ASCU president Brian Matthew said the plan “to chart the way forward” for the credit union actually began almost a year ago, and was essential because, “amidst the subdued economic conditions domestically,” the credit union must be seen as growing. For the effective implementation of the plan two committees have been formed, comprising Board members and some management personnel.

In outlining the strategic plan, Matthew said it was leading ASCU along a growth path by “adopting prudent measures to stimulate and enhance our revenue while effectively containing our cost”. He said it identified several areas that required the attention of the committees and outlined four areas of immediate deliberate focus – customer satisfaction, membership engagement, employee capability and revenue growth.

Speaking about the progress made so far, and particularly in the area of customer service, he said, “We (committees) have steadfastly moved towards improving our product offerings to you by ensuring that we facilitate easier access to our office and placing a high priority on our customer service delivery.

“New and innovative methods have been initiated to meet the needs of our members in all the communities we serve and we continue to explore newer and more effective methods.”

“In this regard,” he added, “We urge all our members to embrace our technology interventions and make full use of the products like the Aero Access facility, through which a wide range of requests can be made. These include, but are not limited to, balance inquiries, transfer of funds and requests for statements on member accounts.”

Matthew pointed out that apart from social media interventions like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and the strengthening of the team with two additional telephone operators, he was pleased to announce that the Telecommunication Services of Trinidad and Tobago business relationship was improved by connecting to “the fibre optic network, exploring additional telephone lines and improvement of our website”.

Matthew said refurbishment work was currently in progress at the credit union’s main office on Orange Grove Road, Tacarigua – upgrading the overall bathroom facilities; the reception area and the general work space for the staff. Plans are also advanced for additional bathrooms and other improvement work at the sports complex on Factory Road, Piarco. Improvements to the sports facility will include new signage, work improvement to the playing field with a better drainage system, and better lighting around the entire complex. “Our objective is to enhance the appearance and functionality of the facility to not only retain existing clients, but to also attract new clients as we strive to improve our revenue earning potential.” The credit union has also created a booking platform on the ASCU website so that rental requests can be more easily made.

Regarding the proposed credit union legislation, Matthew said ASCU continued to consult with stakeholders on the proposed legislation. Last year two consultations were held to discuss the Cooperative Societies Amendment Bill (CSAB) and the Credit Union Bill. A draft National Policy on Co-operatives was prepared and disseminated to key stakeholders for feedback by the end of August. “As we strive to stimulate loan demand, we are making every effort to bring competitive products to you, our valued members. We implore you, however, to partner with us as we strive to enrich the quality of your life. We will again offer attractive loan interest rebates to our members who participate in our loan products, which is by far the largest contributor to our revenue base.” The credit union declared an interest of 5.25 percent on shares for 2016.

In Water there is Bacteria”. More than just a catchy phrase, it is also true, well at least about water. This article highlights one of the lesser-known waterborne bacteria: Legionella.

What is Legionella? Legionella is a pathogenic (diseasecausing) group of bacteria found naturally in freshwater environments.

It thrives in warmer waters as high as 50 C. It can even invade man-made systems such as cooling towers, swimming pools, hot-water showers and faucets, ice-making machines, decorative fountains, hot water tanks and heaters, hot tubs, saunas and whirlpool spas.

The bacterium can survive for months in tap and distilled water.

Legionella appears to be more resistant to chlorine than the well-known food-borne pathogen, Escherichia coli.

At least 40 species of Legionella have been shown to cause disease, but the most prominent pathogenic species is Legionella pneumophilia.

History: Legionella was first discovered after an outbreak in 1976 among people who went to a Convention of the American Legion in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the time, there was a seemingly unknown outbreak of a disease in guests staying at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel, which sickened 221 persons and resulted in the death of 34 individuals.

Those affected suffered from a type of pneumonia (lung infection) that eventually became known as Legionnaires’ disease.

In January 1977, after an extensive investigation, the Legionella bacterium was finally identified and isolated by scientists of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). It was found to be breeding in the cooling tower of the hotel’s rooftop air conditioning system, which allowed it to spread throughout the building.

How is Legionella transmitted? Legionella bacteria typically does not spread directly between people – it is not contagious.

Transmission of the Legionella bacteria occurs when microscopic airborne droplets of water or mist that contains elevated levels of bacteria is inhaled. In addition, droplets and particles may accidently enter the respiratory system rather than the digestive system during the swallowing process (aspiration).

Legionella bacteria can affect anyone, including healthy individuals. However, Legionella is an “opportunistic” bacteria that usually affects individuals with underlying illnesses or conditions. Individuals particularly at risk include those with respiratory disease, diabetes (as well as dialysis patients), cancer, weakened immune systems, organ transplant patients, the elderly, and heavy smokers or drinkers.

