LAVENTILLE East/Morvant MP Fitzgerald Hinds said yesterday he was determined to change Laventille’s image as the “crime capital” to the “cleanest part of Trinidad and Tobago.”
Hinds made this promise at the launch of a two-week clean-up campaign in the Laventille/ Morvant area. He said he was “very proud of Laventille East/ Morvant as a place, and as a constituency” but hastened to add that “in some ways, I am ashamed and embarrassed be-cause of the conduct and circumstances as made so by a few of our constituents.” Hinds said although the area had produced famous personalities over the years, it remained famous for criminal activities. He said he was optimistic that a clean up programme will improve the physical environment and make the place “lighter and cleaner.”
Praising the Community-based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme (CEPEP), Hinds said he could without any remorse, say that Trinidad and Tobago and the Laventille/Morvant area “was a much cleaner and healthier environment.” The PNM MP drew laughter from the crowd when he declared that while the police was launching an attack on crime, “we are launching an attack on grime and I am the commissioner of clean-up for these purposes.” He added that he had the support of many persons and organisations which had joined for a common purpose, and this “would not be a Baghdad operation, but simply a massive clean-up operation” to get rid of roaches, rodents and mosquitoes.
When he was asked whether government had allocated funds for the venture, Hinds said various programmes and persons had indicated their willingness to lend financial aid to this initiative. Coordinator of the project, Codrington Calliste, appealed for similar projects in other communities to reduce heavy flooding during the rainy season. He said the committee had several other projects planned to bring residents of the area together and urged them to get rid of all the old garbage lying around their premises. Calliste said this would create unity as “it is time to take back our community.” CEO of the Solid Waste Management Company Limited (SWMCOL) Ray Brathwaite said the company was discussing the move from “trash to cash” as well as recycling.
Brathwaite challenged “the commissioner of grime” to use this project to add momentum to the recycling campaign by SWMCOL, and assured the gathering that none of the CEPEP contractors were involved in criminal activities. He claimed that “once something is good, and powerful, and blessed, people are going to find all kinds of ways to ruin it.” He also said “CEPEP is the best thing to happen to this country in a while” and had created new jobs, in addition to enhancing the physical environment, and improving work ethics. Brathwaite said SWMCOL planned to fund an essay competition for schools on environmental issues.
Education Minister Hazel Manning, along with a team of senior officials have been meeting all of last week with the stakeholders in Education.
On Friday, the Minister and her team met with the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA) to continue the dialogue on the various sectors in their effort to modernise and renew the education system in TT. Among the issues discussed at that meeting was the payment of arrears to teachers for the period 1987 — 1995, and TTUTA President Trevor Oliver yesterday revealed that it had been agreed that teachers would receive this payment by September 30. Other issues include increased security in approximately 83 primary schools, as well as additional security in a number of secondary schools. Oliver said TTUTA would continue to meet with the Education Ministry on a regular basis.
In other meetings, Manning met on Monday with the Denomina-tional School Boards; on Tuesday with members of the Association of Principals of Public Secondary Schools and on Wednesday with the National Primary Schools’ Principal Association. Issues being discussed include the introduction by September, 2003 of :-
* The Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) – to be introduced into secondary schools on a phased basis, and will eventually replace the Cambridge General Certificate of Education. CAPE will satisfy qualifications for entry into, and advanced standing at regional and extra-regional universities and generally certify levels of performance in professional courses.
* The launch of a Textbook Rental Programme — textbook rentals in specific subject areas will be introduced in September as part of the Teaching and Learning strategies subcomponent of the Quality Improvement component of the Secondary Education Modernisation Programme.
* Progress on the $2 billion School Construction Programme — the ministry has received financial approval for $378 million and works are in progress on the 2003 — 2006 school construction programme. The projects include the security fencing and equipment of 33 secondary schools, including the upgrade of Corinth and Valsayn Teachers’ Colleges.
* The Introduction of Local School Boards at government secondary schools — local school boards will assist in the development of a Strategic Plan for schools and assist in the development and implementation of improvement plans.
