Though this may give one a slim chance for escape, it is of very little use against a loaded weapon.

This is the cosmetic approach to the many daily problems Arimians face.

In Arima the police wrecking service is incredible. It works to a fault, so motorists in this scenic borough have decided to use the pavements. Even the car businesses and fast food outlets use these new parking facilities. This is shamefully evident at the merging of Prince Street and Tumpuna Road North.

There seems to be no vision for what was once a most harmonious community. Our borough has deteriorated over the many years of faithfulness to the PNM.

Colin Fortune Arim

CPL is seeking to get 60 percent delegates that represent the membership of the pan fraternity to sign the petition by next week.

Attached to the petition is a document outlining the issues which has led to them having no confidence in the Pan Trinbago executive.

Spokesperson for CPL Dane Gulston told Newsday, “The meeting, post Carnival 2017, was not about Panorama but rather a group of individuals who came together for the love of pan.” Among the attendees were three former executives of Pan Trinbago, Aquil Arrindell (education officer), Cindy Rosemin (assistant secretary) and Bryon Serrette (vice-president), two sitting regional chairmen Gerard Mendez and Carlon Harewood, Keith Simpson (Tripolians), Michael Marcano (bp Renegades) and Gulston (Massy All Stars).

A series of regional meetings have been planned for next week, at which time there will be discussions on Panorama 2017 and other issues as well as the presentation of the petition for signatures.

According to the constitution of Pan Trinbago, the term of the present executive will come to an end on October 2018. However Gulston said there is a provision which members can use for the removal of the executive.

Gulston said once the petition is signed by 60 percent of the delegates, they with then call a general membership meeting to inform pannists of the next step.

Hosein was addressing regional corporation chairmen, aldermen, councillors and CEOs at Signature Hall, Chaguanas yesterday morning during a local government orientation seminar.

As the former mayor of San Fernando, Hosein said things worked much faster in his corporation than at the ministry and the change in pace sometimes leads to him making mistakes.

“It’s because I want things to happen and the ministry is too slow.

If I want to buy a staple, it has to go to the Ministry of Finance. Everything you want you have to go to the Ministry of Finance. I’m asking for a telephone since I come here because I didn’t take one when I was in San Fernando.

And up to now, four months, I can’t get my own telephone.” Hosein said he ended up buying a phone for himself.

His criticism of the ministry’s processes was lightly applauded by the audience before he went on to further criticise the system.

He said since his appointment, he has received over 300 letters from people all over the country asking for his help with things that should be dealt with at the level of the corporations.

“Something has to be wrong somewhere.” Speaking with reporters after the opening of the seminar, Hosein said changes to the system as campaigned for by the PNM during the last local government election were being reviewed at the Ministry of the Attorney General and should reach parliament in about six months.

The biennial conference brings together judges, lawyers, legal professionals and academics throughout the Commonwealth to discuss current trends and issues affecting the administration of justice and legal practice.

The chief justice was invited by the chairman of the CLC2017 Organising Committee and president of the Commonwealth Lawyers’ Association to deliver the presentation and chair the session on Online Technology Assisted Judging.

Archie will also attend a board meeting and a Patron Chief Justices’ meeting of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute (CJEI) which will address judicial reform and common problems and solutions that impact on judicial education and the administration of justice in the Commonwealth.

The 2017 conference will be held in Melbourne, Australia, and CJ Archie’s attendance is expected to provide an opportunity to learn from the experiences of other Commonwealth Judiciaries, as well as share on current issues common to other legal systems, judicial education and practice, a statement from the Judiciary said yesterday.

In Archie’s absence, Justice of Appeal Allan Mendonca will act as Chief Justice from March 15 to April 8.

The 33-year-old cyclist from the Breakaway Cycling Club completed the 24 km course in one hour, five minutes and 45 seconds. He was followed closely by Adam Farfan of Survival OS, in a time of 1:06:20. In third place with a time of 1:08:03 was 15-year-old Dimitri Commissiong-Payne of Breakaway.

Rounding off the top five were Quincy Arneaud of Mike’s Bikes and Adande Piggott of MTB Kings, who finished in 1:08:19 and 1:08:41 respectively.

Wendy-Ann Thomas of MTB Kings (1:44:23) and Kiyomi Rankine of Slipstream (1:47:41) took charge among the women in the open/elite category, being the only two women competitors in this event.

