N Touch

Court ruling a lesson for the NCC

LEGENDS band leader Mike Antoine on Friday said that the ruling by Justice Amrika Tewary that the 2003 senior Band of the Year results be declared null and void, may be a lesson for the National Carnival Commission (NCC) to get their house in order.

Antoine, one half of the award-winning team of three-time Band of the Year title holders, Legends, told Sunday Newsday that it was a pity that Carnival had to reach this point, going to court so often. Stating that Legends was concerned with showcasing the best of TT to the rest of the world, Antoine said he was currently involved in “seeing about 2004 and beyond.” Describing himself as an ambassador of the culture and the industry, he stated that government and the relevant authorities needed to take steps to promote the culture, and that a title was “the least of his concerns.” However, he said one of his major concerns revolved around the direction that the culture was going, and that the industry should not let the National Carnival Bands Association (NCBA) hold them to ransom.

Claiming that “TT was the mecca of Carnival,” Antoine called for all the “fighting” to stop. He explained that the NCBA had originally received $2.6 million to run Carnival, and when asked by the NCC to account for how the money was being spent, they could not properly account, and as a result,  NCC “took back” the running of Carnival. Stressing that the emphasis should be placed on the culture, Antoine said Carnival was one of the largest revenue earners in such a short space of time. He concluded by stating that a title cannot be spent, and urged all stakeholders involved to work for the betterment of Carnival, as the rest of the world was looking on.

Chairman of the NCBA Richard Afong explained that following enquiries from bandleaders in the various categories, as well as conflicting reports and errors in judging, they petitioned the courts to hold back the results. Stating that the court ruled in this regard, Afong said there are no winners for Carnival 2003, and that there was no way to determine otherwise, as the competition could not be replayed. He suggested that one way forward would be to divide the prize monies between persons who are qualified in the respective categories of small, medium and large bands. Upon hearing of De Silva’s collapse, Antoine extended heartfelt wishes to De Silva as he said “My prayers go out to him, and I wish him a speedy recovery. We hope that he comes out soon to take TT on the map for a better Carnival 2004.”

Claimants may ‘evict’ Army from Teteron

Chaguaramas land claimants, who say they were never properly compensated when their lands were compulsorily acquired to build the American military base during World War II will today move back onto some of the disputed lands.

A spokesman for the claimants has even suggested that their progressive reoccupation of the lands could result in the eventual ejection of the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force from their base at Teteron Bay. Today’s mass occupation comes after years of legal battles in which the families failed to sway local courts and the British Privy Council, and which has now reached the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Augustine Noel, who heads a group called Chaguaramas Legal Land Owners, said he has already begun reoccupying his claimed lands and that today the Tardieu family will occupy their claimed 377 acres of land at Scotland Bay.

Noel said: “I paid taxes on the land on 12 January, occupied it on 9 February  and am now planting it.” He said some 225 families were displaced from their Chaguaramas lands. Noel said the descendants of one Jean-Claude Pierre have a claim to the land he had owned at Teteron Bay. Noel said: “The old folks who used to live there say the barracks are on part of their land. We are getting an order before we go on the land, so we will evict them.” He said that after the Tardieu’s, the next succession of occupations would be that of the lands of Jean-Claude Pierre, Oscar Philips and the Zamore family, and so on. Noel said: “We will reclaim our lands after 62 years. After spending one million dollars in the courts of Trinidad and Tobago we are finding out the truth — there is no justice in Trinidad and Tobago for African people.”

Forecasting what would occur today, Noel said: “They will start cutting the land and cultivating it and start living back on the land. They will remain there permanently. We also want the Inter-America  court to award us compensation for costs and damages.” Noel is inviting all claimants and well-wishers to join the land occupation, saying that transport will leave Island Home (past Caridoc), Chaguaramas, for Scotland Bay at 9 am this morning.

NACTA: PNM out front in Locals

The latest opinion poll conducted by the North American Caribbean Teachers Association (NACTA) polling organisation for the July 14 local government elections shows the PNM leading the UNC by 12 percent. 

The poll also shows the PNM leading the UNC in the total number of seats each party is projected to win.  In fact, a majority of respondents (including UNC supporters) feel the PNM will sweep the local elections.  But it is important to note that a poll is a portrait of voter support only at a given period and inevitably changes over time.  And as such political fortunes could shift by election day five weeks away, a release from NACTA said. The latest Trinidad survey was carried out last week to determine voter support for the contending political parties.  NACTA interviewed 390 (166 Indians, 164 Africans, 60 others) voters to yield a demographically representative sample of the voting population.  Voters were polled randomly to make it as representative as possible of varied age, class, occupational and religious categories as well as of ethnicity and educational levels in the population.  The poll was co-ordinated by Vishnu Bisram.

