Tag Archives: transparency

At six o’clock one morning not too long ago, a woman sat quietly outside a public clinic with a numbered card in her hand. She had arrived before sunrise. Not because she wanted to—because she had to. Her eyes were failing for months. The headaches were becoming more frequent. Work …

“[…] Trinidad and Tobago has very low levels of reported trust given its GDP per capita… Most people do not trust the police. Most people do not believe justice is meted out fairly… There is even mistrust in the Road March competition with year-on-year allegations of the ‘Soca Mafia’. “[…] …

A little over a week ago, on 29 November 2025, the Washington Post identified “the Caribbean allies helping the US against Venezuela” and stated that “the Dominican Republic and Trinidad and Tobago are hosting US forces and facilities”. This report formed a stark contrast to our Government’s limited disclosure of …

This week I am returning to the recent Court of Appeal declaration that it was a breach of the constitutional rights of two citizens of Trinidad and Tobago (the Applicants), who were denied re-entry into Trinidad and Tobago when the borders were closed during the Covid-19 pandemic. At the material …

“[…] When a sitting minister hires some of the most expensive lawyers in the country, the public has a right to ask: is this coming out of his pocket, his political party’s pocket, or ours? “If he is paying personally: fair enough… If his political party or donors are paying, that …

“[…] The now-infamous Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), exposed thanks to Afra Raymond’s successful legal challenge, showed a lopsided agreement. The state was to fund and build the resort on public land. “In turn, Sandals would enjoy sweeping concessions—tax holidays, duty-free status, unlimited work permits for foreigners, and no obligations to …

The autocratic nature of our politics is most memorably captured in the sordid 1962 episode featuring Dr Patrick Solomon, minister of Home Affairs in the People’s National Movement (PNM) government—with responsibility for the police service. His stepson was arrested and incarcerated for throwing missiles in a public space. Solomon allegedly …

A file in the civil law department of the Attorney General (the AG) disappeared. As a consequence, the department failed to put in a defence in a malicious prosecution case. This resulted in a default judgment against the State in January 2023 for sums totaling twenty million dollars. The claimants …

From the time I heard the news reports about the 300 cruise-ship passengers being stranded without tour transport in Tobago because the maxi-taxi operators failed to show up, something seemed fishy. The explanation given by presi­dent of the Tobago Maxi Taxi Association Cloyd Williams was that it was a combination …

Supposedly in response to my own post in these pages on 9 September 2021, the National Trust made an engaging and informative post here on 17 September 2021. The most striking aspect of that reply was that the essential query was not addressed at all. For those who have an …

‘Your silence will not protect you’—Audre Lorde, on the false benefits and toxic consequences earned from calculated or cowardly silences. I had no intention of returning to this issue but Newsday’s Friday 27 August 2021 article (Woodford Square to become heritage site (newsday.co.tt) was a sharp reminder that there is …

That’s insulting! The National Joint Action Committee (NJAC) is of the view that Dr Keith Rowley deserves to have the words of the first of his three non-PNM predecessors, Basdeo Panday, thrown at him. And they are calling on the current prime minister to ‘do the honourable thing’ and apologise …