* Modifications of entrance and recruitment requirements for students in possession of Grades 1,11 and 111 of CXC — all government recruiting and training institutions that previously accepted Grades 1 and 11, in the old CXC grading scheme as entry requirements will now accept grades 1, 11 and 111 in the new CXC grading scheme.
* Introduction of a Modernised School Curriculum — the philosophical foundation of the modernised school curriculum is being defined, the six essential learning outcomes explained and the subject areas outlined. These include:
1. Aesthetic Expression — the arts represent an important facet of students development and they should respond positively to its various forms.
2. Citizenship — in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment, students need to have a clear understanding of the contribution they need to make to social, cultural, economic and environmental development in the local and global context.
3. Communication — through more effective communication, students can use their bodies, language, tools, symbols and media to demonstrate deeper understandings of synergies inherent in the exchange of ideas and information.
4. Personal Development — students should continually enlarge their knowledge base, as well as expand their horizons and challenge themselves in the pursuit of healthy and productive life.
5. Problem Solving — students need to apply problem-solving strategies to situations they encounter and develop critical thinking and inquiry skills with which they can process information to solve the problems they encounter.
6. Technological Competence — technological literacy, students should be able to understand and use various technologies and an understanding of the role of technology in their lives, society and the world at large.
The modernised curriculum will see greater emphasis in the subject areas of Language Arts, General Science, Spanish, Social Studies, Mathematics, Physical Education, Technology Education and the Visual and Performing Arts.
Other issues which were also discussed included:-
* Progress in the ministry’s Restructuring and Decentralisation efforts;
* Modifications to the School Curriculum;
* Deshifting and Conversion of Junior Secondary Schools;
* Modifications to the School Curriculum;
* Professional Development of teachers and employees in the ministry of education.
Among those on the Ministerial team are Permanent Secretaries Thecla Reyes and Angella Jack; Deputy PS Dr Janet Stanley-Marcano; Chief Education Officer Paula Daniel; Kathleen Thomas; Inskip Babb; Jennifer Hussain; and Maurice Chin Aleong, Programme Coordinator of the Secondary Education Modernisation Programme.
CARENAGE seaman Oscar Paul was kidnapped yesterday morning at gunpoint in front of his home and released about three hours after a quantity of United States and TT currency was paid, police said.
It is reported that Paul, 34, of Abbe Poujade Street, was attending to his Nissan vehicle around 12.40 am yesterday when three masked men, all armed with firearms and dressed in black clothing approached. Police sources said the three men came in a white vehicle. The seaman is reported to have tried to escape, but was subsequently held. Investigators said Paul was later placed into the white vehicle, after which he was taken into a forested area off Macqueripe Road, Chaguaramas. The seaman was released just after 3 am yesterday in the Macqueripe district after his wife, Kathleen, paid a ransom. Police said US$2,700 and TT$4,400 were paid for the man’s safe return.
According to the police, the money was dropped off at L’Anse Mitan Road, Carenage. During an interview with the police, Paul said the men who snatched and held him kept asking him how much money he had and where it was being kept. Paul was not beaten during his brief time as a hostage and police said they don’t think the kidnapping was drug-related. Rather, they said, they believe his movements were being monitored because he arrived home last Thursday. Contacted yesterday, Paul’s wife, Kathleen, told Newsday that they were okay but that they weren’t interested in publicity. “It is a very tense situation,” Kathleen said, adding that her husband was in good condition and that he was not physically assaulted. Police also said that the couple have been threatened.
PCs James Roberts and Gaskin of the Carenage Criminal Investigations Department (CID) visited the scene and conducted investigations. Officers of the Anti Kidnapping Squad (AKS) whose head is Sr Supt Gilbert Reyes were later informed of the kidnapping. Yesterday, officers revisited the Macqueripe area in a bid to locate clues that could assist them, but found nothing. The Paul kidnapping is the second in less than a week. Last Wednesday Santa Cruz businessman Anslem Choo Woon Chee was snatched from his Sam Boucaud home by armed men who also fired shots.
