. You can also compare your plant to your classmates’ and find out from them what they’re doing differently. This make things fun and interactive.”

The company stays connected with customers through its Facebook page; www.facebook.com/upicktt, where each week, it posts a list of the vegetables ready to be picked.

Walker said UPick’s mandate is that all activities/services there must be family-friendly. This includes the farm’s first-ever Halloween pumpkin-carving event in 2016. This actually came about due to customer demand; they had to import the variety of pumpkin most-suited to carving. UPick plans to hold another pumpkin-carving family day for Halloween this October.

That’s not all. UPick is working on a plan to hold star-gazing events, where an astronomer or someone equally knowledgeable “can tell people exactly what they’re looking at and how constellations got their names. We are an ideal location for this kind of thing because there are no artificial lights to (impede) your view of the night sky,” Walker said.

While most people know Chaguaramas for hiking, boat rides ‘down d islands’, its beaches and fetes at venues overlooking the water, UPick’s presence has attracted the agricultural-minded and those looking to get their vegetables as fresh as possible – picking it right off of the plant.

Jaundoo said their weekend clientele often includes families headed home after a “dip at Macqueripe Beach, hikers and bikers. We also get people who, from whatever reason, don’t reach the market and they’re looking to get some fresh produce.”

There are several restaurants and hotels dotted along the Western Peninsula. Walker added to Jaundoo’s point, telling Business Day that because UPick harvests each week’s crop on a Thursday, “chefs who work in the area; and a few from outside, stop by on Thursday afternoons. As we add more items that you don’t usually get in Trinidad, more chefs are coming to us. Meanwhile, we tend to get more elderly people coming by on Saturdays and Sundays.”

The farm also gets lots of school tours. Jaundoo shared that students from urban areas are usually surprised to learn where their food comes from.

“When they see bodi growing on the vine and not in a bundle on a grocery shelf, they’re stunned. Some children have also seen tomatoes growing on the plant and called them apples. So, what we’re doing here is serving to educate some children about the food chain.”

Speaking about their adult customers, Jaundoo told Business Day that people who come from an agricultural background “tend to come here for our sweet corn, cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, jalapeños, red ochro, purple sweet pepper and now, asparagus – ‘exotic’ items that you don’t typically find in the market.”

He explained that while UPick grows some of the popular local crops – baigan, bodi and ochro to name a few; because customers are going to want to pick what they commonly eat, the farm doesn’t want to compete with local farmers.

Hence the focus on the aforementioned ‘exotic’ items. This includes baigan varieties not typically grown here. Namely the Star Light which is short, round and dark purple in colour, and the Japanese variety which is long, thin and light purple in colour.

UPick currently sells local honey but it plans to start offering its own honey too in the coming months. The apiary was set up in early June at the far end of the farm; beyond the acres of sweet corn.

“We have honey ready to take out but because of the recent heavy rains, the bees haven’t really been able to venture into the bushes to get nectar. So, we left the honey for them to feed on in the meantime but as soon as the weather improves, we will harvest our honey. Likely at the end of August into September. Selling our own honey was one of the owner’s (Joseph ‘Joe’ Pires) ideas. He wanted to add honey because Tucker Valley is known to produce some of the best honey (due to) the nutmeg trees and other flowering plants which make for good quality honey,” Jaundoo said.

UPick’s prices are lower than in your typical supermarket but a little higher than in the market. Walker said he has started stocking ground provisions and plantain in their retail store because those customers who don’t reach the market have been asking for potatoes, yam, et cetera.

“On a Thursday morning, I go up to the Farmers’ Market in Macoya and purchase those items that we don’t grow, so that our customers can do their ‘Sunday market’ here if they haven’t reached the market yet. This allows them to save a trip to the grocery and to save some money in the process because our prices would be closer to that of the market than what supermarkets would charge.”

Walker was keen to point out that he buys locally grown provisions et cetera “because we want to support local farmers. At the end of the day, we’re all farmers.

The farm originally opened from Tuesday to Sunday, 7 am to 2 pm. While its opening hours remain the same, due to visitor habits, UPick is now open from Thursday to Sunday.

UPick opened on August 8, 2015. It is operated by Chaguaramas Farms Limited (ChagFarms), which signed a 30-year lease with the Chaguaramas Development Authority (CDA). ChagFarms is a subsidiary of Caribbean Chemicals and Agencies Limited, whose Managing Director is Pires.

And I also saw that Mr Israel Khan SC had written to Queen Elizabeth II stating that Her Majesty and the Parliament of Britain should offer a sincere apology for the British participation in the enslavement of Africans and should apologise to Africa and the African diaspora throughout the world for the cruelties that Britain inflicted upon the enslaved Africans.

