Approximately one year ago, shortly after his appointment, Commissioner of Police, Gary Griffith likened the criminal elements to ‘cockroaches’ and added that those cockroaches should be ‘crushed’. The Commissioner has company. The following report appeared last week in the UK Guardian newspaper: “Brazil’s far-right President, Jair Bolsonaro, has said he …
Read More »TTPS confirms McDonald detained in corruption investigation, Gov’t tightlipped on PNM deputy political leader
Minister of Communications Donna Cox confirmed this afternoon that her Cabinet colleague and Member of Parliament Marlene McDonald is now under police investigation but did not divulge whether internal action might be underway. A Loop T&T report this morning, which quoted an unnamed ‘senior police officer’, stated that McDonald and …
Read More »Invasion of Privacy; Why release of alleged Justice Lucky recording should concern us all
A feeling of fear covered me as I read a recent report of a recording of a private conversation allegedly between Justice Gillian Lucky and another person. I was further panicked because the Trinidad Express newspaper got hold of the tape, transcribed it and used it as a news story. …
Read More »Noble: Kickstarting Laventille; why Hinds’ ‘poverty of imagination’ stymies their development
“In a diverse society, aiming to do well, African people are not doing as well as we expected or as well as we might,” intoned Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley on the same day that Fitzgerald Hinds, member of parliament for Laventille West, gave an expansive interview in the Sunday …
Read More »POS Acting Mayor: No decision on Kwame Ture Street yet; but here are the benefits of it…
“[…] Interestingly, I reside at Oxford Street and have lived there for the 34 years of my life. On one occasion years ago, I noticed some persons who appeared to be tourists, walking along Oxford Street and staring around as if they were searching for something. “When I asked if …
Read More »Daly Bread: So much of nothing; a week of ‘Blame Game’ from Hinds/Ramdial to Rowley/Archie
“With so much of everything how do we leave with nothing?” This question is asked in a multi layered (adults only) song called the ‘Blame Game’, a collaboration between John Legend and Kanye West, released in 2010. I came across this last Sunday on one of those Sunday mornings when …
Read More »Crowne: Archie’s Kobayashi Maru; why Chief Justice should resign
Should the Chief Justice Resign? Yes, but not for the reasons you think. To date I have opposed the referral of the Law Association of Trinidad and Tobago’s (LATT’s) report to the Prime Minister and I have also supported the Prime Minister’s decision to not refer that report to President. …
Read More »Dear Editor: Why Oxford Street to Kwame Ture? Why not a First Peoples or East Indian name?
“I have noted that the Deputy Mayor of Port of Spain Hillan Morean told an Emancipation Day audience that the Port of Spain City Corporation plans to rename Oxford Street after Kwame Ture, Trinidad-born Pan-African activist. “[…] Why change to mainly African names and not equally to the First Peoples, …
Read More »Dear Editor: The hangman never left; the problem is the inefficient Police Service
“Billions of dollars have been spent on the TnT police service (TTPS) and they have been given anything they have asked for to fight crime. Yet, TTPS is probably the lowest performing police service in the world. “[…] The TTPS is a ‘dumping ground’ for people who achieved less than …
Read More »Demming: People before bricks and mortar; why more police stations aren’t the solution
Another Police Station has been commissioned, but crime and criminality continue to dig in. In a year or so, the people of Carenage will have an improved structure and a few policemen will benefit from promotions or transfers, but what will be the impact on crime and lawlessness in the …
Read More »Fixin’ T&T slams ‘dangerous, hypocritical, irresponsible’ response to murders by business community
“What exactly is the T&T Chamber of Commerce advocating? Does the T&T Chamber of Commerce condone breaking the law to enforce the law? “Will the T&T Chamber of Commerce support extrajudicial killings as a tool that should be used to address our untenable crime situation?” The following retort to the …
Read More »Daly Bread: Murder 24/7; cold comfort as Govt finally acknowledges dire situation
We are all acquainted with the expression 24/7 meaning continuous shifts or round-the-clock service. Sadly, our country is now a country of murder 24/7. Underlining that fact, we actually managed to have 24 murders within a seven day period, causing Guardian media to assert in a page one editorial on …
Read More »