Up to late evening, AKS sources said the men who grabbed the 42-year-old father of two had not made contact with family members even though there were reports that a $2 million ransom has been asked for. Police yesterday continued to receive tips on the whereabouts of the businessman, but searches at homes in the Santa Cruz areas proved futile. Choo Woon Chee is the proprietor of Archie’s Supermarket, Cantaro Village. AKS officers under Sr Supt Reyes are spearheading enquiries, along with members of the North Eastern Division.
HAVING destroyed Iraq by their unjustified and pulverising invasion, it now seems that the United States either does not care about or is incapable of relieving the turmoil, agony, deprivation and sheer chaos it has created in that hapless country. While President Bush and his cohorts in the White House are still basking in the glow of their “magnificent victory” over Saddam Hussein, the people of Iraq whom they have now “liberated” are crying out, apparently in vain, for some kind of action to ease the widespread misery that this “liberation” has inflicted upon them.
A month after Saddam’s statue was toppled in Baghdad, signalling the success of the invasion, there is still no security in the country apart from what some of the invading forces may be prepared to exercise. The result is that lawlessness, particularly looters, is still running rampant and Iraqis are afraid to leave their homes lest they return to find their possessions stolen. Apart from the thousands of Iraqi citizens, including women and children, who were slaughtered in the prolonged “coalition” bombardment, the hundreds who have been injured and maimed are lying in hospital beds unable to obtain proper treatment because electricity and water supplies have not been restored. Also, as a result of this failure, raw sewerage is regurgitating back into homes in Baghdad and flowing into some of the streets. There is no power to operate the pumping stations and, in any case, municipal workers have abandoned their jobs because they have not been paid in weeks.
As a result of the invasion, all the amenities, systems, institutions, infrastructure and civil authorities that make for some kind of civilised living have either been destroyed or broken down and, a month after, Iraqis are yet to see the kind of concerted emergency action from the invaders needed to at least relieve some of their anguish and suffering. All the great and earnest concern for the Iraqi people evinced by Bush and his lieutenants now begins to ring hollow but that, in our view, should not be surprising since the real objective of the invasion has been attained, that is the securing of Iraq’s vast oilfields out of which the US plans to pay US firms for reconstruction contracts, ease the menacing budgetary burden of Bush’s huge tax cuts — which, it seems, will largely benefit the rich — and, of course, ensure for the US an abundant supply of oil from a hopefully grateful post-Saddam regime.
But it appears that all is not proceeding according to plan for the US occupiers. The effort to set up a puppet regime in Baghdad has become so difficult that retired General Jay Garner and some of his top aides have apparently admitted defeat and will soon be departing. Barbara Bodine, the US coordinator for Central Iraq and de facto mayor of Baghdad, will also be quitting “in the next couple of days” having been unable to bring any significant assistance to the stricken Iraqi capital. But what could poor Barbara have done without the necessary support? Over in Britain, coalition partner Tony Blair is also having his share of problems with the resignation of International Development Secretary Clare Short who was not only critical of Blair joining the invasion without UN Security Council sanction but has now expressed her strong disapproval of the US-UK effort to set up a new Iraqi government without any contribution from the United Nations. With the cold war long over, the US is indisputably the world’s only superpower. What is now unnerving from this development is the maverick mentality demonstrated by this callous Iraqi adventure, a gross repudiation not only of the multilateral movement on which so much of the world’s progress depends but also demonstrating the shaky ground on which the ideals of democracy and freedom of speech rest in America itself.
Indian Heritage Month began with a series of events and activities to celebrate the arrival and contribution of Indians to Trinidad & Tobago and these activities will culminate with Indian Arrival Day. Ironically the Indo-Trinidad community is now faced with a form of state sponsored racism perhaps never before seen. The government of Trinidad & Tobago has essentially employed an affirmative action policy, which Indians are virtually omitted from the national patrimony. It appears now instead that there is a celebrating of affirmative action arrival in Trinidad & Tobago.
