The driver of a black Honda Civic, who was captured on CCTV footage knocking down a pedestrian before reversing out of the view of the cameras, did not flee the scene but parked his car and returned to assist.

This was the word from police investigating the accident yesterday.

The police added that the 30-year-old Arima man walked into the Arima Police Station shortly after the accident on Saturday. 

Video of the accident, which occurred around 7 am near Pro Sports Bar along the Malabar Extension Road, has been widely circulated on social networking platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook. 

In the video, 19-year-old Ezekiel Burton, of Old Trainline, Arima, was seen attempting to cross the road after purchasing doubles. On seeing the oncoming vehicle, Burton tried to get out of the way but slipped on the wet road. He was hit and thrown into the air, landing beneath a parked car nearby. Up to press time Burton was listed in a stable but serious condition at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope. 

However, the video initially gave the impression the driver had fled the scene, since he reversed his vehicle in the direction he came from and out of the view of the camera a few moments after hitting Burton.

In an unrelated incident, police said a motorcyclist Arnold Jones died yesterday afternoon after losing control of his motorbike and skidding beneath a truck heading in the opposite direction. He was crushed under the vehicle. 

According to police reports, around 2 pm the driver of the truck, belonging to Sat Sais Company Limited, was heading south along Mausica Road when Jones lost control of the bike and slid beneath the tyres. Police said Jones, whose age and address were not available up to press time, died on the scene. Investigations are continuing into both accidents. 

The Accreditation Council of T&T (ACTT) is the principal body responsible for conducting and advising on the accreditation and recognition of post secondary and tertiary educational and training institutions, programmes and awards and the promotion of quality standards.

Established by Act No 16 of 2004 and proclaimed on July 9, 2004, it is governed by Chapter 39:06 of the Constitution of T&T.

Contacted yesterday, the ACTT’s executive director, Michael Bradshaw, said the law was quite clear as to the operating guidelines to be followed.

Bradshaw stressed that whereas institutional registration was mandated by law, accreditation was a voluntary process.

According to the ACTT’s vision, they are the principal authority in T&T for quality assurance and continuous improvement in higher education and a leader in innovation and best practice. 

Their mission is to “assure the quality and integrity of higher education primarily through recognition, registration and accreditation as well as public education and related activities, while ensuring the efficiency and transparency of our operations and demonstrating commitment to national development and global competitiveness.”

Bradshaw explained that the approval of a proposed title of an institution was based on the nature of the institution and the levels and types of programmes it offered to ensure fitness for purpose. Among the protected titles are university, community college, college, tertiary college, technical college, technical university, polytechnic and technical institute.

Institutional titles of University, College and Technical Institute have been conferred on 13 institutions to date including the Automation Technology College (ATC), the College of Ultrasound Sciences (COUS), the ARIA Technical Institute Limited, the CTS College of Business and Computer Science (CTSCBCS), the Technical Institute of Learning (TIL), the Advanced Solutions Technical Institute (ASTI), the College of Legal Studies, the College of Professional Studies (CPS), the Trinidad and Tobago Bible College, the University of the Southern Caribbean (USC), the SITAL College of Tertiary Education Limited, the College of Health, Environment and Safety Studies (CHESS) and the St Andrew’s Theological College (SATC).

Before an institution can begin its operations, it has to be registered by the ACTT. 

Institutions are reviewed in the context of criteria which include legal, policy and regulatory requirements, governance and administration, quality management system, resource management, teaching‐learning process, review and continuous improvement.

There is a process whereby the quality of a locally developed programme is evaluated to ensure that the content is relevant, consistent with the institution’s mission and has stated learning outcomes that are at the appropriate level for the name of the qualification that will be awarded. 

Attention is also paid to whether or not the programme is comparable/equivalent to another offered internationally; if the programmes are appropriately designed and structured to meet labour market needs, if there are adequate resources provided for teaching and learning, ensuring the stated learning outcomes and assessment strategies are set at an appropriate level for the qualification awarded; whether approved programmes are comparable with/equivalent to regional and international competitors. (ALP)

After losing his father and niece at a family outing in Mayaro on Sunday, Roger Sammy is now pleading for the implementation of lifeguard booths at the beach so that other families will not have to endure the tragedy his family has faced.