According to the findings of the survey, the PNM leads the UNC 47 percent to 35 percent with National Team Unity Polling six percent and NAR one percent and 12 percent  undecidedly.  But the poll has a margin of error of six percent meaning that support for each party could vary up to six percent  in either direction. Thus, although the PNM leads the UNC by 12 percent, with the margin of error the election could become a lot more competitive in several seats especially in the local bodies of Sangre Grande, Rio Claro, Siparia, Couva and Chaguanas where the PNM has been making in roads.  It is important to note that the UNC has narrowed the gap with the PNM since an April poll when the PNM led by 14 percent, NACTA stated.

PM Manning vs Wade Mark in Senate

UNLIKE his surprise visit to the Senate last Tuesday to announce July 14 as the date for Local Government Elections, Prime Minister Patrick Manning will be no stranger to the Upper House when he returns there on Tuesday to answer questions posed to him by Senate Opposition Leader Wade Mark.

The UNC chairman will ask Manning, in his capacity as Finance Minister, to tell the nation the total sum appropriated to the Revenue Stabilisation Fund as of December 24, 2001, the total sum appropriated to the Fund between December 25, 2001 to the present, the total withdrawn from the Fund from December 25, 2001 to the present and what were the purposes of any such withdrawals. The questions come on the heels of allegations made last Friday in the Lower House by St Joseph MP Gerald Yetming. The former finance minister claimed Government has been tampering with the Fund. Mark will also ask the Prime Minister whether comprehensive legislation regarding the administration and management of the Fund has been drafted for introduction to Parliament. Planning Minister Dr Keith Rowley will also be in the Senate to answer Mark’s question about whether Government has a plan for Port-of-Spain which includes a relocated Parliament, Magistracy and Judiciary.

Normally silent UNC Senator Sadiq Baksh has questions on the Order Paper for Ministers John Rahael, Franklyn Khan and Martin Joseph respectively. Baksh will ask all three Ministers about different aspects of the San Fernando Waterfront Development Project. Despite Baksh’s ministerial portfolios of Works and Housing and his being San Fernando West MP from 2000 to 2002, the project never got off  the ground. The UNC will also ask Public Administration Minister Dr Lenny Saith to say whether or not agreement has been reached for the sale of Trinidad and Tobago Television (TTT) either as part of the National Broadcasting Network and whether the purchaser is a consortium of interests which includes Ambas-sador Extradordinare and Pleni-potentiary Jerry Narace.

Debate will continue on the Anti-Kidnapping Bill as well as Acts to amend the Commissions of Enquiry Act and the Supreme Court of Judiciary Act. Motions by Independent Senators Professors Ramesh Deosaran and Ken Ramchand about live, televised parliamentary debates and a Technical University of Trinidad and Tobago respectively will also come up for debate. Opposition motions on the implementation of Equal Opportunities legislation, Government’s ability to deal with real or perceived terrorist threats, regulating the banking industry and enabling anti-corruption legislation will also be debated. However the UNC’s no-confidence motion against Senate President Dr Linda Baboolal remains “missing in action” from the Senate Order Paper. The motion was withdrawn from the Order Paper in April when the UNC announced that it was not prepared to debate it. To date, the Opposition has been unable to say when the motion would be reintroduced.

Townsend questions TSTT profits

Secretary General of the Communications Workers Union (CWU), Lyle Townsend, has questioned the Telecom-munications Services of TT (TSTT) Profit report for the year ending March 31, 2002 saying that the quoted $439 million is too small a figure.

In an interview with Sunday Newsday, Townsend also called for TSTT to account for approximately $30 million which he says was reported missing from the company. Earlier last week, TSTT was reported to have incurred an after-tax profit of $439 million, which is 18 percent more than the $372 million earned in 2001. According to a publication of the year-end results of Cable and Wireless PLC, TSTT’s London-based 49 percent shareholder, C&W was not as lucky, having registered an annual loss of approximately TT$65 million within the specified period.

Townsend expressed his belief that the $439 figure was “not entirely true, since TSTT could have and should have made more than that.” “TSTT,” he said, “has been losing money through bad economic conditions and practices. However, this figure should be higher.” Townsend’s stipulated figure was approximately $650 million. He also condemned the company for refusing to allow its employees to share in the 18 percent profits which, he asserted, they are responsible for raising.