Affirmative action programmes are fraught with intrinsic flaws that work against harmony in a plural society. Affirmative action is supposed to be a programme designed to end racism, but it really justifies racism by its own actions. Its policies totally judge people solely on ethnicity. That is discrimination in itself. Is discrimination the solution to resolving past discrimination? This cannot be a desired government programme if there is a form of discrimination involved. David Sacks and Peter Thiel “The case against affirmative action” argued that “The basic problem is that a racist past cannot be undone through more racism.” Similarly titled “The case against affirmative action” Louis P Pojman goes further postulating that “strong affirmative action creates a new hierarchy of the oppressed.” Therefore in Trinidad, Afro-Trinidadians get primary preferential treatment, then the Syrians, Chinese, Mixed and Indians no matter how needy or well qualified, must accept the leftovers. The current policy of virtual ethnic exclusion should come as no surprise as on Friday 20 September 2002 Prime Minister Patrick Manning stated at a Point Fortin political meeting that his one political regret is not looking after PNM supporters previously, but next time he does not intend to make the same mistake. This declaration is not without ethnic implications as the majority of PNM supporters are non-Indians.
Clearly the implication is that Indians are not to be treated equally under the PNM. At a subsequent political meeting at the St Augustine Hi Lo car-park Prime Minister Manning asserted that the $400 million for CEPEP is needed to improve race relations as will allow those who have “historically” not been entrepreneurs the ability to develop into entrepreneurs. No mention was made of solving imbalances that affect the Indo-Trinidadian community. These statements from the Prime Minister married with utterances from businessman Arthur Lok Jack, chairman of the government’s multi-sectoral group responsible for formulating a Strategic Development Plan for Trinidad and Tobago to achieve Developed Country Status by 2020, continues to paint a black picture for Indo-Trinidadians. Lok Jack publicly bemoaned the absence of African entrepreneurs from the national business landscape. Lok Jack says he is concerned about the skewed distribution of economic wealth in our country and the absence of African entrepreneurs. Indo-Trinidadians appear not to figure in this 2020 Vision.
The Indo-Trinidadian community is witnessing a “shock and awe” pogrom with this state sanctioned policy that directs significant state resources primarily to one ethnic group. The lowering of qualifications for state employment, house padding, the establishment of the University of Trinidad & Tobago, Afro-Muslim profile in state projects, criminal elements association, the proposal of a political union with other Caribbean islands and state sponsored projects such as CEPEP, and HYPE are all examples of the pogrom perceived to push the Indian out the space that is shared in Trinidad & Tobago. The most visible of these affirmative action practices is the stone painting “make work” scheme better known as CEPEP. The Prime Minister even threatened at St Augustine that the allocation for CEPEP can double from the present $400 million. A recent NACTA poll asked if CEPEP is a government patronage programme to create employment for PNM supporters, 43% (mostly Indians) answered in the affirmative with 41% (mostly Africans) saying no and the remainder expressing no opinion. A significant number of Mixed and other ethnic groups also viewed CEPEP as a patronage programme. Many Africans point out that CEPEP also employs Indians but concede that Indians are under-represented in the programme. Asked if they agree with the accusation that the PNM discriminates against Indians, 41% (mostly Indian respondents and the minority ethnic groups) said yes and 42% (mostly Africans and Mixed race) said no.
The point is not that Indo-Trinidadians are crying for a “ten days,” to cut grass or to paint stones on the roadside. Instead Indians after over one hundred and fifty years are still arguing to have access to equivalent resources of the State for programmes which are relevant to their needs and community. Instead the government is building its own ethnic support base at the expense of all others. After all Indians pay taxes and therefore entitled to an equal share of the national patrimony. While the Prime Minister speaks and acts on “historical balancing” for Afro-Trinidadians he is silent on similar situations regarding Indo-Trinidadians in the army, public service, school boards, etc. In fact one can argue that given the proposed policy on shutting down of Caroni and the retrenchment of thousands of Indo-Trinidadian employees that a policy of racism by omission and commission is being perpetuated against Indo-Trinidadians on a scale never before seen. As we fast approach what may be the last Indian Arrival Day one wonders what is the position on this by Indian collaborators within the present administration. The pockets of a few Indians are being fattened while an entire community is being threatened to a Robert Mugabe type of administration.
THE EDITOR: I’m responding to a letter published in your newspaper on May 7, 2003 where a resident of Port-of-Spain had the audacity to say that my religion, Hinduism, is “foolish to honour anything that was made by man”.