In the Sport MTB category, veteran David Hackshaw of Slipstream won a frenetic finish as he and Brian Marsan of Survival OS dashed across the finish line. They both finished their two-lap race in 47:41, separated by hundredths of a second. Only 19 seconds later, Vishal Bachoon snatched third spot away from Greg Downes, sprinting across the line, with a photo finish in a time of 48 minutes.

The last event – the trail run – was a 5km run along the same winding, bamboo canopied single track, mountain bike course.

Collin Pereira blazed through the course in a time of 19:04 to win this event for the second time in a row. Closely trailing were Shirvan Baboolal (19:23) and Avinash Anamalay (19:54) in second and third place. In the women’s race, Lindsay Mies, won in a time of 22:18, also placing eighth overall. Placing second among the women was Sjaelan Evans in 23:48 and April Francis secured bronze in a time of 25:29.

The next event on the Rainbow Warriors Triathlon Club’s calendar will be the Massy Rainbow Cup (triathlon and 5km run/walk) on June 10 in Tobago. For more information persons can visit www.

rainbowcuptobago.com

Felix scored 18 points to lead QRC to a 40-33 win over East Mucurapo at the Jean Pierre Complex in Mucurapo. Johnathan Ward scored 10 points for QRC, while Jadi Antoine was a one man show for East Mucurapo, netting 24 points. Brewer scored half of his team’s points, when he dropped 30 points to lead ISPS to a 60-15 victory over St Mary’s College. Jordan Mukerji contributed 18 points for ISPS, while Evan Trim was the top scorer for St Mary’s with six points.

In the other match, South East Port of Spain earned a win by default over Tranquillity.

Bishop Anstey ‘B’ are firmly in charge of an automatic semi-final spot with one round remaining.

They were up against Holy Name Convent ‘A’ in the latest round, who provided little resistance to end up on the wrong side of a 22-0 scoreline.

Keryce Baptiste led Bishop ‘B’ with three tries, while Arissa Romany scored one try and had two successful conversions. With that result, Bishop ‘B’ are a perfect 20 points from their five matches.

St James Secondary School are not giving up on the number one spot themselves and remained within three points of the leaders with a lopsided victory of their own. The 24-0 win for St James came against the team previously ranked second, Providence Girls Catholic School. Pateia Paul led all scoring with three tries, while Tahira Abdul scored one.

The highest scoring match was Bishop Anstey ‘A’ with a 32-0 master- class over Holy Name ‘B’.

Mohammed, who is aiming to make it a hat-trick of titles in the women’s singles category, advanced to the semifinals with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Victoria Koylass.

On Tuesday, top seed Emma Davis was eliminated from the women’s singles with a first round defeat to Solange Skeene.

Skeene continued her impressive run in the tournament with a 6-0, 6-0 victory over Chelsea Mukerji. Also advancing to the women’s singles semifinals were Yin Lee Assang and Anya King.

Assang got past Lily Lanser 6-3, 6-2, while King was a 6-3, 6-4 winner over Abigail Jones. In today’s semifinal, Mohammed will meet Assang while Skeene is paired against King.

In the women’s doubles semifinals, Mohammed teamed up with Keneel Teasdale to defeat Maria Honore and Mukerji 6-1, 6-2. Mohammed and Teasdale’s strategy of moving aggressively to the net worked in their favour, as oppose to Honore and Mukerji who chose to stay at the baseline. In round one of the veterans singles, Frank Ramudit outlasted Ken Aberdeen 6-2, 6-3 and Brian Jackson got past Michael Cooper 6-0, 6-3.

In round one of the mixed doubles, Javier Lewis and Makalah Goodridge defeated Brandon Gregoire and Vivian Sabga 6-1, 7-5.

The tournament continues today from 4 pm

Making this revelation was Minister of Sport Darryl Smith, during a media conference at the neighbouring National Tennis Centre yesterday.

Talking about the state of the Hockey Centre, Smith noted, “I always asked the question ‘why was the machine to clean the turf never purchased?’ When I asked how much (the Trinidad and Tobago Hockey Board) spent every quarter or so to pay (a company) to powerwash, when we added up how much that came up to, we could have had enough money to buy 10 machines.” Smith said, “I’m letting you all know that with the new turf, we’ll be also purchasing a new machine as well. We have new lighting, we have to thank TTEC for coming in so fast to assist. We’ll be finishing a new pavilion this week.” The Hockey World League Round Two will feature eight teams in two groups. Pool A will comprise of Canada, Chile, Barbados and the United States, while hosts Trinidad and Tobago will be in Pool B, alongside Japan, Russia and Switzerland.

