The T&T Association of Retired/Responsible Persons is very disappointed that Government didn’t consult with it before closing the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses (Gate)) programme on new over-50 applicants.

TTARP president, Peter Pena, said so yesterday after Education Minister Anthony Garcia announced from this month, new applicants over age 50 would no longer be able to access Gate assistance. However, those over-50s continuing studies in undergraduate programmes would obtain funding to complete studies.

Pena noted that TTARP’s position on the Gate matter, issued last week, was that it didn’t agree with the proposal that people over 50 doing new applications for study would not be able to access Gate.

TTARP, however, had agreed with the proposal for having funding for continuing students over the age of 50 years in undergraduate programmes to complete their programmes but had viewed the recommendations as discriminatory.

“While the association sees the need to eliminate abuse of Government social programmes, more so within the context of declining national revenues, we believe investment in human capital through educational opportunities should be across the board and not be seemingly discriminating against ageing,” TTARP had stated in a release.

It had called for meaningful discussion on the matter between the Government, TTARP and other stakeholders before final decisions were taken this week.

However, Pena said yesterday: “As far as I am aware we were not consulted and we are concerned that something of such a serious nature was withdrawn without consultation.” He didn’t want to say more on the matter or how TTARP felt about Gate being “slammed shut” on new applicants over 50 who had planned to study.

But an irate member of the TTARP executive was less diplomatic than Pena.

Speaking off record, the executive member said: “Why is the Government penalising people of 50 and over? At age 50 you have worked for 30 years and contributed to T&T and for those in good health, they can at that stage have free time to go to school if they didn’t have time to do that before, since they may have been occupied with work, family and other responsibilities. 

 “The youths, while they need education, have contributed little, yet they will be getting the resources, via Gate, to study and as we know, most of them get qualified and go away to work or study further, causing brain drain.

“People have a right to aspire to do things at any age. Is it that Government doesn’t want people to learn anything more after age 50? Should they simply park up and vegetate? That’s a  counter-productive approach for a developing country.”

While there have been reports of wastage and corruption in the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses (Gate) programme, close to $100 million has been recovered for the period 2007 to 2014 from students who failed to adhere to the contractual agreement.

Since the programme was introduced in 2004, taxpayers have spent approximately $7 billion to fund students' tertiary and vocational education.

Roughly $35 million in reimbursements by students were due to failures to complete courses, low GPAs, programme-hopping, institution-hopping and funding of non-nationals by the T&T Government, which resulted in millions of dollars in wastage. 

Nothing was recovered for student reimbursement for the fiscal years 2004 to 2007. Monies were also recovered from audits conducted on the programme — $35 million and $28 million from tertiary level institutions based on reconciliation. 

The money recovered from institutions was derived from a disparity in the reconciliation statements which they are expected to submit monthly and at the end of the programme. There were students who were being financed but not attending classes. Gate liaison officers monitored and evaluated the performance of institutions who received funding. 

The total Gate funding recovered was $100,305,694 million. In 2013, the agreement between students and Gate and Gate and institutions were revised. When the Government entered office last September with a shaky economic environment given the decline in oil and gas prices, it signalled changes to the programme.

Last month, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said his Cabinet would proceed with “a caring eye” on the matter. While on his trip to Jamaica, he said: “We are committed to cutting out the waste, the abuse and the corruption and to ensure the sacrifice we make to pay for your education is the best we can afford.”

T&T Guardian examines how monies were expended in the last ten years on different institutions and areas of the programme.

Yesterday, Education Minister Anthony Garcia announced Cabinet’s decision on task force recommendations for the programme.

The stipulations:

In 2013, new clauses in the Gate agreement were created to eliminate wastage.
Clause 5.2 (j) and (k) states that tertiary level institutions were required to inform the ministry  promptly in writing of each student who failed to meet a minimum standard of performance in his or her course.
Clause 5.2 (p) provided for a 100 per cent refund of all monies paid by the ministry on behalf of a student who at the time of payment was not a citizen of T&T with three years continuous residence immediately prior to submission of the said application.

$230 million to St George’s University

For the fiscal years 2010/2011 to 2013/2014, Gate approved $229,534,312 to 322 students studying at St George’s University in Grenada (SGU). The enrollment of new students for September 2014 was 16. In 2014, the total claims for SGU were $61,241,442.73. The total payment was $60,370,487.05. In 2015, the total claims were $58,842,673.15 while the total payment was $58,159,730.11. From next year all funding for medical students at that institution will cease.

Expenses jumped from $100 million to $700 million annually 

For the past two years, the Government spent just over $1.3 billion on tuition fees on the programme. Last year, 57 institutions were paid $699,884,393.83 for claims, with the University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, receiving the lion’s share of $178,474,155.48.

In 2014, 52 institutions were paid $638,353,296.78. UWI, St Augustine, also topped the list for highest payment — $133,163,432. This is in comparison to 2004, under the Dollar-for-Dollar Programme, when the amount expended by Government was $102,193,273 million. The following year, the amount increased to $179,699,121.

$331 million in Help loans

 In addition to Gate funding, the T&T Government has been guarantor for the Higher Education Loan Programme (Help.) Since its inception in 2006, the programme has granted loans to 17,408 students at a cost of $331,117,068 million. The loans are administered by First Citizens Bank, RBC Royal Bank, Republic Bank and Scotiabank.

The loans are used to cover tuition fees, accommodation expenses, transportation costs, living expenses and study material. The loans were granted to students pursuing all levels of tertiary education, including certificates, diplomas, professional qualifications and doctoral degrees.

In 2006, the number of loans granted was 481 at a total of $8,203,649. That figure jumped to 2,529 loans to a tune of close to $41 million in its second year. By 2013, the number of loans was 1,600 valued at $35 million.

$105 million to UWI Cave Hill

For the period 2009 to 2014, the total expenditure on Gate to UWI, Cave Hill campus, Barbados, was $105,159,347. The total number of students who received Gate funding for the fiscal years 2011/2012 to 2013/2014 was 1,163. The number of students attending UWI, Mona, Jamaica, who received funding for the same period was 1,304 while the number at UWI, St Augustine, for the same period was 43,503.

For the period 2013/2014, 378 students at Cave Hill were pursuing undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. Many of these degrees are offered at St Augustine. Of that number, 103 were enrolled in medicine. For the fiscal years 2010/2011 to 2013/2014, Gate approved $229,534,312 for 322 students attending the St George’s University. These students receive 100 per cent funding. 