This resident also went on to say that they “pray that the eye of our understanding will be opened to the true and living God this day”. I’m fifteen years old and I was taught never to criticise another person’s religion because everyone has their way of worshipping God. But I ask, what is this person implying? That my religion worships stone? That our god isn’t real? Well, I’ll try to enlighten not only this resident but the public as well on why we worship this god which is made of stone as this person seems to put it. First of all, if anyone has ever been to a church they will see either a statue of the Lord Jesus or at least a statue of the divine Mother Mary.
Now I wonder, what are these statues made of and how were they made? Are they made of the pure blood of Jesus and did he send them down on Earth? I think not. They are made of the same material that Lord Hanuman, the same “stone-god” that this resident seems to dislike so much, is made out of. That’s right, stone. And the question of how it was made? I think it is fair to say that man made it. And isn’t it true that the Roman Catholics or Pentecostals honour this statue? So what is this resident trying to say? That the Roman Catholics and Pentecostals worship stone? There is only one statement in the published letter by the resident that I find is the truth. That is: “Man cannot crate anything greater than himself”. So why does the Hindu religion worship this god made of stone? We don’t worship the stone itself.
We worship the god that this stone represents. The Hindu scriptures say that God is everywhere and can take any form that his devotees want him to. Lord Hanuman is just one of the many forms that God can take. He can take the form of the Lord Jesus, Lord Brahman or Mother Saraswatie, another Hindu god. Surely if this person had at least done some research she wouldn’t have had a reason to lash out at the Hindu community the way she did. Everyone has their own way of worshipping God and I ask this person and the public to please respect everyone’s way of worship. Like I said before, I’m only fifteen years old but at least I have the knowledge to know that I should respect everyone’s religion. So as you can see Miss Beckles, Jesus is not the only way to go. Lord Brahman, Lord Hanuman, Lord Shiva and even the Almighty Allah is also the way to go. If you find the Lord that your religion worships, in Miss Beckles words, you’ll find the way the truth and the light.
NYLA BARAN
Sangre Grande
THE EDITOR: I am reading yet again of plans for the development of Laventille. When a few years ago Jack Warner sought to purchase the “Twin Towers” at the foot of the hill for a footballers residence, he was chased out of town. An integral component of that proposal was the integration of the entire hill, up to the water tanks, into a larger downtown development plan.
John Humphrey, as Minister of Housing and Settlements had drawings and a huge three dimensional model prepared to illustrate an approach which embraced housing, commercial activity, pedestrian and tourism straight off the Brian Lara Promenade, sidewalk cafes and spaces for community activities. The model is still on display at the Ministry. Presentations were made to genuine community leaders as well as to representatives Eric Williams and Eulalie James. They embraced the ideas in the privacy of the Ministry. Not a single resident would have lost his space on the hill and unprecedented economic activity would have resulted, controlled by the residents themselves.
So what happened? The parliamentarians went back to their political party and emerged with a different tune. The people were sacrificed once again, this time from benefiting from a genuine approach to development with full people participation. Unless politicians can jump out of their head, read mindset, nothing will change in Laventille. After all, these are our people to do as we please with them. Take back your community from the politicians, Laventille. Elect your own non-party representative at the next local government election. Insist that the Humphrey proposal be re-visited and plan for your wider community. Only when you lift the yoke of the new slavery, can you move forward.
ALLEN SAMMY
San Fernando
THE EDITOR: The University of the West Indies (UWI) is the only successful regional institution that has gained widespread support by all Caricom people. Caricom understands that the quality of education at UWI is exceptional.
They support UWI even more than they support the West Indies cricket team. UWI has produced generations of human resources such as political leaders, prime ministers, and other professionals of exceptional quality. Instead of further investing in UWI, this Government is now working to set up a University of Trinidad and Tobago (UTT), to compete with UWI and undermine its financial viability. Admission to UWI is based on meritocracy. Students gain entrance to UWI based on their “A” Level results. This regime is proposing a University of Trinidad and Tobago only to cater for students who have made low grades at “A”Levels and therefore unable to gain admission to UWI. It is clear that a degree from the UTT would be of a much lower standard than one attained at UWI. This is evidence that this present regime has a real problem with anything that has to do with excellence, justice and fairness. They would water down anything, just to be manipulative. They now intend to hand out Junior Sec degrees, continue to foster mediocrity in our society, and at the same time keep mouthing first world status by 2020.
