It is folly for us to be absorbed with the issue of the sniper rifles and not address the more significant problem of crime. The rifles are not missing. Our appreciation of how much our security forces are struggling with the criminal developments that plague us is our business. The …
Read More »Daly Bread: Deflections and delusions, as General Election beckons
Contemporaneously with critical commentaries, the Prime Minister last Sunday attempted certain deflections of the Government’s decision—despite the parlous state of our finances—to accept for its members the hefty salary increases and backpay, which the Salaries Review Commission recommended (the SRC increases). However, it is reasonable to hold this Government accountable …
Read More »Daly Bread: Why the PNM’s internal affairs are a matter of public interest
I have examined the surprise announcement that the People’s National Movement (PNM) convention and internal election scheduled for November 17 had been cancelled and the further announcement swiftly, but ambiguously, walking back the cancellation decision. My view remains that any apparent suppression of democracy within the PNM is a matter …
Read More »Noble: Out damn spot!—Hinds and Griffith must account for SSA scandal
“In the way of the world, things happen. As one writer previously wrote, ‘there is no art to find the mind’s construction in the face…” Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds, Express, 5 July 2024. The preening, self-important Minister Hinds evidently did not recognise that he was quoting Macbeth and …
Read More »Daly Bread: If ministers feel “helpless” about crime, then what now?
With great dismay last Tuesday, I read the lamentation of three government ministers concerning the state of crime in Trinidad & Tobago and the incidence of drug use amongst youths. One of them, Minister Camille Robinson-Regis, felt “helplessness” in the face of violence. The obvious response is to invite her …
Read More »Daly Bread: 30 years of ducking blame; as deaths continue in our hospitals and streets
Eleven babies have died in the space of a three-month period in the Neo Natal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in the Port of Spain General Hospital (POS General). Seven of these eleven deaths took place in less than a week during this month, reportedly the result of “an outbreak” of …
Read More »Daly Bread: Practiced detachment from the killings
Last week’s column was forced to return to what I assert is the government’s unwillingness to take any responsibility for the prevailing rampant killings, particularly for the easy passage of guns and drugs into our island for well over a decade. If not government agencies, who else is expected to …
Read More »Noble: Unending pain and suffering—save grieving communities from Hinds’ arrogance
“The area is dominated by gangs. Thus far, the police have had only limited success in eradicating the gangs. “It can be done, but it requires a multipronged approach, including all aspects of the state’s possible response; most of all, a genuine desire (my emphasis) on the part of the …
Read More »Daly Bread: Government gaps in call out on crime
My close friends are worried for the safety of commentators on violent crime. In my case, they firmly believe that I have done enough in analysing the untouched core of criminal activity. At that core, regardless of which political party is in government, is the troubling intersection of party politics, …
Read More »Dear Editor: Home invasion laws need upgrading, and PNM and UNC MUST work together on crime
“[…] Both parties have now dug their heels in, and would regard any compromise on this matter as a sign of weakness and incompetence. They are playing to the gallery. “Where does the national interest feature in this soap opera? […]” The following Letter to the Editor on the need for …
Read More »The “Cardines Clause”; Rio gets passport to represent T&T U17s in potentially ground-breaking case
Rio Cardines has got his Trinidad and Tobago passport and will join the National Under-17 Team in Guatemala tomorrow, just hours before their opening Concacaf Under-17 Championship match against Canada. Almost certainly, Cardines will not be named in coach Shawn Cooper’s starting team and is unlikely to feature at all. …
Read More »Where is Fitzgerald Hinds? Star T&T U-17 footballer misses flight due to “unavailable” Minister
After two weeks in Trinidad waiting for the green light to join his soon-to-be international teammates, 17-year-old England-born footballer Rio Cardines thought he finally got the breakthrough to represent the country of his grandfather, Patrick Cardines. All he needed was a signature from Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds that …
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