As the incumbent head of the Trinidad and Tobago National Committee on Reparations (TT NCR), I had written to the media on a prior occasion about the indifferent attitude toward the committee that has come from the Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs, the Honourable Senator Dennis Moses, under whose responsibility the TT NCR falls.

Just recently, on Friday 28, July I delivered a letter to the Honourable Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley seeking a meeting with him regarding the status of the committee.

I stated that the TT NCR is a Cabinet-appointed committee, established following the collective agreement at the Conference of Heads of Caricom, held in Port of Spain in July 2013.

In addition, I informed the Prime Minister that the matter of reparations was tabled recently at the recent 38th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community held in Grenada from July 4-6. And I quoted a statement captioned “Reparations for Native Genocide and Slavery” which was included in the Communique released at the conclusion of the Conference.

It is very inspiring to read in President Carmona’s press release that ,“Trinidad and Tobago should support the efforts of Caricom governments as expressed by Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West Indies and Chairman of the Caricom Reparations Commission, in an address to the British House of Commons on July 16, 2014”.

The President’s release added, “As a former judge and a firm believer in reparatory justice, I am of the view that as we celebrate Emancipation Day 2017, we must examine affirmatively the case for reparations as adopted by Caricom governments and advocated by Sir Hilary and other spokespersons”.

“We in TT must view the call for reparations in the context of the duty we owe to our forefathers who made the ultimate sacrifice and whose contribution to our present well-being must be recognised in a world which now accepts that compensation and reparation are prerequisites in the dispensation of justice”.

What is thought-provoking in Mr Israel Khan’s letter is that the attorney has referenced the very first item on the 10 point Plan of Action of the Caricom Reparations Commission’s strategy for Reparatory Justice captioned “Full Formal apology” which says: “The healing process for victims and the descendants of the enslaved and enslavers requires as a precondition the offer of a sincere formal apology by the governments of Europe”.

“Some governments in refusing to offer an apology have issued in place Statements of Regrets. Such statements do not acknowledge that crimes have been committed and represent a refusal to take responsibility for such crimes”.

“Statements of regrets represent, furthermore, a reprehensible response to the call for apology in that they suggest that victims and their descendants are not worthy of an apology”.

“Only an explicit formal apology will suffice within the context of the CARICOM Reparatory Justice Programme”.” Notwithstanding their support I wish to remind President Carmona as well as Mr Khan that the mandate of the Caricom Reparations Commissions also includes reparations for the First Peoples.

Aiyegoro Ome Mt Lambert

Liberation Day, Freedom Day, Emancipation Day, __ they all share one common contingent reality: that an inalienable right intrinsic to our very humanity, that of our freedom to exist, a right freely bestowed by our Creator, we celebrate as something “won,” “won back” or “returned” to us. What deepens and embeds the wound of perversity is our persistent demand for “reparation”.

I will continue to harp on this aberrant “celebration” until our society’s eyes are opened one day to the disinformation that generates the twisted psychology such celebration involves.

Even our President finds himself ensnared in the hyped up demand for reparatory justice! Slavery was and in reality remains a global scourge. It existed in prehistory up until the 18th and 19th century when Western European powers __ notably England __ formally ended it as a moral crusade.

There is a reference to slavery as early as 1760 BC, in the code of Hammurabi. Thirty of the 232 existing laws at the time pertained to the institution of slavery. While we often assert that slavery via the Middle Passage lasted 400 years, we forget that the Eastern or trans-Saharan slave trade fueled by North African Muslim countries lasted 1400 years with an estimated death toll of 112 million African slaves. The Catholic Church sanctioned slavery. Even the New Testament does not pronounce against it. It was only at the 2nd Vatican Council in 1965 that the Roman Catholic Church called it an “infamy”, a dishonor to the Creator and a poison to society.

Slaves were very few in Trinidad compared to Jamaica, Haiti, etc, as we were a Crown colony.

Trinidad’s brush with slavery lasted less than 30 years! Many of us cannot point to a slave ancestor because we have none! For those of us who think ourselves “victims” of European overlords we should pinch ourselves into an awareness of the truth.

A US census of 1830 involving just one small town __ Charleston, in South Carolina, reveals that four hundred and seven (407) black Americans were the owners of slaves. Twenty- eight per cent of blacks who were freed owned slaves themselves compared to just 1.4 per cent of white Americans. Indeed up to 50 per cent of the earliest white settlers to America were white slaves! At the time of the birth of Christ one-half of the Roman Empire were slaves, as were three-quarters of the population of Athens __ the cradle of civilisation. Virtually every tribe intent on conquering Western Europe __ the Celts, the Romans, the Barbarians __ repeatedly enslaved Eastern Europeans __ the ‘Slavs’ __ as a matter of routine.