From next year, new and returning students at The University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, will have to dig deep into their pockets to cover tuition fees for their programmes. Some students may have to pay as much as $190,000 for a programme in the Faculty of Medical Sciences. 

Education Minister Anthony Garcia announced a series of measures to be introduced from the 2017/2018 academic year which would result in dramatic changes to students who want to access higher education.

Whereas students were receiving 100 per cent funding from the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses Programme (Gate) for a range of disciplines in seven faculties at UWI, the new changes would see students who are pursuing dentistry or veterinary science — the two most expensive programmes in medical sciences — having to pay $187,500 for five years. 

This $187,500 would apply for students whose household income range $30,000 and more and who would benefit 50 per cent of funding. The total cost to study each of those programmes at UWI is $375,000 for five years. However, students whose household income is over $10,000 monthly would receive 75 per cent funding. 

A student pursuing medicine, which costs $71,100 a year, would have to pay roughly $35,550 a year for five years if accessing the 50 per cent, while those accessing 75 per cent would pay $17,775 a year, representing 25 per cent of their tuition fees. A student pursuing a degree in history or literature would have to pay as much as $18,000 for a three-year programme if accessing the 50 per cent route. 

Those in the $10,000 and lower category would receive 100 per cent funding but subject to a means test. 

Government pays close to $1 million for a local student to study medicine at the St George’s University in Grenada. It costs US$28,056 for tuition fees which amounts to US$140,280 for five years which is equivalent to over TT$930,000. (RKR)

Annual tuition fees at the UWI
• Food and Agriculture: $12,600.
• Science and Technology: $12,600.
• Humanities and Education: $12,000.
• Social Sciences: $12,000.
• Engineering: $18,000.
• Law: $13,500.
• Medical Sciences: (The Government provides a subsidy of 50 per cent of tuition fees to persons who have been admitted as nationals of Trinidad and Tobago. Annual fees quoted below are the subsidised fees):
• MBBS: $71,100.
• Dentistry: $75,000.
• Veterinary: $75,000.
• Pharmacy: $20,90. 
• Optometry: $90,000 (full programme).

The mother of Isis fighter, Abu Sa’d al Trinidadi (Shane Crawford), says there is nothing to fear as her son was never coming back to T&T. 

The mother, who was not named, was speaking during an exclusive interview with CNC3’s anchor Golda Lee Bruce. The interview aired during last night’s 7 pm newscast. She expressed disappointment that her son’s was identified by local media as Crawford and thought the article should have referred to him as al Trinidadi.

“The people there have families here and we don’t know if there could be any repercussions,” she said. Asked if she knew where her son was and if they were in contact, she replied: “He is in Syria. We send voice messages to each other. He never said what he is doing there. He is in contact with his sister.”

Asked how she feels that her son has joined Isis given the photographs that were printed in the article, the mother replied: “I can see it can be that way. I don’t know. Allah is the judge. I don’t know if it is right or wrong. I don’t know if he is doing an honourable thing.”

Asked if she believes that those were all his words in the article, she said: “Some of it were his words but some of it I’m still pondering but knowing my son, his belief is his belief and if he has something to say he would.”

Crawford’s mother described him as a kind and loving child, who was best from birth. “He is a very brilliant child. When he sat his SEA exams he got five trophies. He got five or six subjects. 

“He went to university where he did extra mural classes in foundation and drainage and he got an A. He is brilliant, loving, caring and family-oriented. Everybody portraying him as a big criminal but they don’t know anything about him,” she added.

Months after Crawford left T&T to join Isis, he asked Muslim brothers from the mosque that he attended in central Trinidad if they wanted to go with him. The response he got was a positive one but only because the brothers in the mosque thought that he (Crawford) was joking.

According to a Muslim brother from the mosque that Crawford attended, who wished not to be identified, it was only until Crawford went missing from mosque attendance, it was later disclosed to them that he had really left T&T for the Middle East for training and enrolment in the Islamic radical group.

Crawford grew up at Charles Street, Cunupia, and during a visit there yesterday, the T&T Guardian was informed that his family moved out of the area after they sold the plot of land and wooden structure they lived in.

One of the neighbours, who wished not to be identified, said the family was well known in the area. “They were very poor but lived a humble life and troubled no one.”

The neighbour said she admired Crawford, adding: “I remembered him perfectly going to school, neatly attired and well-mannered. He is a very handsome guy and I never knew him to be involved in any alcohol or liming on the block or even with girls. He seemed always focused on the positive side.”

Asked if she was shocked to hear he had left T&T to join Isis, the neighbour replied: “It is a shock. yes.”

A close childhood friend of Crawford, who also wished not to be identified, said he knew the family to be going to the Baptist Church.

“We all went to church together and I remembered playing with Shane in the yard, marble pitch and other games we used to play back then. He was always a cool fella,” he added.

Asked if he was shocked to hear that his childhood friend was now an Isis fighter, Crawford’s friend replied: 

“Yes, but I believe that maybe he was influenced by an older close relative because he had converted to Islam way before Shane and he was always out of the country in Iraq and Dubai following Islam. 

“Presently, I am hearing that the relative is in Egypt. Everyone has their choices at the end of the day and if this is his, well let’s all respect that.”

Cookies and brownies baked with marijuana seem to be the latest illegal drug trend in T&T and remained the most popular when compared to other illicit narcotics. So said ASP Vernly Gift, of the Organised Crime, Narcotics and Firearms Bureau (OCNFB), at yesterday’s weekly police press briefing at the Police Administration Building, Port-of-Spain.

He said the notable increase in people consuming marijuana baked in cookies and brownies did not exempt them from the traditional effects of the drug, adding that could be more dangerous as the user could ingest more tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) than by smoking.

THC is the active chemical in cannabis and is considered one of the oldest hallucinogenic drugs. “Because the THC levels in marijuana are difficult to measure, so too are the amounts in these food products,” Gift added. Asked what has led to people using marijuana-laced snacks Gift said that was just a new form of camouflaging the drug. “Marijuana comes in different forms and cookies and brownies are other methods used.

It is a serious matter because though T&T is a trans-shipment point for marijuana to a lesser extent as opposed to cocaine T&T has a high consumer market for marijuana,” Gift said. He said the OCNFB has also seen the current use of another illegal drug in T&T, commonly referred as “mushrooms” also known as “magic mushrooms” and “shrooms.” Those mushrooms, Gift said, were wild plants which were dried and then smoked or orally ingested.