The union is presently in negotiations for a 17 percent salary increase for the period 2000-2002, in addition to a 33 percent profit sharing programme. Townsend said, “although they made 18 percent in one year, the Union is asking for 17 percent over a three-year period. This does not match in proportion what the company made in one year.” TSTT CEO, Sam Martin declined to comment on Townsend’s statement, saying that he preferred to wait until the company’s shareholders’ met on June 18 before making a statement.

Moonilal calls PM ‘national comic’

OROPOUCHE MP Dr Roodal Moonilal found himself in the unusual position of hypnotising his political leader Basdeo Panday as he spoke in the House of Representatives on Friday.

While Moonilal was speaking during debate on an Act to amend the Income Tax Act Chap 75:01, the Opposition Leader turned his back to House Speaker Barry Sinanan, was seemingly mesmerised by the Oropouche MP’s words and was often the only UNC parliamentarian thumping his desk and cheering on Moonilal as he criticised the ruling PNM. He drew the attention of House Speaker Barry Sinanan who advised him not to speak during Moonilal’s contribution. “Don’t waste time,” Panday replied as he hastily stood up and walked out of the chamber before Sinanan could utter another word. The UNC leader returned some 20 minutes later and again kept his chair turned towards Moonilal while he spoke.

Moonilal described Prime Minister Patrick Manning as “a national comic” for speaking about the infiltration of illegal guns from Venezuela into Trinidad and Tobago. The UNC MP scoffed that Manning should dispatch a diplomatic team led by Foreign Affairs Minister Knowlson Gift to Caracas and take up the matter with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. He said Government should “take a bow” for the number of murders which took place in the country during the last week. Moonilal claimed Government had slashed some $1.5 million in funding to the Ministry of National Security.  He also alleged that the UNC had established a radar system around the country and “got rid of the drug lords”. He wondered how former PNM Pointe-a-Pierre candidate Farad Khan could sit on the Board of Directors of the Estate Management and Business Company and people be convinced that Government would equitably distribute Caroni’s lands.

Couva South MP Kelvin Ramnath claimed Khan was fired from the State oil company Petrotrin’s Board of Directors. Moonilal alleged that the CEPEP programme would “clean out” the Treasury and the PNM was “tiefing in the night and then going to church in the morning”. He also lamented that newly appointed Junior Finance Minister Christine Sahadeo seemed to be highly favoured by Manning over Junior Trade Minister Diane Seukeran, who is also San Fernando West MP. Seukeran grinned in amusement at Moonilal’s claims. Moonilal also alleged that CEPEP was usurping the role of the National Training Agency involving the establishment of small companies.

Movie Towne story

IT IS no comfort to the peace-loving citizens of Trinidad and Tobago for the Prime Minister to say that Wednesday night’s killing at Movie Towne did not affect them, since it was part of an internecine warfare between factions of the same group. The fact is that the modern Movie Towne complex on the western edge of Port-of-Spain has become a very popular centre for entertainment, dining and shopping and it may only be an act of Providence that there were not more victims of the hail of bullets that killed one person and seriously injured two others. 

What this attack at Movie Towne now tells us, in fact, is that the safety of ordinary citizens may be at risk at any public place from gangs of gunmen armed with sophisticated semi-automatic weapons and bent on carrying out assasination missions. It was Movie Towne on Wednesday night, but who knows who will be the next target and where next will the assassins strike? So Mr Manning’s attempt to ease the concern of citizens after Wednesday night’s cold-blooded killings will not work. While it may be true that these bullet-ridden executions are gang-related, the fact is that they have now become common events, taking the level of violence in our society to a frightening and unacceptable level. We have the terrible experience of some other countries to tell us that where this kind of warfare proceeds unchecked, the entire society comes under increasing threat as gang leaders develop a sense of impunity and seek to expand their “jurisdiction” and their range of “profitable” interests. Trinidad and Tobago may well be on that road and, instead of making such silly comments as ordinary citizens are not affected by the gang-related violence, the Prime Minister must face the responsibility that his government has of halting this growing menace, of dealing with the criminal element, of wiping out the well-armed gangs and preserving the peace and stability of our country.