What are the effects of exposure to Legionella? Legionella is the causative agent of legionellosis, a term coined for all diseases caused by this type of bacteria. Legionellosis includes two distinct forms: Legionnaires’ disease and Pontiac Fever.

Legionnaires’ disease is a severe form of pneumonia. The incubation period is two to ten days and rarely up to 20 days. Legionnaires’ disease usually lasts for weeks, with a fairly high mortality rate. Legionnaires’ disease is often initially characterized by anorexia, malaise, lethargy and a mild unproductive cough. Though most symptoms are non-specific, they include: loss of strength (asthenia), high fever, headache, chills, muscle pain, difficulty breathing, chest pain, diarrhoea, vomiting, nausea, central nervous system manifestations, such as confusion and delirium, and even renal failure (World Health Organization, 2007).

Pontiac fever refers to an acute flu-like illness that is milder than Legionnaires’ disease, self-limiting (resolving itself without treatment) and non-fatal. The incubation period is five hours to three days (most commonly between 24 to 48 hours).

Pontiac fever usually last for two to five days. Typical symptoms include: Influenza-like illness (moderate to severe), Loss of strength (asthenia), tiredness, high fever and chills, muscle pain (myalgia), headache, joint pain (arthralgia), diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, difficult breathing (dyspnoea) and dry cough (World Health Organization, 2007).

Prevalence: A report from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) revealed that from 2000 to 2014, the rate of reported cases of legionellosis, increased nearly fourfold. CDC Director, Tom Frieden, reported that “People are unnecessarily and avoidably getting sick and dying from preventable infections. And the cases carry a high price tag: The annual cost of treating Legionnaire’s disease, based on hospital claims, is about (US)$434 million”.

The CDC analysed outbreaks it had investigated from 2000 to 2014 that involved 415 cases, including 65 deaths. Most of the outbreaks were in buildings with large or complex water systems, such as hotels, hospitals and long-term-care facilities. About half of outbreaks examined were the result of a single failure, such as a broken disinfection system or human error. The most common sources of the bacteria were water in showers, cooling towers and hot tubs.

Treatment & Prevention: There are no vaccines for preventing legionellosis. Medical treatment for Legionnaires’ disease requires the use of antibiotics. The best method of prevention is to eliminate water conditions that allow the Legionella bacteria to thrive and to prevent the spreading of contaminated aerosols.

Measures include good maintenance of equipment and devices, application of physical (temperature) and/or chemical measures (biocides) to minimize growth. Some examples include: • Regular maintenance, cleaning and disinfection of cooling towers; • Maintaining an adequate level of a biocide (e.g. chlorine) in major water distribution systems; • Keeping the hot water at 60°C and the cold below 20°C or alternatively treating them with a suitable biocide to limit growth; • Keeping hot and cold water systems clean and free of scale in order to reduce stagnation and • Flushing unused taps in buildings on a weekly basis.

Applying such controls can greatly reduce the risk of Legionella contamination and prevent the occurrence of outbreaks. Don’t allow these tiny bacteria to turn the tables and put you in hot water.

Contact CARIRI’s Environmental Microbiology Laboratory for more information on Legionella Evaluations at emicro@cariri.com or 285-5050 ext 3504/3509/3512.

References: Images: http://www.primewater.be/images/ legionella.jpg Content: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/ factsheets/fs285/en/ http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_ health/emerging/legionella.pdf Pepper, I.L., Gerber, C.P. and Gentry, T.J.

2015. Environmental Microbiology, Third Edition.

From EH: “While reading, some ideas came bubbling up. Not necessarily coherently related. You noted that (next to the taxi system, and regrettably not well-integrated into it), the PTSC should serve two distinct markets: (a) High volume markets where buses (and I guess dedicated road lanes) make sense; and, (b) Low volume travel lines that are commercially of no interest to taxis. You could add to that ‘Low demand for traffic hours in the day’.

“Nearly everybody owns a mobile phone these days, and GPS locators are rapidly penetrating the phone market. What about using that to improve the efficiency of the taxi-system and improve security of travellers? In first instance, I think of establishing (or expanding the 911-call centre) to arrange that every person who feels threatened is only a click away from calling for help (don’t dial; just press the panic button. An alternative procedure could be that a person setting out to travel, logs in to the centre indicating intended travel after which the system monitors the trip and alerts a human supervisor if the travel pattern changes, until the traveller logs out, having safely reached the destination). The travel planning data that is provided at log-in can also be used to combine trips desired by aspiring travellers to more efficiently match taxi-movements to travel demand.