They contain “psilocybin” which has hallucinogenic effects. “Users have been noted to possess difficulty in discerning fantasy from reality. The dealers traditionally target parties where young people congregate,” Gift said, adding there was a retail price of $300 an ounce, about 30 grammes. Saying illegal drugs were normally accompanied by illegal arms and ammunition, Gift added the proliferation of such weapons continued to be a challenge for the Police Service.

“Firearms continue to be a weapon of choice among those who carry out violent acts again people,” Gift said. He said for the period January 2016 to date there were 269 murders of which 78 per cent or 209 were committed with the use of illegal guns

For the same period in 2015, there were 240 reported murders, of which 197 or 82 per cent were gun related. On whether anyone has been identified as being responsible for bringing large shipments of illegal drugs and ammunition into the country, Gift said, the police continued to carry out investigations and gather intelligence.

“Firearms usually accompany narcotics but based on our intelligence over the years we have seen that there are persons who have engaged in the niche market... they separate themselves from the drug trafficking and treat only with firearms,” Gift said. On specific ports used to bring the illegal narcotics and firearms into the country, Gift said that was difficult to identify as T&T’s coastline was “very lengthy” rendering it easy for such items to enter.

Drug trend not surprising—Drug Council When contacted an official of the National Drug Council (NDC) said he was not surprised by the latest drug trend as the primary drug used in T&T was marijuana, with cocaine, being the second most frequently used drug.

“In fact, this is not the first time we have heard of people consuming cookies laced with marijuana and it seems to be growing in popularity among the teenaged and young adult age group,” the official added. Rehabilitation providers, he added, were particularly concerned by the increasingly younger age of initiation into drug usage from as early as 13.

Ganja cookies not new Secretary of the Psychiatric Association, Dr Varma Deyalsingh, said marijuana-laced cookies and brownies have been around as far back as eight years ago but it was used primarily among the adult population. He said within recent times, however, this was being used by teenagers and even children as young as 12. “It looks like a normal cookie or brownie and what we are finding is that a few of these children are carrying it into the schools to introduce it to their friends,” Deyalsingh said.

He described the Caura drug rehabilitation centre as an excellent facility but said that catered only for adults. “As more and more young teenagers are getting hooked on this drug we need facilities specifically catered for them,” Deyalsingh said. He said some of the long-term effects of marijuana use include:

• Reduced resistance to common illnesses, such as colds.
• Suppression of the immune system.
• Growth disorders.
• Increase of abnormally structured cells in the body.
• Reduction of male sex hormones.
• Rapid destruction of lung fibres and lesions (injuries) to the brain could be permanent.
• Reduced sexual capacity.
• Reduced ability to learn and retain information.
• Personality and mood changes.
• Inability to understand things clearly.

SEIZURES

Police Service has seized 842.62 kilogrammes of marijuana and 195.46 kilogrammes of cocaine for this year thus far resulting in a street value of $11,122,584 for marijuana and $78, 184,000 for the cocaine seized.

For the said period, 1,012.9 kilogrammes of cocaine were seized at a street value of $405,164,000. So far, for 2016, the Police Service seized 461 guns of which 113 were revolvers, 217 pistols, 56 shotguns, 39 homemade shotguns, 17 rifles, eight sub-machine guns, eight other forms of firearms, such as trap guns and three air rifles.

Between the period 2011 to 2015, 2,586 guns were seized which included 643 revolvers, 1,169 pistols, 270 shotguns, 230 homemade shotguns, 102 rifles, 66 sub-machine guns, 22 air rifles and 80 other types.
 

He lived by the sword and died by it, this was how Joy Joseph summed up the life of her son, Teon Boucaud, who was killed by police yesterday morning at his St Ann’s home. 

Speaking with the T&T Guardian at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, yesterday, Joseph said her last-born child was a stubborn young man whom she tried to turn away from a life of crime. 

Police said Boucaud was killed around 4.40 am when officers of the Inter-Agency Task Force and Port-of-Spain CID went to the man’s  home at Ariapita Road, St Ann’s, with a search warrant of arms and ammunition. Police said as they arrived, Boucaud opened fire on them and they retaliated, fatally injuring him.

Boucaud was a suspect in the murder of Motape Hutchinson, 30, of Ariapita Road, St Ann’s, on Monday. Police said his bullet-riddled body was found around 2.30 am after residents heard loud explosions. Hutchinson was the son of a retired police officer. 

“That’s the road he choose. He never used to listen. I am not going to come here and say my son was a good boy. He was harden. No matter how I talk to him he don’t want to listen. You know the saying you does make the child but not the mind,” Joseph said.

The precepted officer with Amalgamated Security said she tried to stay away from her son’s criminal life because she feared he might use her service weapon in his criminal endeavours. 

She said her son died at the age of 23, just like his father. What was the most heart wrenching thing arising out of her son’s death was the fact that his grandmother, Margaret Boucaud, raised him like her own and was now forced to bury “her true love”.

Joseph added: “Right now granny heart breaking. That is the part that hurting me. He was the love of she life. She used to drag that boy to church every day and look how he come out. He grow up in the church you know.”

In an unrelated incident a 57-year-old man was found  yesterday stabbed to death and his body thrown in a drain in Cunupia. According to police reports, around 6.45 am Constables Ali and Mohammed responded to a report of a body found in a drain along Charles Trace, Esmeralda Road, Cunupia. 

On arrival they found the body of Leon Anthony Byron, originally of Murray Road, Morvant, with stab wounds to the back of the head and face down in the drain. Police said Byron had recently moved into the area. No motive was given for his killing which took the murder toll to 270 for the year, 30 more than the corresponding period last year. 

For a second consecutive day, no autopsies were done at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, and the lone pathologist on duty travels to Tobago today to assist in a pending case.

This as bodies of murder victims continue to pile up leaving grieving relatives with nowhere else to turn, prolonging burials and possibly key evidence which can help investigators solve some cases. On Tuesday, pathologist Dr Valery Alexandrov downed tools, saying he was tired and frustrated. This resulted in at least seven murder autopsies not being done.

Since then there were three other homicides. Two murders and one police killing added to the list, including accidents, suspicious deaths and suicides. In a telephone interview with the T&T Guardian yesterday Alexandrov said he was called to assist in Tobago after the death of a young man under questionable circumstances and was expected to leave for the sister island on the first flight out. He added he was scheduled to return to Trinidad around 11 am and then “we will see what happens.”

Yesterday relatives of Stephano Ramkhelawan, who drowned on Sunday off the Moruga fishing bay, were the only ones that left the FSC with a sense of ease after his body was sent to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital for his autopsy to be done there. Nine bodies were brought to the FSC on Tuesday and six were sent back due to a lack of space at the facility.