Mr Manning, we feel sure, must be aware that not only the lives and safety of our citizens are at stake in this battle but the vital interest and future prospects of our developing country are also at risk. The spectacle of armed gunmen blasting away at patrons of such a popular place as Movie Towne, regardless of the fact that they were on a mission of assassination, will not do the image of our country and its investment potential any good. The Prime Minister also seems to be banking on the expectation that when his government’s social intervention programmes — we presume he is referring particularly to CEPEP — are expanded, that the escalation in crime will be reversed. While the idea of distributing the wealth of the country more equitably and giving jobs to those who may otherwise turn to a life of crime may have some intrinsic merit, we are not as optimistic since the record of such schemes is a most unfortunate one; indeed, they have been cited as causes for the kind of corruption and violent rivalry that now bedevil our society. We remember, some time ago, senior police officers declaring that they know who are the criminals behind this bloody gang warfare and there were connections with on-going make-work programmes.  Yet the series of anti-crime crackdowns and operations the Police have launched so far do not seem to have had any such specific targets and have not been particularly successful in curbing the incidence of crime or the operations of criminal gangs. The Movie Towne incident also tells us that Police efforts, lacking the kind of strategy and penetration needed, have generally failed. The country’s interest is now clearly at risk and our citizens look to the Manning government for more effective action.

Sex among students: School management to blame


How can students just decide that they are going to transform the school into a virtual harlot house, while the school’s internal authorities display spinelessness? This attitude is not leadership. It’s neither management nor administration. It’s really a kind of mockery of the system.


The extremely troubling matter of sexual activity in schools, involving students, has been receiving heightened attention, as more specific details of the magnitude and severity of the problem surface.

We have had fingers pointing at factors which are supposed to be blamed. Breakdown in family life (as cited by the Minister of Education), television, a general decline in morals and values and other social ills. All these are certainly true. However, there is one of the key cause-factors which appears to be constantly downplayed, for whatever reason. At the heart of this problem of sex in school (and the general massive decline in discipline) may not only be a breakdown in family life but, to a considerable degree, a breakdown in internal school management. We just cannot escape the universal reality: “The quality of the enterprise is reflective of the quality of its leadership”. Leadership and management set the tone for every other component and facet in the organisation. Fundamentally, people — especially children — would conform or adapt, depending on the signals received from leadership. If the deviant behaviour of students begins to negatively alter the standards and culture of a school, or becomes the dominant feature in the operation of that institution, then it’s not essentially a student behaviour problem but a school management problem. Irrespective of how severe these indiscipline problems may be, there must be a place where every responsible school’s leadership asks the question: “Who really is in charge here?” This tail-wagging-dog business just does not work in any serious operation.

The principal and his staff (with whatever resources at their disposal) must lay down their rules, set their standards, refuse to compromise on vital items and insist that followers be followers and leaders be leaders. I know there are many principals and staff who have been working hard at solutions to their problems. Some even feel that their hands are tied for various “technical” reasons which appear to be true. Nevertheless, a firm stand, as I have described, is what primarily makes the difference between schools with controlled disciplinary problems and those with crisis-proportion ones. Take the supposed authorities and expert who say things such as, “Children are having sex in schools, so give them condoms”. Their solution to this extremely serious breach of the school code (sex in school) is not to take an unambiguously firm stand to uphold the rule but to speedily find a way to compromise the standard and accommodate the wrong. (You also have the absurdity of offering the students condoms in schools, and at the same time telling them there must be no sex in school). People with positions like these should be kicked out (as far as possible) from the education system to be remembered no more. Their genius problem-solving skills and expert creativity see it best to allow the lawless to take over the running of the show, while spineless leadership surrenders to the evil, and in principle declares, “If you can’t beat them, then join them”. This is basically the kind of craziness which has led to much of the disciplinary crisis we now face in education. We evidently need a radical pulling up. Even where there is teacher absenteeism and unsupervised classes, it remains a management problem. Family problems or no family problems, television or no television, we are fashioning children to become law-abiding adults in a civilised environment. Therefore, if there is any place that they must learn to respect the rules and standards, it’s in their foremost formal learning environment — the school.

When there are rules and regulations to be observed at the airport, for example, nobody excuses or exonerates anyone for flouting these rules because “his/her behaviour is reflective of a breakdown in family life.” The same applies to traffic laws, drug laws and every other area. Family dysfunction, TV influence or anything else … you had better conform or else! The same student that behaves as though he is too hyper to sit in class for 40 minutes, and gives the teacher hell, will calmly sit on an eight-hour flight to London and most respectfully obey all the airline’s rules. The reason is that he knows that the airline’s authorities have a zero tolerance policy for any nonsense. This awareness compels the “stubborn and rebellious” child to engage all his self-discipline and self-management skills to make sure that he complies and conforms. How can school children (yes, school children) come to a place of learning and decide that they are going to transform it into a virtual harlot house, having sex at will and even “making fares” among themselves; create a rum shop or drug-pusher’s den out of the classroom, making it impossible for serious children to study, and the administrators’ “most dynamic response” is to throw their hands up in helplessness and allow lawlessness to overrun their institution? This attitude is not leadership. It’s neither management nor administration. It’s really a kind of mockery, and we need to do something speedily about this costly joke.