“Another issue is that the obvious (immediately possible) solution to the mismatch between demand for road space and available road space is rationing the available space and time to give high occupancy vehicles preferential treatment. I’ve heard that many taxi drivers don’t drive during rush hours as at that time their income per hour is, of course, lowest. Is that indeed the case?

“Both in the Netherlands and in Curacao I’ve seen that encouraging lower vehicle speeds leads to dramatic capacity increase. Four-lane arteries where high speeds were possible, reconfigured to two (separated) lanes with an ambiance that discourages speeding, and intersections that have higher capacity due to slower speeds, resolve traffic jams that previously existed. As a transportation man, you know that lower vehicle speeds translates to more vehicles per hour as vehicles can be packed more closely together at lower speeds. For me it was a wow! of an eye-opener.” (For any particular uniform road segment, traffic capacity remains the same, but lower speeds during uncongested traffic flow will result in higher traffic volumes).

Next, from SC: “What about auctioning off commuter routes to operators of the mega and macro buses. Leave PTSC as a regulator and privatise the transit system.”

IM responded to that comment with: “Auction? Those with money will speak loudly again. And pose tremendous problems, more than it will solve. Give us other options.”

From KR: “We must not fear and discriminate against those that control capital, they have a role to play in the development of the modern or any society. We must put systems (policies and management mechanisms) in place to ensure accountability, transparency and fairness, while simultaneously promoting the development of new entrepreneurs to effectively and efficiently provide required services.

“Commercialisation/ privatisation of transit routes already has a model (not perfect but useful); the maxi taxi system. Prospective investors must gauge the return on investments and if it does not make sense they will not invest. The size of the market is a critical consideration. I proffer these views because it cannot be expected that government will subsidise commercialisation of transit routes if that happens we will possible end up with another City Gate facility.”

From SBM: “You have to deal with the core issues here! Public transportation is transportation none the less. As everything else in Trinidad, we can build it, but can it be made consistent, then consistently reliable? Secondly, In response to the privatisation solution. Can anyone please name one thing or entity that was privatised which in turn holistically benefited Trinidadians?”

Again from SC: “The bus companies were private before being shut down and nationalised. The phone company was private before. Texaco before Petrotrin, Co-Op Bank before FCB (First Citizens). If as Rae says the maxi taxis are private and transport 95 percent of the commuters what is the issue? PTSC will require billions of dollars of investment and will never be in a position to become the on-time bus service that is required.”

KR responded: “The socialist type ideology of the past did not work for us. Inefficiencies borne from historical antecedents imposed on a culture of unproductivity buttressed on poor governance, ethnic discrimination and flawed management rendered all public sector enterprises to sustain failure.”

SC concluded: “Imagine the state could still pay for a subsidy to keep bus fares at an acceptable level and yet have a reliable, on-time service. Before the trade unions object we would be looking at a complement of bus drivers way in excess of what is there now. By privatising the transit system you will create thousands of new jobs, better pay, and yet people could set their watches by the bus.”

I will respond to these comments later.

e-mail: info@ccost.org

The Miller brand was formally introduced in TT in the 1990s with Miller Genuine Draft, and since then has grown with the recent additions of Miller Lite and Sharps. Molson Coors Brewing Company acquired the global rights to the Miller brand portfolio in October, 2016.

The expanded deal between NWT and MCI builds on their long-standing relationship in TT. NWT has been the exclusive partner to Molson Coors International for the distribution Coors

Light on the island since 2012.

“As consumers become more selective in choosing which beer to spend their hard-earned money on, we’re thrilled to welcome the distinct Miller brands into our portfolio of the world’s leading beers,” said Sunil Persad, vice president of Business Development at NWT.

“NWT has done a terrific job helping us grow Coors Light in Trinidad and Tobago over the last five years,” said Guido Diaz, MCI general manager for the Caribbean and Central America. “We’re looking forward to working together to further delight beer drinkers on the island with the world-famous Miller brands

A release from the online platform said it was launched in 2015 and is similar to major international online market places such as Alibaba.com.

Over the last two years of the website’s existence, over 60 businesses were registered on the site, among them the HADCO Group, Abel Building Solutions, Very Exciting Things Ltd and Trinidad Chocolate Factory Ltd.

For the period January to March the site attracted over 10,000 unique visits and there were over 300,000 page views from countries across the world, including Russia, USA, India, China, France and Canada. Over 1,000 products are listed on the site across 25 main product categories, from furniture to agriculture to body care and beverages, the release continued.