Speaking with the media outside the Forensic Science Centre, St James, yesterday, Sammy said there were no lifeguards where his relatives drowned. He said had there been lifeguards or a timely response from officials at the nearby Mayaro Health Facility, the lives of his father, Morris, and his niece, nine-year-old Anastazia Ali, might have been saved. 

“I want to emphasise the importance of a weekend and no lifeguards and no ambulances. We would like to see something come out of this,” Sammy said.

“Not just in Mayaro, but wherever else citizens are holidaying at. You need these services because it was mere minutes before we recovered her and my dad. And within that time frame there should have been some professional equipment and somebody available. We pulled them out within minutes, within five minutes at most. Ana (Anastazia) had a pulse and I strongly believe she could have survived if there was professional help available.” 

Sammy’s father died when he tried to save his grandchild and another girl who were pulled into the water by strong undercurrents. 

Sammy and Ali were among four people who drowned in separate incidents at beaches over the weekend.

Police said around 10.25 am Sunday, Ali was bathing a few metres from the shore with two young girls when two of them were pulled in by the current. Sammy, who was also in the water at the time, tried to rescue the girls but failed. The other girl managed to swim to shore but Ali and Sammy were pulled under the water and drowned. 

Ali’s father, Andy Ali, also called for better monitoring of the beaches, adding that it could save the lives of others. He said three major things came to mind after his daughter and father-in-law died that should be addressed—there were no lifeguards, no warning flags and a poor response time by medical officials.

Asked to describe his daughter, he said, “She is the firstborn, the apple of our eyes. She was undeniably beautiful, just like her mother. She was absolutely wonderful to spend time with, very joyous, very happy, she knew exactly what she wanted to be in life. She told me ‘Dad, I want to be a famous actress, dancer and performer.’ 

“So we sent her to dance classes and gymnastics at the Spirit Academy. She did not like academics, she was artistically inclined. I didn’t want her to make the same mistakes I did in school. I didn’t like academics per se and she is a performer.”

Andy added that he was not at the family outing that resulted in his daughter’s death but wished he was. He said his daughter was well supervised and described the drowning as a “freak accident” which he would not wish on anyone. ​​

Two people were injured and more than 30 people were left jobless after a multi-million dollar fire destroyed a dwelling house, business place and two cars on Cipero Street, San Fernando, yesterday.

As firefighters fought to contain the fire, which was threatening two other buildings, clouds of thick black smoke engulfed neighbouring businesses, resulting in the evacuation of several stores. 

The two injured people, a man and a woman, were being treated for burns at the San Fernando General Hospital last night.

The blaze began around 3 pm upstairs a two-storey building where the Golden Terrace Restaurant once operated at Upper High Street.

The injured people, who live upstairs the house, were at home when the fire began. The fire quickly spread to an adjoining three-storey building on the right which houses two businesses—Draperies & Interiors Mega Traders Ltd and Mega Plumbing and Hardware. 

Firefighters were successful in preventing the fire from destroying an adjourning property on the left where four people live upstairs. 

In an interview after the fire was put out, Assistant Chief Fire Officer (South) Cecil Davis said they received the call around 3 pm and officers from South and Princes Town responded. However, he said, there was no external stairway for them to access the inside of the building, which made it difficult to fight the fire.

“We surrounded the building to prevent it from spreading. There is no external staircase and internal stairway, which is very dangerous for the workmen to work. We are on a defensive mode of firefighting at this point,” he said.

He said a thorough investigation has to be done before they could estimate the amount of losses and cause of the fire.

Describing the situation as tragic, San Fernando Mayor Kazim Hosein, who arrived on the scene, said, “In this time it is a great loss, a great loss in San Fernando. We are in a recession and business is down and these are three successful businesses we have here. I understand two people were there cooking when the fire took place. It is sad, it is a great loss.”

While he commended T&TEC and the Fire Service for their efficient response, the mayor said recently a fire took place on Pointe-a-Pierre Road and the business places were not equipped with a fire extinguisher.

“This should be a law they should pass. I think it is a law, but someone has to ensure there are fire extinguishers within the business places.” He also lamented the absence of fire escapes in the business place.

“And you realise how close the businesses are and there is only one way in and one way out. That is where the corporation and Town and Country come in, to ensure that there are proper exits, fire extinguishers, way to get out. There must be a fire exit. That building there does not have any.”

