Martin Daly

Probably for the first time, the government and the Opposition paid official attention in Parliament to the non-governmental organisations and non-profit entities (NGOs) that play a significant and life-saving role in the socio-economic and cultural life of our country, even though they may have dished out funds to them on …

Two weeks ago our current Attorney General, Faris Al Rawi, and the former AG, Anand Ramlogan SC, engaged in a public dispute over Mr Ramlogan’s appearance in a case heard in the Privy Council on 20 March 2019. The proper boundaries of conduct for attorneys general have also been a …

President of the Republic, Paula-Mae Weekes, recently gave two interviews to Hema Ramkissoon of Guardian Media and Ria Taitt of the Trinidad Express. These interviews have raised interesting issues about the constitutional powers of and limitations on the office of the President. The Express, somewhat kindly, stated that President Weekes ‘has …

Last week predictably began with more turbulence over the aftermath of the Petrotrin shut down and over one of the successor companies, Paria Fuel Trading Company Limited. Our governments have had marked communications deficits because there is too much attempted secrecy over the process attendant upon deals constantly being made …

What the hell? Can one set out to sell a State asset by mistake? ‘Wth’ is a milder version of the social media acronym used to express surprise or disgust. It was my response to the Minister of Energy’s implausible media release on Monday last related to the failure of …

For more than a decade, I have consistently taken the position that so called stakeholder consultations, pretty ministerial speeches and public relations announcements will contribute little to improving the lives of our disadvantaged young people—many of whom are easily lured into violent crime as a way of life. One reason …

Mr Justice of Appeal Peter Jamadar should have stayed in his section. His statement in the capacity of Acting Chief Justice attempting to set boundaries for the long established tradition of satire and calling out ‘mocking pretenders’ during the Carnival season was surprising. Returning from my usual chip with All Stars …

At the Panorama semi-finals two weeks ago, I became involved in a discussion with Eintou Springer, her daughter Attilah and an official of Pan Trinbago. The discussion turned to how Pan Trinbago spent the taxpayers’ money it received from complicit governments in the past and apparently continues on the same path. …

We now have belated confirmation—we knew it already—that, in addition to private capital, the source of which might be swanky neighbourhoods, funds for criminal enterprise are also drawn from linkages with public officials and the largesse of Government contracts. These funds are tools used to put or keep competing political …

The Judiciary remains in an unstable state but the Attorney General has stayed in denial and keeps making dangerously short-sighted statements. In its recent decision, the Privy Council expressly reserved its position on whether quorum provisions in legislation outside of the Constitution could save all acts of an improperly constituted …

Our neighbour Venezuela and our own Tobago both remain in the news. The outcomes of their politics and ours will affect our quests for Dragon gas and ‘brands’ hotel rooms respectively. Common sense will have already told readers, even though we must try, how little influence Trinidad and Tobago and …

In July 1995 the Bosnia massacre in the town of Srebrenica, took place. Invading Serbian forces killed 8,000 persons in five days—genocide in what was supposed to be a United Nations safe zone, occupied by UN peacekeeping forces. No outside help went in. An All Stars elder and a valued …