What’s so outstanding about Dr Kriyaan Singh? Author and blogger Rhoda Bharath queries President Anthony Carmona’s appointment as temporary Independent Senator: Dear President Carmona, I trust this letter will find you in the best of health. I write to raise concerns about a recent appointment to the Independent Bench in …
Read More »Off the Cuff-ie: Maxie discusses CNMG’s fate, ‘UNC questions’ and his accent
“I know regardless of what I do, there will always be people who are passionately against me,” said Minister of Communications and Public Administration Maxie Cuffie. “And there will be people who are passionately for me. And Christ didn’t satisfy everybody.” Cuffie, the MP for La Horquetta/Talparo sat down with …
Read More »Intelligence and SSA 101: attorney Thane Pierre offers insight on controversial bill
National Security is the concept that the government, along with its parliament, should protect its sovereignty and its citizens. What is inherent in this concept is a belief that actions taken are necessary and justified. The recently concluded debate of the Strategic Services (Amendment) Act brought to the forefront a …
Read More »Gap between intelligence and action: why SSA probably won’t help war on crime
Really, it does not bother me that the Strategic Service Agency (SSA), or any other State intelligence agency, from the AIA to the ZIA, might want to peep through my back door, monitor what I am writing now, check my email before I do, or listen in on my telephone …
Read More »CARICOM divided: The myth of Caribbean free movement
The furore over Trinidad and Tobago’s deportation of Jamaican nationals points to an ongoing issue rather than a new one. It originates out of a clear misunderstanding of who qualifies for consideration under Articles 45 and 46 of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas 2001 for “Free Movement of People.” Both …
Read More »Maybe America deserves Trump: Raffique Shah muses over US presidential campaign
So what if Donald Trump wins the race for presidency of the United States next November? He won’t be the first fool to occupy the highest office in the most powerful country on earth. Nor will he be the stupidest president ever. Bear in mind that if he does make …
Read More »Off the Cuff-ie: Maxie talks corruption, PNM ‘arrogance’ and the ‘vomit comet’
“You can look at several laws that have been passed over the years that made absolutely no difference,” said Minister of Communications and Public Administration Maxie Cuffie. “The integrity in public life act has not made us more honest. It has not dealt with corruption. And it is because we …
Read More »Call for reformation: Why Archbishop Joe’s petition spells trouble for hardened criminals
Archbishop Joseph Harris’ initiative to petition Government to free from prison petty offenders who have remained on remand for an inordinately long time is laudable and deserving of support. However, if it’s accepted and implemented in its current form, it would deal an unjust blow to many more accused persons, …
Read More »Off the Cuff-ie: Maxie talks decentralisation, gov’t bottlenecks and La Horquetta/Talparo
“Port of Spain is a city and for it to work it requires a certain number of (foot) traffic,” Minister of Public Administration and Communications Maxie Cuffie told Wired868. “You have stores and businesses that depend on it and property rentals (too). So it is important that we bring people …
Read More »Satirical take on how Colm is undertaking to diversify economy
The following satirical Letter to the Editor was sent to Wired868 by Niala Maharaj: (Scene: The Right Honourable Colm Imbert, Minister of Finance, addresses Parliament). Mr Speaker, My friends on the other side claim our government is failing to manage the economy properly. This is absolutely untrue. Oil and gas …
Read More »All ah we dead: Raffique Shah says citizens caught in crossfire between police and thief
I had planned not to address crime in my columns; to waste space on an issue that, while it grows grimmer by the day, is seemingly intractable. When last I tackled it, I admitted to having become inured to the barbarism into which the nation has descended. Decapitation, mutilation, suffocation …
Read More »T&T’s 1970 revolution: the rise of people’s politics and the State’s draconic response
The following Letter to the Editor was submitted by ex-PP Minister and NJAC member Embau Moheni on the rise of the 1970 Revolution, People’s Politics and the State’s fightback, which included the controversial Public Order Act and the ban of the ‘Black Power Salute’: In its booklet entitled ‘Slavery to …
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