For five consecutive years, I taught a youth program where the underlying theme was to teach young people to bloom where they were planted. It was about teaching them to use the resources in their environment to be their best selves. I stopped teaching that program when it became abundantly …
Read More »Damn, Darryl! Rowley’s election announcement stumps Smith’s pension plan
So the Prime Minister, Dr Keith Rowley has dissolved parliament and called for general elections. On 10 August, our nations go to the polls to determine who will govern us for the next five-year period. While the pending election should provoke excitement nationwide, at least one individual may be feeling …
Read More »Dr Rowley sets 10 August election date; Parliament dissolved as T&T heads to the polls
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has announced the date for the 2020 General Elections as 10 August 2020. The date was released this afternoon on the Facebook page of the Office of the Prime Minister and confirmed subsequently by parliamentary staff. The Parliament will be dissolved at midnight tonight. Nomination day …
Read More »NJAC: Suspend all policemen involved in Morvant killing—as matter of principle
“[…] NJAC believes that contrary to what has been recently expressed by the commissioner of police, the suspension of the officers should not be determined by the number of officers involved—but rather based on principle and process. Such action would ensure that the investigative process is transparent and would engender …
Read More »Dear Editor: Time for TTPS to really ‘protect and serve with pride’; and Griffith must do his part
The logo of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service states ‘to protect and serve with pride’—but the service was once called the ‘Trinidad and Tobago Police Force’. How ironic when you look at the words ‘serve’ and ‘force’. These words, once taken literally, have the ability to impact on image. …
Read More »Nakhid apologises to ‘honest, hard-working members’ of TTPS, after Griffith scolding
“[…] I wish to apologise to the honest, hard-working members of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS), all of whom I am sure were hurt and discouraged by the statement…” The following is a response from the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) and the United National Congress (UNC) …
Read More »Tye: Removing the Knees: Black Lives and Protests in a Plantation Society
Approximately 50 years ago, mainly young people—disillusioned by the continued colonial nature of the country, the deep racism, classism and limited opportunities—made brave efforts to improve things. Instead of the then government, led by Dr Eric Williams, listening and properly engaging with these persons, the leaders of the movement were …
Read More »Vidale: Brace for more; repressed, unanswered societal problems do not go away
I wrote the following words in 2015: The diminution of a murder to ‘gang related’ has promoted a (group think) consciousness that some deaths are acceptable. Moreso, we embraced extra judicial killings as a justifiable response to a situation which is out of control. “Kill everybody an done!” However, there …
Read More »Demming: Social unrest will continue without ‘solution-focused dialogue’
The location of the points of the civil disruption have one thing in common. They have voted solidly for the PNM for the past 29 years but they continue to be socially and economically under-served. The seeds of the discontent were fertilised by the alleged police killing of three men …
Read More »Nakhid: Let’s not be hypocrites, the Hill will not forget
As I sit in my home, uncomfortably watching and anxiously waiting for every new video that depicts our brothers and sisters, our children from the east-west corridor hills are forced into a reaction that every single one of us can understand if not accept. I warned of this, the political …
Read More »Noble: The Nobodies; ‘invisible to all, scorned by all’—Morvant vs the world
Last Saturday, three men were shot dead in their neighbourhood at about 2.30pm. Six hours after, the newspapers went to press not knowing the identity of two of the men while the other one was more likely to be named as ‘Warlord’. They were nobodies. On social media, some rejoiced …
Read More »Griffith: ‘Plot to destabilize country’ by ‘real enemy of the state’ has failed—72 arrests and one death
“[…] Intelligence has revealed that this was an orchestrated plan that was led by several gang members, whereby the intention was to use the shooting of the three young men a few days ago as a front to cover the planned plot to shut down the country. “[…] It is …
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