Alexandrov has described the working conditions at the FSC as worse than slavery. He said the staff was insufficient and because he was the only working pathologist for the past four weeks and the only one scheduled for another two weeks, he was almost certain he would breach the threshold of 350 autopsies allowed to be performed by any pathologist before they were stripped of their abilities to do so. To date he has performed 310 autopsies. 

Alexandrov said yesterday he was not told anything by the management of FSC about his concerns raised and steps to address them. 

He said he was awaiting word from the powers that be who were in meetings whole day. Relatives of men and women who died under suspicious circumstances were turned away from the FSC yesterday and told to return today. 

National Security Minister, Edmund Dillon, when questioned about the situation on Tuesday, said the Government was in the process of recruiting more staff at the FSC. 

He admitted the field of forensic science was not an attractive one but scholarships would be provided and in the short-term there were plans to extend existing contracts and hire new skilled labour.

T&T Unified Fisherfolk (TUFF) vice-president, Kishore Boodram, says he is satisfied with the results of an investigation into last month’s fish kill, saying it has been more than 20 years that vessels have been dumping their excess catch in the Gulf of Paria.

In an interview yesterday, Boodram said he hoped the joint statement by the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) and the Institute of Marine Affairs (IMA) brings some relief to fishermen and vendors who have been affected by poor sales.

Since carcasses began washing ashore along Mosquito Creek, South Oropouche, on July 19, there was scepticism among customers on whether fish from the Gulf was contaminated but with the EMA and IMA concluding that the fish were dumped, Boodram wants the public to know the fish are safe to eat. He said: “The problem we have here in the Gulf is that when there is a fish kill, there is a big side effect throughout the country. 

“You now have to look at Moruga, Erin, Port-of-Spain and those who do deepwater fishing as well. 

“If there is a thin strip in La Brea where there is a problem, I don’t think they should say there is a problem with the entire Gulf,” Boodram said.

During a tour of the Gulf last week, environmentalist Edward Moodie questioned whether an oily substance floating near Petrotrin’s Well ABM 37 was the cause of the kill. The company said that well was being decommissioned. 

In an interview on CNC3’s Morning Brew programme last week, president of Fishermen and Friends of the Sea, Gary Aboud, claimed the Corexit dispersant used in the clean-up of Petrotrin’s 2013 oil spill in the gulf was still affecting marine life.

In a release on Tuesday, the EMA said tests of water, sediment and fish samples taken in the Gulf, between La Brea to Otaheite, revealed no compounds matching Corexit were found. Further pathology tests on fish samples showed all body systems examined appeared normal with no gross lesions on the carcasses.

The release also said results from the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory for internal parasites were negative and the tests results further validated the preliminary investigation findings as one of by-catch, spoilt or unwanted catch by fishing vessels being dumped in the Gulf. Boodram said it was normal for vessels, like trawlers, to dump small species of fish or if there was an excess catch of a particular species. 

Trawling is a method of fishing in which a net is dragged along the bottom of the sea or mid-water at a specific depth. 

Given that hysteria created over the years when the discarded fish washed ashore, Boodram advised against crews dumping their unwanted catch in the Gulf.

He added: “This caused a problem for the fisherfolk in recent days with regards to selling their fish. Right in Claxton Bay, people dump fish too. San Fernando is the headquarters of the fishing sector and if you go to King’s Wharf, you will always see fish being thrown away.”

He said even though he was satisfied with the test results on the fish, he would not deny there was pollution in the Gulf.

Among the ways Boodram said the wastage could be stopped was for the setting up of fish processing plants so the excess catch could be made into fish products for local and foreign sales. 

He added that the Government could set up fish farms where the small catch could be used to feed bigger fish or even go towards making feed for hogs or animals at the zoo.

For the third consecutive week, dead carcases continued to litter La Brea’s shoreline, creating a feast for corbeaux. The stench made it difficult to breath at Mosquito Creek, South Oropouche as hundreds of herrings, together with catfish and mullets lined the coastline, surrounded by oil.

Video by: Kevon Felmine

Last week the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) concluded that the thousands of dead fish found between South Oropouche and La Brea were dumped.
On Thursday, during a tour of La Brea beaches with secretary of Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS) Gary Aboud and environmentalist Edward Moodie, EMA general manager of Technical Services, Hayden Romano also saw first hand, two dead sting rays that washed ashore.

General manager of Technical Services at the Environmental Management Authority, Hayden Romano and secretary of Fishermen and Friends of the Sea Gary Aboud examines the carcase of a Sting Ray found along Coffee Beach, La Brea. Photo: Kevon Felmine

Romano said when they arrived at the creek around 7 am, they did not see any carcases in the water. It was only when they saw a trawler in the gulf, he said they noticed dead herrings washing up. He said samples were taken for testing.
On Tuesday, the EMA and the Institute of Marine Affairs said tests done on the carcases showed no contamination and concluded that they were dumped by fishing vessels.

Photo: Rishi Ragoonath

However, Aboud said if these fishes were caught and dumped, they would bear markings from nets. He said it was not financially sensible to dump as fish sells at $30 and $40 per lb.

Fisherman Wayne Henry shows a dead catfish that washed ashore along Point Sable Beach, La Brea. Photo: Kevon Felmine

“It is unreasonable that anybody would throw away millions of pounds... At Point Sable Beach, fish are washing up every day since the oil spill and this has never happened before,” Aboud said.
He said the authorities were covering up a major liability that was caused by the 2013 oil spill while thousands of families’ livelihoods are being compromised.

Have information about oil on La Brea's shoreline or fish washing ashore? Let us know.
 

A security guard and Beetham Gardens residents yesterday challenged initial police reports that Constables Rachel George and Adrian Moreno were shot by gunmen as they went to investigate a series of robberies. Instead, they said the duo are lucky to be alive after they were shot in “friendly fire” during the incident at the Pensioners’ Quarters on Thursday night. 

The incident, according to police, took place around 7.30 pm, after the two officers attached to the Western Division went to the area to investigate the theft of $100,000 worth of appliances from American Stores in St James. 

In a media release issued yesterday, the police said, “Officers Moreno and George were among a party of officers who went to the Beetham area in search of suspects in relation to a recent break-in at American Stores, St James, and the theft of goods valued at $100,000, when the incident occurred. As is standard procedure where an officer sustains injury in the line of duty, an internal investigation will be conducted to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.” 

The release did not indicate how the officers were shot or if they were shot by civilians or police. ASP Thomas of the Port-of-Spain Division is conducting investigations. 