CXC is already of a much lower standard than Cambridge. This regime has decided to put the icing on the cake by recognising Grade 3 in CXC O-Levels. It is anybody’s guess as to who they are trying to prop up and give employment access to government agencies by distributing Junior Sec degrees and recognising Grade 3 in CXC O-Levels. They must lower the academic requirements in order to remain in power. Anytime they raise the academic requirements for employment access to any government agency, the ethnic composition is bound to change. It was indeed very disheartening as well to hear someone like President Max Richards, being a former Principal of UWI supporting the proposal of the UTT. Of all persons, President Max should know that any student desiring to be a professional of exceptional quality couldn’t be a student of mediocrity. Most of the scholars of excellence in TT gravitate to the field of medicine. This waste of financial resources should instead be used to expand UWI. We must promote excellence, merit and regional integrity by efficient and rational means. We cannot be talking about political union while undermining UWI and the principle of meritocracy.
REX MAHADEO
Marabella
THE EDITOR: Here we are in the middle of another cricket season and I have been moved finally to write some things I have been thinking for a very long time.
I do not want to focus on the actual play on the field, but on the management of the game and of the team. A cricket game does not begin when the players walk onto the field and it is not won simply by what happens on the field. It begins at the highest level with strong representation on international cricketing bodies. That is where issues such as faulty umpiring, refusal to make proper use of the “third umpire” and unfair World Cup selection rules should be taken up. In series after series, I have watched the West Indies team on the receiving end of the most blatantly unfair umpiring decisions, and series after series, I have wondered when some sort of complaint is going to be made. The present series is no exception — five bad decisions in the first Test — all against us. Remember the historic match at Lord’s, 100th anniversary I believe it was, when Wavell Hinds was hit on the shoulder and given lbw? Talk about not knowing your anatomy from your elbow! Wavell Hinds, poor fellow, went on to be badly victimised for the rest of that tour and it really threw his game off for quite a while. Where was the top-level support to rally behind him and help him feel less vulnerable to the caprices of hostile umpiring?
A couple of years ago, in a match here, one of our bowlers engaged in what some called deliberate slow bowling to drag out the last few overs of the match. He claimed it was because of a slight injury. No matter: the local authorities immediately and publicly jumped all over him, chastising him in the strongest terms, calling for the most stringent penalties. Where is this concern for the game and for fair play when we are on the receiving end of the attack? What about the Australian bowler who claimed he was aiming for the stumps, but instead by accident threw, very accurately, in the opposite direction at the batsman who was running down the pitch? That was at Kensington Oval and the Australian captain very promptly lodged a complaint about the crowd’s behaviour and stated his concerns for his team’s safety because some one flung a bottle onto the pitch. They didn’t throw it anywhere near as accurately as the bowler threw the ball, nor were they as close to their target. So the damage from the ball was potentially much greater. But what we heard about was the crowd’s behaviour, based on one badly aimed bottle.
I remember living in England as a student in the late 1990s and following the cricket matches against the West Indies avidly through the sports pages. I remember Viv Richards running up to an umpire waving his arms, appealing for a man to be given out. I remember the commentators and sports writers talking about Viv Richards’ attempt to intimidate the umpire and the debate that went on for days in the papers about whether he was going to be warned and fined for his behaviour. That was the kind of reporting that went on and it was worse for the matches played in the West Indies because it was impossible to find out the truth unless you talked to someone from home. Again and again, the West Indies was accused of cheating, unfairness, unsportsmanlike behaviour. There was blatant bias. I am not bringing this up to suggest that we should become the same. I simply wonder what happens at international meetings, whether our big, bad WICB spends its time striving to live up to some unrealistic “good sport” ideal, never complaining or rocking the boat because of “how it go look.” Why should we feel we have to be ten times as fair as everyone else or the white people will put us out of their game? We are the ones who brought the excitement back into cricket and we have been one of the main reasons people have been following cricket for the past 30 years. We have more than earned our place.