San Fernando East MP and Housing Minister Randall Mitchell also visited the scene and expressed concern that the business owners had lost their properties. He commended the work of the combined services.

Family members of 13-year-old Renisha Basdeo and her stepfather 50-year-old Deoraj Harridass cried, screamed and held on to each other yesterday, after they saw the lifeless bodies of their two loved ones lying on the shores at Bellpiece Beach, Manzanilla.

Basdeo and Harridass drowned on Sunday but their bodies were only located yesterday after they were seen by Air Guard officers, who worked alongside Coast Guard, fishermen and off-duty lifeguards in the search along the east coast.

Renisha Basdeo, 13, of Premier Trace, Tableland, was a student of Tableland Secondary School and would have been entering form two in September.

Harridass, 50, was an estate constable with Allied Security Services.

Police reported that around 7.30 am Sunday, Basdeo went to wash her hands close to the Ortoire River mouth when she slipped and fell into the river.

Harridass, who was sitting close to the river, saw when his daughter fell into the river. He immediately got up and dived into the river, but he too got into difficulties in the strong undercurrent. He was pulled under water and never surfaced.

Yesterday, Basdeo’s body was found 100 feet from where she drowned, while her father's body was found 500 feet away from hers.

The family had gone to the beach on an outing Saturday and camped overnight Saturday.

District Medical Officer Dr Verma viewed the bodies and ordered their removal to Sangre Grande Hospital mortuary, before they were transferred to the Forensic Science Center, St James, for autopsies. PC Heerman of the Mayaro Police Station is continuing with enquiries.

A businessman from central Trinidad and four employees of the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation (CTTRC) appeared in court yesterday, accused of conspiring to defraud the local government corporation of $149,500. 

CTTRC CEO Carol Dyal; Barry Samaroo, a chief engineer; Maniram Mohess, a county superintendent; Ian Gokool, a road officer; and Mahase Sookai, a businessman, were not called upon to plead to the fraud charge when they appeared before Magistrate Christine Charles in the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Court. 

Accompanied in court by their relatives, the group stood silently in the prisoner enclosure of the court as the charge was being read. 

Asked for their opinion on bail, police prosecutors asked Charles to attach conditions to the bail requiring the accused to report weekly to police for the duration of their case. Charles refused the request and noted that none of the five had criminal records. She then opted to regularise the $300,000 bail each was granted by a justice of the peace while they were in police custody. 

“The sum of bail fixed seems to be reasonable and if they decide not to comply the consequences will be obvious,” Charles said. 

The group is accused of conspiring to defraud the corporation through the installation of outdoor exercise equipment at the San Pablo Recreation Ground and the Todd’s Road Activity Centre. Sookai’s company was allegedly awarded the contracts and was paid although no work had been done. The offence is alleged to have occurred on September 20, last year. 

The contract was awarded during the 2014/15 fiscal year, but cheques and other documents related to this were seized by Fraud Squad officers at the CTTRC last November. On November 25, Fraud Squad officers questioned senior employees in the accounting department as they searched the compound and seized financial records, including cheques and files of contractors contracted by the corporation, as well as other documentary evidence associated with alleged corrupt payments to certain contractors.

Last Friday, police went to the CTTRC office, along Railway Road, Couva, and held the employees who were being investigated for corruption.

The charge was laid by Insp Ramdhanie Dipchand of the Fraud Squad. The group will reappear in the Couva Magistrates Court on Thursday. 

Education Minister Anthony Garcia says people are making a big deal about the health of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and it was also disrespectful to the PM.

Garcia said so as the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and other Cabinet members remained mum on medical examinations done by Rowley at a clinic in California, USA, yesterday.

Garcia said, “I don’t know why people are making such a big deal. There shouldn’t be all this speculation that is rife all over the place.This is disrespectful to the office holder too.”

Garcia said he holds firmly to the view that a Cabinet member’s health is his personal business. “If he prefers, he can disclose it to the public,” he added.

Garcia said a relative of his who served as a minister had health issues and disclosed it to the public but on her own volition.

OPM’s communications researcher, Amanda Reason, said she had no information to disclose to the public at the time on Rowley’s medical tests at the US clinic.“As soon as we have information we will disclose it to the public,” she said yesterday.