But security officers assigned to guard the residents in the Pensioners’ Quarters told the T&T Guardian yesterday that one officer opened fire on another, thinking it was the man they were chasing in the yard where the incident occurred. While relaying the information to the T&T Guardian, the officer was told by his colleague not to divulge any more information, a command the officer heeded. The T&T Guardian counted 14 holes in the wall of the guard booth where the shooting took place, with at least ten circled by investigators indicating bullet holes. 

A few blocks away from the scene of the shooting, men liming at a bar, who did not want to be identified, responded rhetorically to questions raised by the T&T Guardian. 

The men asked sarcastically how it was possible that two officers were shot, but residents returned a firearm belonging to one of the officers and not a single resident was arrested or a single home searched for the suspect/s.

One man shouted: “Is police who shoot police and they covering it up. They trying to make us look bad, but you tell me if it was somebody from the Beetham who shoot those officers how come nothing come out of it? After the shooting about 100 of them come, stay for half an hour, they get back the gun and they leave.”

Residents said the area where the shooting took place was poorly lit, so they could understand how the officers could have made the mistake. They said they returned the firearm because it was not theirs and they did not want police attention in the area, noting shooting police and keeping their gun would have caused them to “get real heat.” 

Apart from the residents’ claim, police officers, on condition of anonymity, told the T&T Guardian the shooting was a case of “friendly fire.” Officers of the Inter Agency Task Force, who are permanently stationed near the entrance of the Pensioners’ Quarters, were hesitant to answer how the two officers were shot yesterday. The officers added that the two arrived in the Beetham Gardens and they were not aware of their presence so as to provide back-up.

WPC out hospital

Senior officers of the Port-of-Spain Division confirmed they were not aware of the officers’ presence in the division in order to provide them with the necessary support. 

This is a breach of the Police Service standing orders and can be characterised as a case of neglect of duty, Police Service Social and Welfare Association president, Insp Michael Seales, said yesterday.

Seales said any divisional officer entering another division to conduct police work must do so with the go ahead from their respective divisional commander or another senior officer, and they must also inform the divisional commander or a senior officer of their intended presence.

“The association frowns on what happened last night (Thursday). Based on information coming to us, the association is very disturbed. The officers needed to be paraded and dispatched by a senior officer who would give them their mandate. It seems that was not done, because if it was done an occurrence like that would not have happened,” Seales said. 

He said as new officers, however, both George and Moreno were entitled to “kind and sympathetic supervision”.

“These two officers are lucky to be alive today based on all extenuating circumstances, given the area that they went to. Thank God that no other major occurrence took place. The association abhors what took place,” Seales said. 

In a brief telephone interview with the T&T Guardian yesterday, George said she could not recall what happened, only that she fell in a nearby drain after she and her partner were shot. 

George was discharged from the Port-of-Spain General Hospital just after lunch yesterday with a broken left leg, while Moreno remained warded in a serious condition after being shot in the neck and hand. Relatives of Moreno said the shot to the head was not just “a graze” but was a bit more serious, without divulging further information. 

The police media release said Moreno’s attending physician has not recommended he undergo surgery as yet. 

Two corruption probes into operations at the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation (CTTRC) intensified yesterday when officers from the Central Division police and Fraud Squad arrested a Fyzabad contractor and several corporation employees. 

According to police reports, around 10 am, Central Division CID, led by ASP Michael Sooker, Sgt Jitindra Tooleram and Sgt Andy Mohammed, went to the office of California/Point Lisas councillor Alif Mohammed and arrested the 78-year-old contractor for bribery.

Hours later, Fraud Squad officers entered the CTTRC’s Railway Road office and arrested three employees from the technical department, following a probe into a contract for the installation of outdoor exercise equipment in San Pablo and Todd’s Road.

Mohammed told the T&T Guardian that the contractor was awarded a contract to build a box drain along Pierre Street, California, but the work was poorly done. He said he raised his concern with the council and recommended that the contractor should not be paid until the work was satisfactorily done. He said a technical officer who was sent to evaluate the work concurred that the work was not done properly.

While at the site on Thursday, he said, the contractor approached him and offered him the bribe. However, Mohammed instead recorded the conversation on his mobile phone and handed this over to the police.

“Most brazen, he came to me and said ‘let me talk to you young boy.’ He said, ‘Let me give you some hundreds and we will call it off.” I said ‘excuse me’ and then he said he will give me some thousands to call it off. 

“I asked him if he was offering me a bribe. I told him to hold on and I put my phone to tape and, without him realising that, the conversation started again. He said if not $1,000, he would give me $2,000,” Mohammed said.

He said he told the contractor that it would take approximately $5,000 to correct the problems on the drains, but was again offered the money and asked not to make any objections.

Contacted yesterday, CTTRC chairman Henry Awong said he did not have any information on the contractor’s arrest, as he had only heard of it through the grapevine.

In the second incident, police went to the CTTRC’s office and held employees who were being investigated for corruption. Awong said while three employees were arrested, he was unclear of the allegations against them. His own investigations revealed it may be related to the installation of outdoor exercise equipment at the San Pablo Recreation Ground and the Todd’s Road Activity Centre, which was delayed.

He said a contract valued at $147,500 was awarded to a contractor during the 2014/15 fiscal year, but cheques and other documents related to this were seized by Fraud Squad officers at the CTTRC last October.

Port-of-Spain Mayor Keron Valentine says there were over 300 homeless people in Port-of-Spain but dealing with that issue was not part of the corporation’s core function.

“We kept on calling for them to be placed in rehabilitation centres and that is not our core function. We kept on calling other state agencies and social services to take care of it,” he said yesterday in a telephone interview. However, Valentine said in 2010 the corporation made an attempt to take them off the streets.

“That was not the solution.”

Senior Supt of the Port-of-Spain CID, McDonald Jacobs, said the issue was a serious matter that needed to be highlighted.

“The mayor needs to come up with a solution. Even when we arrest them when they go to St Ann’s, in no time they are back on the street,” he said.

Jacobs said it was also a challenge for police officers.

“It is a risk to the police and we have innocent victims who are injured. It is a serious thing that needs to be highlighted,” he said.

In May, a judicial review lawsuit was filed against the corporation by several homeless people who reside at Tamarind Square, Port-of-Spain, after the corporation decided to place padlocks on gates.

The matter was adjourned until October 6. Attempts to contact Social Development Minister Cherrie Crichlow-Cockburn for a comment proved futile; however, members of staff referred all questions to their website.