Weakness of Equal Opportunity Act

THE EDITOR: The Equal Opportunity Act does not say how complaints and evidence to substantiate them are to be collected, stored and collated, nor does it say how or when they should come to be allocated in an action or in actions against a “discriminating” individual or group or “offensive” behaviour, nor which persons ultimately should benefit from that and why.

If these functions are to be carried out in an organised way, which in fact is what is necessary at some level for the legislation to have an efficacy, the Act does not identify who should do it, nor say how they come to be recognised and qualified for it and by whom. This means that some people, including complainants, will be in the positions of tying information to undisclosed duality and then multi-laterality on events, relationships and purposes, much of which would otherwise be private, distorting them, as if the complaints, evidences and business interests old or newly proposed and performances, were already of merit, even where some other complaints were never intended to be used so, or where original complainants are not available.

Yet others might generate extortions, for personal or group benefits now made quite easy.  It also means that private and confidential communications marked or known to be so, are not respected. It means further, that those who are not involved in such activities will not know what information was being amassed about them, by wire-tappings, one-sided letters, total or incomplete leaks, un-substantiated reports, “observations,” fabrications, forgeries, etc, nor when, so will not and can not carry physical evidence, witnesses, chronologies and explanations to the contrary —which is not to suggest either, that they could answer positively and rationally, to charges of “discrimination” in issues, for example, of contract freedom, price or privity, or no case, amid also simultaneously keeping the confidences of their own legitimate interests and that of their associates.

Politics and a real need should be enough for a public authority or quasi-public authority, to determine when wheel-chair or blindness accessibility is needed at any of its buildings; but legislation to achieve this by law-suits, is really very silly. The same legislation additionally fosters all kinds of secretive, indeterminate and open-ended opportunities without knowable controls and time limits, for subjection of others by self-promoting professionals, public servants and citizens, retired and un-retired, the paranoid and avaricious, cock-and-bull victims and enthusiasts, malicious, ill-willed, ignorant, “cautious” or foolish — not a mere laughable absurdity, rather, a strange, dangerous and disappointing mix of personal and socio — political values, ambition and achievement. Were information repositories, their agents, managers and authority, identifiable, or partly identified only, the whole thing would be equally bad, which explains the absence of exposition in the Act and debate on the bill at the time. The system of bureaucracy and majority government operating in this country, which is able to pass legislation like this with only a tenuous lead in Parliament and without intrinsic opposition, cannot hide the areas in our paragon constitution, but shows us better, where we all must address ourselves more intelligently.

ELIAS I GALY
Maraval

Construction workers need minimum wages

THE EDITOR: Please publish this following letter to the Ministers of National Security and Labour.

Dear Ministers, can you tell me and the country what is the criteria used for the issuance of a work permit in Trinidad and Tobago? Further, I would like you to investigate how did a manager on the Tobago Plantations housing project at Lowlands obtain his work permit. This project is being undertaken by NH International (Caribbean) Ltd. As far as we are aware, he holds no degree or special skills that are not available in this country. This gentleman is disrespectful to Trinidadians and Tobagonians and appears to be openly disregarding the laws and labour practices of this country. The most recent is his letter to staff telling them that anyone who takes a day off without his permission must produce a medical certificate to him for this day. He has fired a foreman who refused to work in the rain. How can this individual be a project manager in an International company when he doesn’t appear to have any technical background.

Is it because of his mentality and attitude towards workers that he is being used by the company? All he does is walk around the site terrorising supervisors about housekeeping and safety. One cannot hold him down to a technical conversation and all the technical and managerial aspects of the work are being done by locals who are not accorded the same treatment. The Minister of Labour must quickly put together a minimum wage for the construction industry and forget the Chamber President (South) and his committee. Workers are being taken advantage of by these so-called International companies who are using labourers as masons and paying them $ 8 per hour and saying it’s the law. All these workers are producing sub-standard work on what is a multi-million dollar housing project. These workers of a particular ethnic background from Barrackpore never worked in the industry.

The minimum wage for an unskilled worker in this industry should be $12 per hour and $17 per hour for skilled workers who are not unionised. Stop the carnage on the “worker” by these terrorists, all they are concerned about is profiteering by not paying a “fair wage” for a fair days’ pay. To the Government, please distribute the work equitably to all and not just one or two contractors because of political affiliations.

KENNETH DAVID
Scarborough