Rowley, who left for the US last week, indicated in an electronic message to a daily newspaper the medical tests were prompted by “changes” relating to his health his local doctors felt should be investigated further.

He said the examinations should take about a week and as soon as he is able to travel, he will return home.

Rowley also said he believed one’s health should remain personal even if he is a public figure.

However, public speculation about the PM’s health continues to be widespread, with many citizens, including political analysts and public figures, stating Rowley should come clean about his medical condition.

His Cabinet colleagues contacted by the T&T Guardian for a response on the issue would not talk, one even stating a government minister’s health is his personal business.

Political analyst, Dr Winford James, on the other hand, said precisely because a prime minister is a public figure, he ought to disclose issues about his health.

The question, he said, was how much.

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said, “I have nothing to say on the health of the Prime Minister. Let the Office of the Prime Minister deal with that.”

Public Administration and Communications Minister Maxie Cuffie said he had nothing further to add to what the PM had said about his health.

Several calls to the cell phone of Minister in the Ministry of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs Stuart Young were met with a voice recording.

Disclosure critical

Stressing he was talking about any holder of high political office and not Rowley, James said it is important the population knows as much as possible about such an office holder because he represents us at home and abroad.

“No question, we ought to know. The question is how much. 

“While we should not get into the details, which can be sensitive, certainly if a prime minister has, say, cancer, the public should be informed.”

Referring directly to Rowley, James said it was not known if the Prime Minister went to the US to treat an existing medical condition or for a possible precautionary check up.

“My information is that he is taking this opportunity to do a comprehensive medical check up on this trip.

“You have that provision in insurance you know. And when he signs out (of the clinic) he can come back and tell us.”

James added, “Except we have reason to doubt, the Prime Minister said he is doing a medical check up. And when he is done we must ask if all is well.

“And if all is not well he should say what it is. This is normal in a democracy. People have certain expectations about the health of a public figure.

“Obama can’t be sick without the American press knowing about it.”

James said Rowley has to judge whether he will give the public information and not jeopardise his political fortunes as a prime minister and his party’s fortunes as the ruling party.

Revolutionist and Founder of the National Joint Action Committee (NJAC), Makandal Daaga, born Geddes Granger, died yesterday at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital.

Daaga, as he is popularly known, suffered a seizure while at his home in Laventille yesterday afternoon and was taken to the Port-of-Spain General Hospital for treatment. However, he died a short while later, about 1.35 pm. Daaga was the father of four children. On Saturday he would have celebrated his 81st birthday.

Political leader, Brother Wasim Mutema, yesterday described Daaga as a humanitarian, “he was one who fought for the rights of the people. His heart went out to the people. He wasn’t the type to think about status or educational backgrounds.”

A close friend of the family said Daaga recently contracted a virus but was said to be fighting it and in good spirits.

“He never was flat down in bed and he was walking, talking and doing everything as normal so we are just shock and saddened as to how sudden he left us,” the family friend said.

In 2013, Daaga received the nation’s highest national award—The Order of the Republic of T&T—for work in the sphere of national service.

In 2010, Daaga was one of five political leaders that signed the Fyzabad Accord leading up to the 2010 General Election which saw the birth of the People’s Partnership.

In the party’s 14-month performance review, during an interview with the T&T Guardian, Daaga threatened to walk from the People’s Partnership government if he felt that his people were being betrayed.

He was bestowed with the position of Cultural Ambassador to Caricom by then prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

Persad-Bissessar, in a release yesterday, extended condolences to Daaga’s family and friends.

She described Daaga’s journey as a monument to service, determination and fortitude.

“When in April 2010 he said, ‘my dreams have come true… never again would you be servants in your own country, this land is yours’, it was the fulfilment of a long-held vision for a nation that could stand together as one people, above all other differences celebrated by our diversity,” Persad-Bissessar said.

“He was one of those elders whose advice I always treasured, as one who was already a seasoned veteran by the time I entered politics many years ago,” she added.

Reminiscing, Persad-Bissessar said one of Daaga’s most timeless philosophies was “the people is the Government,” which, she added, was the talk he walked in his long march to political power, and in his time as ambassador extraordinaire. 

“What it meant to me was that true power resides in the men, women and young people whose lives we influence when we hold power, and therefore a vision for the future and mode of Government must come from those very people,” Persad-Bissessar said.