According to their data, there are a total of 347 homeless people in 2016 which are 17 more than in 2015.

The ministry noted that almost every stakeholder has taken steps to address the problem of street dwelling but none has had much impact.

Michael Wyke, manager of Kenny Sports store, said workers have to clean the outside of the store every morning because of the dirty sidewalk.

“We have to clean there every morning but they don’t come inside. It is terrible,” he said.

Robbie Robert, small business owner, said that the Government should do more for the homeless.

“The system should take care of them in general. The island has some wealth, it is a small population. Some of them are sick and we need to show more compassion,” he said.

Works and Transport Minister Fitzgerald Hinds yesterday gave a commitment to pay the employees of the Public Transport Service Corporation (PTSC) their backpay.

He said the matter was now in the hands of the Chief Personnel Officer (COP) since management of PTSC had made an error with backpay calculations, which was now being addressed.

Last Friday, PTSC employees upstaged a slew of government ministers, including Hinds, who had gathered to launch the government’s WiFi on PTSC’s bus service at the City Gate hub, Port-of-Spain, demanding that they be paid monies owed to them.

Hinds said having met with representatives of the Public Service Association (PSA) and the Transport and Industrial Workers Union following the protest, all matters were raised and addressed by him. 

“As far I am aware we all left there satisfied with the discussions that we shared.”

On that basis, Hinds said he could not understand why the media were now posing questions to him with regards to when the employees would receive their backpay.

“In any event, the issue of backpay for PTSC workers has gone before the CPO. Because the management of PTSC would be able to truthfully say there were some issues around the calculation of the amount of the backpay, and as well, issues around who have already been paid their backpay.”

Hinds said those matters were now being sorted out. Yesterday, PSA’s branch chairman Darryl Lamy said 300 of PTSC’s workers were owed $34 million.

Lamy said if the employees were not paid soon, they would seek advice from PSA’s president Watson Duke who will decide their next course of action.

As T&T remains on heightened alert against Zika, it has been discovered that the virus can also present itself as the Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS), a rapid-onset muscle weakness caused by the immune system damaging the peripheral nervous system.

Dr Clive Tilluckdharry, acting chief medical officer, said yesterday that annually there were about two cases of GBS reported, but since January this year to date this figure has tripled, as there were now seven cases of babies being infected, the majority of which were admitted to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope.

Tilluckdharry made the statement at a press conference at the Ministry of Health’s Park Street, Port-of-Spain, headquarters yesterday.

To date there have been some 215 confirmed Zika cases, but the number of suspected cases is much higher. He said feedback from the National Surveillance Unit also showed there were 176 suspected Zika cases, but this figure was most definitely much higher. Saying that GBS could happen after any acute infection, Tilluckdharry added, “I have seen it years ago where one or two dengue cases present with Guillain–Barré syndrome. It also presented with seizures, epilepsy.” He said Zika could be a mild disease but it could present in many ways, the majority of it being without any symptoms.

“There are cases of high fever, muscle and joint pains and rash, but we have to take all precautionary measures against the transmission of diseases by mosquitoes,” Tilluckdharry said. 

It was also revealed that 78 women had been diagnosed with Zika and that two women had given birth to babies while they had the virus. However, Medical Chief of Staff at Mt Hope Women's Hospital (MHWH), Dr Karen Sohan, said the babies were reported to be normal. She said brain scans performed on the two babies born in March and last week respectively had not revealed any abnormalities. It was also announced that there were five confirmed cases of chikungunya while dengue cases to date stood at 25. And like Zika, Tilluckdharry said the suspected cases of these viruses were also higher, as there were 93 suspected cases of ChikV. 

He said when ChikV first surfaced in this country in 2014 there were 340 confirmed cases, but now there were some sporadic cases.

In 2014 there were just over 5,000 dengue cases and in 2015, 1,600 reported cases. What was even more frightening, Tilluckdharry said, was that in Brazil, the Zika virus was detected in the salivary glands of the Culex mosquito and in T&T over 90 per cent of the mosquitoes belong to that group. 

Dr Roshan Parsaram, specialist medical officer in the Insect Vector Control, said there have been increased intersectoral collaborations specifically with the 14 regional corporations through the establishment of a technical committee. He said technical guidance was also provided regarding pesticide use and vector control activities.

Parsaram said a “state-of-the art geographical system” for the Insect Vector Control Division was expected to be finalised within the next quarter and would assist the division to examine, in real time, disease trends as well as vector habitats and potential breeding sites so as to improve operational efficiency.

Symptoms of GBS

GBS symptoms include weakness of the arms and legs and, in severe cases, can affect the muscles that control breathing. These symptoms can last a few weeks or several months. Most people fully recover from GBS, though some people have permanent damage. Very few people die from GBS.

Source—Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, US

Private testing poor

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh, who had been recently diagnosed with dengue, said yesterday that people should be wary of going to private facilities to test for Zika. He said this was especially so for pregnant women, as some of these institutions may not be properly equipped to do such testing. He said the public hospitals had the requisite tests with the requisite sensitivity to detect the Zika virus. “So these false negative tests...you want to avoid that and the Caribbean Public Health Agency is the only institution in Trinidad that has the PCR test (Polymerase Chain Reaction),” Deyalsingh added.

PCR is used to reproduce (amplify) selected sections of DNA or RNA for analysis. Deyalsingh said as countries around the world continued to grapple with lack of resources, it was improbable to test this country’s entire population for Zika as focus continued on the most vulnerable.

On global reports that Zika may be sexually transmitted, Deyalsingh said in larger countries with a much larger population this was detected in a few instances, not in smaller countries like T&T.

Government was up to yesterday unable to confirm reports that the nine T&T nationals detained in Turkey include women and children.

New information on the group reached the T&T Guardian on Thursday evening. The nine were detained in Turkey on July 27. Turkey’s Daily Sabah newspaper reported the nine were held with a Syrian man who was allegedly taking them to Syria to be recruited by the Isis terror network. The nine were placed at the Turkish detention centre for provincial migration management at Adana, southeast Turkey.

National Security Minister Edmund Dillon subsequently said the nationality of the nine had to be confirmed and Government had put the matter in the hands of the Foreign Affairs Ministry and was awaiting word on whether the nine were in fact T&T nationals.

On Thursday, acting Attorney General Stuart Young said it was confirmed the nine were T&T nationals and they were still in Turkey, adding Government was awaiting a report on the circumstances of their detention 

On Thursday evening, the T&T Guardian learned women and children may be among the group, as well as men.