EXIMBANK’s portal administrator, Sheldon Thomas said: “Every month, vendors on our website receive credible inquires for the purchase of locally manufactured goods and services, and this is the goal that we seeking.”

Signing up on Made-in-TnT.com is free on condition of a one-year contact. It is open to local manufacturers and service providers of all sizes, big or small.

The product or service must be exportable and have an element of local input (assembly; mixing; moulding; manufacturing etc.).

“Our goal is to have every possible manufacturer and service provider with an exportable product listed on our site. This forms part of our mission to continually promote export-driven growth as mandated by the government,” Thomas said.

Both men remain in police custody assisting investigators.

Police will now rely on ballistics and gunpowder residue tests to determine which man pulled the trigger and killed Melissa ‘’Melly” Mohammed-Ramkissoon, 32.

Mohammed-Ramkissoon’s relative who is 35, told officers at Chaguanas Police Station that a 28-year-old friend of the family was the one who shot her in the car. The friend, who exited the car and ran off after the shot was fired, is claiming that Mohammed- Ramkissoon’s relative was the one who shot her and is trying to ‘frame’ him, for her murder.

Mohammed-Ramkissoon and the two men all live at Cedar Hill Road in Claxton Bay. According to reports, the relative was driving his Nissan Tiida with Mohammed- Ramkissoon and the friend as passengers, en route to Chaguanas to purchase a vehicle.

During the trip, the three are said to have started arguing with each other and a shot was fired.

As Mohammed-Ramkissoon slumped forward in the front passenger seat, the friend who was sitting in the back, jumped out of the car and ran off while the relative drove to the Chaguanas police station where Mohammed- Ramkissoon was pronounced dead. The relative was arrested. At 11 am yesterday, the friend surrendered to police at Freeport Police Station.

After the body was removed to the Forensic Science Centre, officers carried out a search of the car and found a revolver under one of the seats. They also found 12 rounds of ammunition in the trunk. The revolver contained five rounds and a spent shell. When asked about the ammunition in the trunk, Mohammed- Ramkissoon relative said he knew nothing about it.

Officers have taken swabs from the hands of both the relative and friend which will be examined for gunshot residue to determine who is the killer. The friend is adamant he had nothing to do with Mohammed-Ramkissoon’s murder and is seeking legal counsel.

Officers went to the friend’s house where relatives claimed they have not seen him since Tuesday during the daytime.

Police sources refused to confirm a report that a stack of love letters written by Mohammed- Ramkissoon was found in a house in Cedar Hill Road. Police yesterday transported the car and gun to the Special Evidence Recovery Unit (SERU) in Cumuto for ballistic tests. When Newsday visited Mohammed-Ramkissoon’s home yesterday no one was at home but residents said they learned of the death via media reports.

The couple lived alone, residents claimed. Inspector Jones, Cpl Radhaykissoon and other officers of the Homicide Bureau (Region III) are continuing investigations.

The lack of compassion and discourtesy experienced by citizens when visiting most government offices is alarming. Staff members are rude and unhelpful and if you ask to see the manager it gets worse. To them customer service is a foreign language.

It is alleged the protective services have no audit of arms and ammunition so they have no way of knowing whether the guns are all accounted for or are in the hands of criminals.

It is obvious the police often use their sirens to escape/bypass traffic jams, when they should only be used in pursuit of criminals or heading to a crime scene.

The Environmental Management Authority is very dysfunctional as there is evidence of garbage everywhere in the city and suburbs. Disposal arrangements and anti-littering signs with fines are absent.

The evidence of human beings sleeping on the city sidewalks is pitiful and embarrassing.

The defence force is idle most of the time, preparing for an unlikely invasion. Why not have them patrol the crime areas each day (not sometimes) with the police? Make them contribute and assist with law and order.

The presence of a large fortified prison in the centre of the city is an embarrassment. Why hasn’t any government seen it necessary to relocate it and provide proper modern facilities for housing and rehabilitating inmates? The inmates can also provide valuable assistance in planting food crops etc on State lands to reduce our financially draining food import bill.

Lawlessness and serious crime have reached crisis proportions yet the protective services tell us crime is down and we say nothing.

Union demands are unreasonable in the current economic climate, so why is the Government accommodating them? Intelligent people will admit when they realise a problem is too big and they need help. The Government must admit the crime situation is too big and ask the US and the UK to send help quickly before all hell breaks loose and it is unable to stop the mayhem.

We are in a crisis situation with crime; the time to act is now.