On the opening day, March 25, in Pool A, Canada will face United States at 1.15 pm while Chile will meet Barbados from 3.30 pm. And, in Pool B, Japan will oppose Switzerland at 5.45 pm while Trinidad and Tobago will square off against Russia at 8 pm.

There will be preliminary round games on March 26 and 28, followed by the quarter-finals on March 30, the semi-finals on April 1 and the final, as well as the lower-placing matches, on April 2.

The Sports Minister also urged the athletes and the TTHF to encourage the fans, particularly in the primary schools, to attend the event to enhance the growth of the sport locally.

And, focusing on the TT squad members in attendance at the media conference, Smith stated, “At the end of the day, the light is shining brightly on you all. If you perform well, you can get scholarships and contracts (abroad).” Glenn “Fido” Francis, coach of the TT team, spoke of the preparation phase that the team have been going through, within the past year. “We started eight months ago,” he said. “We started off with 30 guys, then (reduced to) 22 guys. The guys have been doing well, they’re really focused.” The former national player noted, “For me as the coach, it’s very tough because everyone has high expectations. But we’ll deal with it. We have a lot of quality in the team.” Among the sponsors for the tournament are the Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs, Sports Company of Trinidad and Tobago (SPORTT), Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee (TTOC), Tourism Development Company (TDC), First Citizens, Excellent Stores, Atlantic LNG, Colfire, Blue Waters, Nestle Trinidad and Tobago Limited, Subway, Movie Towne and Associated Brands Limited.

Trinidad and Tobago Training Squad – Darren Cowie (captain), Aidan De Gannes, Kieron Emmanuel, Jordan Reynos, Jordan Vieira, Marcus James, Shaquille Daniel, Marcus Pascal, Dylan Francis, Teague Marcano, Tariq Marcano, Kristen Emmanuel, Andrey Rocke, Kwasi Emmanuel, Kwandwane Browne, Stefan Mouttet, Akim Toussaint, Mickell Pierre, Isaiah Scott, Karlos Stephen, Jabari Perez, Daniel Byer, Lyndell Byer.

Technical Staff – Glenn Francis (coach), Dwain Quan Chan (assistant coach), Kirth Davis (manager), Nataki Akii-Bua (assistant manager), Christabella George- Ford (assistant manager), Nicholas Baldeosingh (videographer/ IT analyst), Karielle De Bique (physiotherapist), Dr Zynul Khan (doctor).

She made the statement following Guardian Group’s renewal of their agreement to support the TTOC’s Athlete Welfare and Preparation Fund for another year.

“Our intention is to continue supporting them (TTO C) in their thrust. The Welfare fund helps financially (and) what we realise is that there is a gap and it is important that athletes are taken care of when they’ve done so much for our country.” After being on board for 15 years, she added: “We don’t consider this a sponsorship. It is a partnership and a marriage that we’ve been in for over 15 years.” The Guardian G r o u p – s p o n s o r e d TTOC Athlete Welfare and Preparation Fund offers financial assistance and professional support to national athletes in their preparation for Olympics as well as for life after sport.

Guardian Group’s legacy of support to the TTO C and ongoing commitment to ensuring Trinidad and Tobago’s athletes are so positioned to not only have success in their respective disciplines but for life thereafter, is key to the guiding philosophies of the organisation and has always been a focus for Guardian Group going as far back as 2001.

In 2001, Guardian Life of the Caribbean initiated the Youth Star Programme, with a vision for a more holistic development of young adults in sport.

In addition to providing expertise in financial and investment planning, these young people were coached in other life skills. The first group of athletes who participated were Darrel Brown, Marc Burns, Danille Prime, Fana Ashby, Shane Stone, Tyler Mayers and Lindell Brooks as part of the pilot project.

When the Youth Star programme was phased out in 2006, Guardian Life of the Caribbean partnered with the TTO C to implement a health and wellness initiative aimed at encouraging athletic development and improving the physical well-being of Trinidad and Tobago citizens. In 2007, Youth Stars morphed into Shape Your Life.

For the past 16 years, this partnership has grown from strength to strength, as both parties continue to stay committed to the welfare and development of athletes in Trinidad and Tobago and the advancement of sport locally and internationally.