Surely we are not mendicants, begging cap in hand to be allowed to play, grateful just to be allowed on the pitch with the master? And the high-handed attitude which the WICB should have with the international cricketing bodies, it turns on the players at home. Cricket games are not won simply by what happens on the pitch, they are won by good and sensible management of teams and players. In what management text does it appear that changing leadership frequently and unpredictably will boost morale and improve performance? Clive Lloyd and Viv Richards enjoyed long and stable captaincies and the team therefore enjoyed great success under them. Doesn’t anyone see the connection? But there is no professionalism evident at the regional management level. The attitude is we have the talent, we are the best, just throw eleven men on the field, in any combination which will satisfy national jealousies, and we bound to win, man! Players are discarded capriciously and unkindly, novices are placed in unfairly demanding positions, training camps are a joke. Meanwhile, the opposition studies our form and technique via videos and continues to move ahead. We are making all kinds of teams look good through our failure to take the game seriously. I know the WICB is a body of great and mighty men, deserving of the utmost respect and reverence. But I wonder whether they have been able to move beyond regarding cricket and the West Indies team as anything other than a village game played by a village team. Just a fete match. Nothing serious.
KAREN MOORE
Champs Fleur
THE EDITOR: In our society in which we live, kidnapping, gruesome murders, rape, vandalism and drug trafficking namely called crime have once again been seen on the headlines of every newspaper in Trinidad and Tobago. This serious predicament and deep haunting problem has reached alarming proportions resulting in a negative impact of the country.
The time to put an end to this high incidence of criminal activities has arrived and I believe that special emphasis must be made on the role of the young people which can result in a positive, reduction of this disaster. Young people must first and foremost equip themselves with education and show themselves approved. Education is a stepping stone for a career ahead so they can indulge themselves in obtaining a job and joining the labour force. However, there are unfortunate ones who are unable to join the workforce and therefore remain unemployed and add themselves to the escalating number of street children on our nation’s roads resulting in exposure to bad influence and illegal activities. It is essential that these young people involve themselves in trades and technical/vocational courses to become employable and skillfully approved.
The private sector and large businesses should innovate their policies where the provision and sponsorship of on-the-job-training, promotional activities and scholarships for youths should be a priority. Thus, youths will be given responsibility and feel a sense of worth instead of being turned down on jobs that require experience and academic qualifications. In order to curb this major social problem, the establishment of “anti-crime groups” in schools, churches and communities can promote the dangers, causes, preventative methods and solutions to crime. This increases the awareness of the youths as well as the older folks so they can protect themselves, their families and communities at large. There should be incentives eg rewards, bonuses for those people who can assist the police in fighting the battle thus, encouraging the people especially the youths to participate in solving and eliminating crime.
There is a need for better role models in our country so youths would not follow the footsteps of drug lords and gangsters but will follow footsteps of doctors, lawyers, teachers which will have a positive impact. Proper guidance from parents and elders is a need, because young people should take heed of the advice and suggestions, because if these children are brought up on the right values and morals then there is no need for young people to be rebellious, delinquent and mischievous. For some parents who are workaholics, you are not even aware if your children are carrying weapons eg knives in their school bags. Please try to spend quality time with your children especially teenagers because when they do not receive the love, attention and guidance at home they seek this love elsewhere and ends up seeking it in the wrong places and get caught up with bad company which put a rise to the number of crimes. Parents should teach their children to refrain from bad company and should report any bad and illegal activities to the police.
What will become of a country that contains crime and illegal activities? Who will want to come to a country where criminals may be your next door neighbours? Will tourists desire to holiday in a country with the fear of being murdered? Would people want to live and work in a country where they are afraid to trust their own shadow? No! No! No! This is why there must be crime elimination beginning now, starting with you and starting with me. As citizens of this beautiful, blessed twin island we must protect ourselves, our family and our nation by seeking every solution to tackle crime. Youths of our country, stand up now and battle this disaster so we can eradicate this problem because the future of our country lies in our hands.
KRISTY-ANN RAMSAMOOJ
Couva Gov’t Secondary
Form 5C