Gordon Laughlin Westmoorings

We can cry and complain all we want but they aren’t going to make any of our ministers share in their tens of thousands of dollars worth of compensation each month.

The majority of us just have to do what we need to in order to survive, so here’s what I think: don’t fight the recession. Instead, open your doors to it. I mean it’s not going anywhere anytime soon so, like everything else in the evolutionary series, let’s adapt to its nature. It’s hard, yes, but this is a time for reflection.

Ask yourselves: was I really splurging my salary each month on unnecessary objects? Was I saving enough? Was I maximising the value I could have gotten from the money I was making? The next step is cutting back.

You’ve grown accustomed to a wasteful lifestyle but time for a reality check: were the parties, movies three times a week, hair, nails, branded clothes and restaurants a little too much? Picking up the most expensive stuff in the grocery? Need to actually use everything in your cupboard now instead of wasting and throwing away? How much charity did you give back? How much did you help your friends, families and those around you? Before you overwhelm yourself with a negative mindset, do some soul-searching. Then comes the final step: survival. It was only about 300 decades ago that money was invented so did you ever think about how people survived without it? They lived didn’t they? Well they survived by doing just about anything to survive.

So Mr engineer, you got laid off and need to go and work in a tyre shop now? So be it. Madam supervisor, you lost your job and have to put a table by the road selling bottled seasoning now? So be it. Don’t let your former status or education get to your head. We’re all here to do the same thing. Exist. Try to do it as peacefully as possible. Nobody said it would be easy.

Spend time planting that kitchen garden that you never got a chance to. Remember, a dollar saved is a dollar earned. So you have a skill? Then offer it. Social media is the cheapest form of advertising. Get your small business ideas circulating by the hundreds of “friends” you have. There’s no shame in survival.

The recession can provide some positives. It means getting those lazy minds thinking about what you can do to put bread on the table and stop relying on one single source of income.

Amanda Ramlakhan South Oropouche

There is one member of the committee who just after the 2015 general election was appointed chairman of a State enterprise and with great haste moved to put things right.

There was a four-day public consultation with pomp and ceremony, after which a report was to be compiled and handed to the relevant line minister with, no doubt, a great future for this failing State enterprise. Little did we know that within six months this chairman would demit office.

Well a year and some months later, there still has been no report, at least made known to the very members of the public who took part in the consultations, and the State enterprise continues to struggle on at taxpayers’ expense. The report was either top class or not worth the paper it was printed on.

There is another old saying, “Don’t hold your breath”

C Peter via email

The accompanying talk is that IP and knowledge are the new basic resource that can spawn diversification, global competitive companies. Hence, the IP Office that operates under the World Intellectual Property Organisation but located in the ministry, will be expanded into an IP Authority, charged with the management of this hoped-for resource that could underpin our economic diversification.

The question that arises is where is this flood of IP, of inventiveness, to come from that will feed our diversification? UTT claims that its programmes help students become entrepreneurs, help them turn their ideas into products and develop these into scaled-up companies with the various supply/export trains.

Our graduates and potential entrepreneurs, inventors, do not exist in an economic vacuum. They operate in a plantation economy whose private sector has developed certain rigidities that act against this kind of higher-risk entrepreneurship, which (the latter) depends on — exploiting knowledge and IP.

The current onshore private sector is risk averse, is maladaptive, or, as some say, the rents from the energy sector allow the onshore business to be very profitable by low-risk import-markup- sell activities. My concern is that this rigidity has damaged the ability of the private sector to adapt, even to change its modus operandi in the face of the depleting petroleum resources and the emerging competition from the US.

The current recession is a vivid indicator of this behaviour, as we see the private sector businesses squabbling over who should get the severely reduced foreign exchange now available in the country, instead of reorganising themselves into becoming globally competitive exporters.

Simply introducing new institutions like the IP Authority is insufficient without providing the economic agents — the highly skilled R&D personnel — the entrepreneurs and, of utmost importance, the interconnections among them via centres of excellence, the higher-risk financing, marketing and market development.

These will provide an environment for the selected areas of endeavour in which IP is to be produced.

The stand-alone new authority then will simply take its place among many others that did not fulfil the dreams of their creators, eg the Agricultural Development Bank, ExportTT , Venture Capital Incentive Programme, Tamana Park.

Surely, the IP Authority is a necessary institution, but it has to be imbedded in a national innovation system that provides the economic agents and encourages the intellectual and business interconnections among them that produces the IP and generates the start-up companies that can scale up into our lucrative foreign exchange earners.

Such an innovation system can also support the serendipity inventor/ entrepreneurs who have the occasional “ah ha” moments.

Mary K King St Augustine