Contacted yesterday, Young was unable to confirm any such speculation. He said Government was awaiting an official report through diplomatic channels with Turkey.

Acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert, also acting head of the National Security Council in Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley’s absence, meanwhile said the Ministers of National Security, Foreign Affairs and the AG were “actively seeking confirmation on the true status of the individuals in question.”

Imbert added, “That is, whether the nine are really involved with Isis in any way or were simply trying to make contact with, or join, family members in the region, or whether they simply overstayed their time in Turkey and/or they don't have valid visas or travel documents.” Dillon also yesterday echoed similar statements, saying a number of processes had to be undertaken in any country to obtain the necessary information to clear up a situation like that. 

“Government will not go with any type of speculation on the matter—we have to get the proper, official report,” Dillon said.

T&T’s honorary consul to Turkey, Nusret Comert, acknowledging queries, said he had liaised with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on it and would get back to the T&T Guardian. There was no reply, however. Foreign Affairs Minister Dennis Moses did not answer calls.

Public must be notified

Former People’s Partnership security minister Gary Griffith yesterday underscored the need for transparency on the issue.

“The public must be informed about situations like these, lest fear set in. We’ve already seen several developments this week—including the calls by the T&T Isis fighter to attack Christians.

“If nothing is said on matters regarding security, the public would speculate all kinds of things—that the nine in Turkey are already back and ‘among us,’ that they’re ‘terrorists,’ all kinds of things. Saying nothing is not a good response in the global scenario. This is where the National Operations Centre is needed to play a significant role.”

Griffith added, “This situation shouldn’t be difficult to handle since T&T has links with Turkey, with which we worked in 2014 when we had to assist a mother and her two daughters return from Turkey.”

That family had been taken there in late 2014 by a male relative who was accompanied by two boys also. The three women appealed to the then government to return home and assistance was rendered on the basis that the trio had been “lured” to the Middle East in a case of human trafficking. 

They returned to T&T and were kept under surveillance. 

The man and boys went on to Syria, joining Isis. He was confirmed as killed in 2015. One of the boys was reported to have been killed also. Griffith said, “The other question is how the nine people got to Turkey since they couldn’t have gotten there on their own and people don’t go to Syria on vacation. So we know their intentions and therefore they must be closely monitored on their return as they would be seen as persons of interest.

“If they return to T&T via London, US, Panama, Brazil or Venezuela, the advanced passenger lists of the airlines will have the information on them before they land and pass it to T&T, so we’ll be updated.”

While the past PP administration co-sponsored UN Resolution 2178, which makes it an offence to commit a terrorist act, former PP attorney general Garvin Nicholas says, in his tenure (early 2015 to September 2015) discussions were ongoing about using the existing anti-terrorism legislation.

“Up to 2015 we’d been liaising with the DPP to see if to use the Anti-terrorism Act, but we didn’t have the opportunity to bring more laws,” he said.

Education Minister Anthony Garcia yesterday left the door open as to whether Government may yet change its mind about stopping Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses (Gate) funding to people 50 and over.

He made the comment as he tried to clear up some issues and respond to comments made about some of the sweeping changes to the programme on Wednesday during an interview on I95.5FM.

Confronted on the rationale for cutting the programme to people over 50 with immediate effect, Garcia said, “There is always the possibility that after looking at things with a much finer microscope, there might be the possibility of some changes.” 

The decision has come under fire by some sectors of the public and some of the student bodies, who have noted that mature students make up a sizeable amount of their student population.

But Garcia said faced with the age and income factor, the Task Force set up to review the programme “had to set certain thresholds.” Among the recommendations was a household whose income was $9,000 and less per month be given 100 per cent funding, while it was recommended not to continue funding persons aged 50 and over.

Seeking to explain the rationale behind these recommendations, he said, “It was felt throughout discussions that a person having attained the age of 50 would have been gainfully employed for a large number of years and would have afforded persons time to accumulate some savings if they were desirous of pursuing tertiary education.”

He stressed, however, that people already in the system would continue to receive funding until the end of their programmes, while those now enrolling and once accepted into their programme would receive funding for one year. Garcia said this measure would now force people to put their house in order.

Noting that his ministry had begun reviewing the education system since February, Garcia said three national consultations were held in order to give the public an opportunity to voice their concerns about different areas and make recommendations for improvements.

He said the major area of concern was the Gate programme, as well as the exam regimes currently in place. He said the public was quite clear in its call to cut the Gate funding by 50 per cent, following which the Task Force was convened and mandated to undertake a comprehensive review of the programme since its inception.

Denying that the decisions determined by Cabinet were rushed, Garcia said, “The decisions were not rushed. They were taken after careful consideration by all members of the Cabinet.” He said the major consideration for cuts to Gate was “our economic circumstance.” 

“We are in a stringent and dire economic situation today, in a country where the price of oil and natural gas has suffered tremendous losses. Not everybody would appreciate the fact that two years ago the price of oil was $125 a barrel, whereas today it is lower than $45 a barrel.”

He said the savings to be realised from the cuts would be in line with Government’s thrust to save more, but said they remained committed to spending up to $500 million annually on Gate, $200 million less than the current yearly expenditure on the programme.

Schols for research

While it has also been announced that there will be no funding for postgraduate degrees unless they are in an area designated as aligning with government's developmental goals, Garcia said consideration “may be given to someone pursuing a postgraduate programme in research.”

Reinforcing his earlier comment that decisions were not cast in stone and could undergo changes in the future, Garcia said the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) was currently conducting a study on T&T’s developmental needs and that a number of areas had been identified, including agriculture and agro-processing, maritime, energy, petroleum, financial services, creative industries, information and communication technology, aviation, medicine, construction, teaching, tourism, and research and development.

He said Government had spent in excess of $10 billion over the last five years on recurrent expenditure, with other major bills cropping up in infrastructure, Gate, HELP loans and scholarships. 

On the move to stop providing funding for medical students to attend St George’s University, Grenada, Garcia said it cost approximately $71,000 per year for one student to undergo medical training at any one of the UWI campuses in Trinidad, Barbados and Jamaica, while it was three times more for a student in Grenada, which ranged between $199,000 and $250,000. He said there was also the problem where students studying in Grenada were being groomed for the US market, and they failed to return and perform the obligatory service at the end of their degree programmes. He also said ministry officials now had one year in which to come up with a transparent and fair means test which would be administered to all students seeking Gate funding. 