Slavery was indigenous to African and Arab countries long before Europeans came to the New World. Even Native Americans had slaves before Columbus arrived. Ethiopia had slaved until 1942, Saudi Arabia until 1962, Peru until 1968, India until 1976 and Mauritania until 1980.

So what is this about “happy emancipation?” Slavery still exists in the world. Rather than feel sorry for ourselves or delude ourselves with the myths propagated by backward looking people let us instead celebrate the arrival of the beautiful, smoothskinned and talented people of Africa and the enrichment of the West by the Black Diaspora and forget this slavery chip on our shoulders. It has kept us glued to the past for far too long! Steve Smith via e-mail

Face-to-face interactions play an important role in conducting business.

However, many organisations have very large teams and operations worldwide, so it’s just not possible to limit all collaboration to personal meetings.

To serve global accounts successfully the organisation needs seamless collaboration across geographies.

Collaboration is a top priority for many key figures in a company’s ‘C-Suite’ – CEOs, CFOs, chief human resources officers (CHROs), chief information officers (CIOs) and chief marketing officers (CMOs) etc. These people have the opportunity to take a key leadership role in developing collaboration, but knowing how to do it in the best way can be a tricky thing.

No two companies are the same but all can agree that effective collaboration, both amongst the C-suite and with external partners is key to driving successful innovation and growth.

According to research by the ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) in a report titled ‘CFOs and the C-Suite – focusing on effective collaboration’, there are a number of key values business leaders can adopt as they are at the core of successful collaboration.

In addition to their core financial and accounting expertise, financial business partners need to be able to act like business entrepreneurs, proactively working with the organisation and taking the initiative to identify issues where finance can provide added value.

This means that they need a deep understanding of the value drivers within their organisation. Financial business partners must also be able to communicate clearly, explaining financial analysis in simple terms to business leaders. Similarly, influencing and conflict resolution skills are important for winning the support of internal stakeholders.

Effective collaboration isn’t without its obstacles. The challenges posed by sustainability, digitalisation and the fastchanging macro-economic environment will require CFOs to mitigate risk without inhibiting innovation, master communication and influencing skills, help unite teams around well-defined goals, and ensure that the finance function provides strategic value to the rest of the business.

Leaders often mistake cooperation for collaboration. Most executives display friendly, collegial, cooperative behaviour but collaboration goes way beyond that. It requires people to unite with a common goal/purpose and to commit to a clearly defined outcome with clear accountabilities for the participating individuals.

Behavioural change doesn’t happen overnight. It takes conscious effort, as individuals have to leave their ‘comfort zone’, and it takes time. Assessing culture can be difficult because it calls upon a brand new set of skills and requires a multidisciplinary approach. This is where the skills and abilities of the professional accountant can make a real difference.

Trained to evaluate and measure, the accountant needs to be attuned to ensuring that values can be measured and reported internally and externally – after all, what can be measured can be managed, and the accountant is of course adept at ensuring the bottom line adds up.

Another obstacle to effective collaboration is that many C-suites still lack diversity of gender, age, race and, consequently, opinion. A healthy debate and a diversity of opinion are key requirements of successful C-suite collaboration.

CFOs and other senior executives must be mindful to pursue collaboration that goes beyond classical business partnering.

Many of the challenges organisations face require effective enterprise-wide collaboration – and the CFO has a really big role to play, given the wide remit of the finance function.

The question is no longer whether companies, and specifically members of the C-suite, should collaborate internally as well as externally with customers and suppliers, but rather how. It’s important to collaborate in order to thrive and not just merely survive as a business and as leaders.

Collaboration itself is not unfamiliar to business, however only a few companies/individuals manage to do it well. Understanding the need for it is not enough. Effective collaboration often requires a shift in culture, mind-set and behaviour to ensure its strategic value to the rest of the business.” Collaboration is better for everyone involved. Collaboration not only positively impacts the lives of employees at work but also at home. Collaboration is indeed a top priority for many business leaders.

On Tuesday, after receiving reports of oil deposits along the Point Sable and Carat Shed beaches in La Brea, Petrotrin personnel visited the affected regions and confirmed the presence of oil on the beaches.

Clean-up crews were mobilised and the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries, the Environmental Management Authority and the Occupational Safety and Health Agency were notified, according to a Petrotrin release.

The company said the beach clean-up was completed yesterday and would continue investigations to determine where the oil came from.

Regretful that she was not thorough and diligent about her representations, ashamed because her mistake was exposed and regret because of the loss of status as a judge.

It is a lesson to all who aspire to leadership , let not your ambition cloud your good judgement least your reputation fall into disrepute. It is obvious to me that ambition clouded her judgement and having been exposed is grounds for tears.

Satu-Ann I.Ramcharan Maraval