The minister also confirmed that several people at the University of T&T had been sent on administrative leave as an audit was underway to determine the exact status of the university. He said the institution’s original mandate was that of encouraging entrepreneurship and creativity but there were efforts to “disestablish UTT” by previous officials. 

University of the West Indies Vice Chancellor Sir Hilary Beckles says they are in full support of Government’s decision to make changes to the administration of the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses (Gate) programme. 

In the statement yesterday, Beckles said the university would now support Government in the implementation process in order to achieve the objectives set out.

“The university has long celebrated the visionary commitment of successive governments in developing and implementing the Gate strategy to fund access to higher education. This has been a critical investment in the human resource that has served the country and region well. Indeed, we believe that the country as a result is on the cusp of a major transformation in its economic and social structures as it focuses on innovation and sustainable development,” Beckles said.

“The university celebrates the approach to Gate reform which was centered on the importance of research and data analysis as the basis of policy formulation. In this regard, I am pleased that my colleagues were able to participate in the process. “The political commitment to social equity in access to Gate is commendable. The determination to ensure that a disproportionate share of the tax burden does not fall upon working-class families, and others who constitute the most vulnerable social groups in the society, will stand well the test of time.”

Beckles said it was reasonable for students to make a fair and reasonable contribution to their education funding under the current economic circumstances facing the country. “This principle of shared cost is reasonable and the gradual approach to the implementation of this contribution shows sensitivity to students and their families, as well as for the planning of student affairs at the university,” he said. He said the focus of funding research around pertinent areas necessary for the advancement of the economy at this time is a best practice the university supports. 

On the students’ response to the cuts, Beckles said, “It is comforting that our students have recognised the positive aspects of the Gate reform and are willing to accept that good policy and governance make for national development.” He said he realised that the impending means testing for entry could be a challenging matter, but said UWI was also ready to assist the Government in the formulation and implementation of a means testing model that is practical and effective.

As a senior magistrate freed the man charged with the murder of Police Constable Anil Persad who was shot in the forest during a police exercise, she heavily criticised the police evidence in the matter.

Rio Claro resident Manickchand Rajaram who was also charged with other offences arising from the May 2011 murder walked out of the Rio Claro Magistrates Court a free man on Thursday after Magistrate Armina Deonarinesingh upheld a no-case submission made by defence attorney Ashton Diananth.

In giving her decision, Deonarinesigh said there were too many holes in the police evidence and too many questions were left unanswered. 

Rajaram was arrested and charged two years after Persad was shot and after his mother, Radica Maharaj-Persad, led a public campaign demanding justice for her son’s death.

She had questioned whether her son was accidentally shot by one of his own colleagues and they were afraid to tell the truth.

Ruling that a prima facie case had not been made out against Rajaram, the magistrate said she was not satisfied with the evidence as too many questions were left unanswered.

While she thanked state prosecutor Sarah de Silva for her comprehensive and eloquent submissions, the magistrate said the evidence was discredited and unreliable.The magistrate added it was clear from the police complainant ASP Hendron Moses’ demeanour that the case was just handed to him and he did what he did. She added that it was not the court’s duty to connect the dots.

Moses was among 12 police witnesses and a scientific officer who gave evidence in the preliminary inquiry, which began last year. Rajaram was charged in 2013 with Persad’s murder, six counts of shooting with intent, possession of arms and ammunition and possession of 39 kilogrammes of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking.

Persad was killed during a marijuana eradication exercise in the Cushe/Charuma forest on May 12, 2011.

The state’s case was that Persad, who had nine years experience, was among a party of police officers who was fired upon by one of five men who were tending marijuana plants in the forest.

The police alleged the shooter was Rajaram. Persad turned to run and was shot in the back. Police returned fire killing two of the men identified as Teeleckchand Arjoon, 46, and Jagdeo Seecharan, 47. The other two men ran off. 

Persad, who was attached to the Rio Claro Police Station, was airlifted some two hours later to the San Fernando General Hospital where he subsequently died.

An autopsy found he bled to death.

Three guns, five buckets of marijuana and several marijuana trees were tendered into evidence during the inquiry at the end of which Diananth made the no-case submission.

In order to read you need good vision.

And the National Library and Information System (Nalis) has partnered with eye care specialists, Optometrists Today, to help library card holders get corrective vision. 

Elizabeth Mahadeo, executive director of Nalis, said yesterday it was a historic event that no other library system has entered a partnership with an optical company to promote library services.

Yesterday, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between Nalis and Optometrists Today at Nalis, Hart and Abercromby Streets, Port-of-Spain.

“Libraries have existed in T&T since 1851. 

“They continue to play a key role in impacting literacy levels, influencing national development, bridging the digital divide and levelling the playing field between the rich and the poor,” she said.

Mahadeo said that Nalis was mindful that with reduced incomes many families had to make adjustments and decide on spending only on food and shelter. The partnership allows library card holders to get a 20 per cent discount.

Optometrists Today general manager Theresa Alexis said we were all living in an age where we were exposed to electronic devices all day long. 

Alexis said that the relationship between eye health and the neurological processes with reading were obvious. Optometrists Today is offering services such as retinal photography, health and safety presentations, vision screening and contact lens examinations.

Locations are in Port-of-Spain, West Mall, Price Plaza, Valsayn, Arima, Trincity, Chaguanas and San Fernando.

Political analyst Dr Indera Sagewan-Alli warns that the absence of information about the prime minister's health can leave room for negative speculation.

Her statement comes as Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley is expected to undergo further medical tests in California, USA, on Monday.

Dr Rowley left this country on Thursday for the USA, where he is expected to check into a clinic tomorrow. This, after local and international doctors advised him that he must undergo further medical tests.

The Prime Minister maintains that matters pertaining to his health are personal, a stance that Sagewan-Alli does not fully agree with.

“The reality is that Dr Rowley is the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago,” she said.

“Once you’ve entered into the public domain particularly politics and moreso if you are the captain that is steering the ship and something is happening with you, I think you have a responsibility to certainly share with the population what is happening.

“Obviously, if you’re not telling us, people are going to speculate all sorts of really bad things and the implication of that for a country, for its stability, is not very good. From that perspective I think sharing information becomes very important.”

Sagewan-Alli said the Prime Minister also needs to look into the country’s economic situation.

“The pulse of the country is not beating very strong, we’re in an economic recession,” she said.

“Therefore, people are looking to the Government and to the Prime Minister in particular to steer the ship in the direction in which it needs to go, so that knowing what is happening I think is key.”

On the other hand, Sagewan-Alli said while the Prime Minister has a responsibility to share information with the nation, his health issues are also private.