“As a pioneering politician, a social activist, a political elder and a Statesman, his forthright wisdom and boundless energy will be missed, and will never be forgotten. His fight was for the people, and in his life time, he was able to win power and indeed, did all he could to govern for the people. We are deeply saddened and send our hope for his family for God’s hand in this time of tragedy,” Persad-Bissessar said.

Daaga had described himself as the “shadow minister” for Laventille, a community in which he spent his entire life.

Around Independence 1962, Daaga formed an organisation called Pegasus, which attracted some of the most prominent and influential persons of the day.

It was the first body to give national awards. It took the lead in honouring citizens long before any government national awards were introduced. It also took the lead in honouring national heroes, the first two being Arthur H. Mc Shine who was responsible for the Trinidad Cooperative Bank (the Penny Bank) and Captain Arthur Andrew Cipriani.

Five years after founding Pegasus, Daaga entered the University of the West Indies, St Augustine, and became president of the Guild of Undergraduates. 

With an equal concern for national development, Daaga inspired the university toward a hitherto unseen type of student activism that ranged from teaching voluntarily in the more depressed areas to providing assistance in solving all types of communal problems.

In 1974 he was made leader of the Caribbean Steering Committee for the Sixth Pan African Conference that was held in Tanzania. This organisation had included the leadership of most, if not all progressive political organisations in the Caribbean, and included persons like Raymond Charlotte of Cayenne, Tim Hector of Antigua, Bobby Clarke of Barbados, Eusi Kwayana of Guyana, Maurice Bishop of Grenada.

Doctors attached to the Mt Hope Women's Hospital (MHWH) are defending the protocols that have been put in place to fight the Zika virus.

Reacting to claims by members of the public that pregnant patients were being made to wait unduly long to be seen by medical personnel, several doctors yesterday said they were working over and beyond the required protocol to attend to patients which included those with Zika and without.

Requesting anonymity, one doctor said, “This is a new pathology and therefore, there are many unanswered questions.”

Another doctor said because of the emergence of this new virus, there were no national or international experts that could be consulted.

Instead, she added that local practitioners were concerned enough to invest their time and resources into finding the answers and devising new ways of threatening patients diagnosed with the virus.

Contacted on the matter, Medical Chief of Staff, MHWH, Dr Karen Sohan called for public and private doctors to unite in their efforts to treat and educate patients about the virus and the potential risks to unborn babies.

Asked to comment on a report in which a pregnant patient living in Siparia, diagnosed with the Zika virus, had been “bounced” around by two public health institutions during the last couple weeks before being referred to the MHWH where she claimed delays had led to her still not being able to see a doctor—Dr Sohan said it was unfortunate that such situations were still occurring.

She said, “If ever a country needs to work together to address a national issue, it is now. There is no room for speculation and misinformation.”

The 27-year-old patient who is just over ten weeks pregnant reportedly visited the Siparia Health Facility and the San Fernando General Hospital before being referred to the MHWH after it was confirmed she had contracted the Zika virus.

The woman reportedly said she was advised by her private doctor to abort the baby.

However, after visiting the MHWH where she was given an appointment to have an ultrasound completed to determine the health and status of the foetus, the woman is now appealing for counseling as she is mentally torn about proceeding with the pregnancy.

Sohan empathised with the woman as she said: “We understand that our pregnant women are worried and anxious and it is our concern for them that has led to the development of the Foetal Medicine Services at Mt Hope Women’s Hospital.”

Stressing that there was a need to ensure the information being disseminated was accurate, Sohan said countless persons were involved in the project on a voluntary basis, in addition to their regular duties.

Acknowledging the importance of this national health issue, she went on, “This is a global issue as countries with far more resources than we have, are struggling to organize policies for pregnant women with Zika. New information about the Zika virus is emerging daily and as the numbers of pregnant women with Zika increase, we need to use our available resources and expertise to provide the best care for this most vulnerable group. As the numbers of affected pregnant women increase, gaps in the system have been identified.”

Assuring that they were now seeking to address these gaps and provide innovative solutions, she said, “It is clear from telephone conversations and newspaper articles that many doctors are concerned about the Zika virus in pregnancy. Following consultations with the Minister of Health, it was agreed that any suitably qualified doctor who would like to volunteer their expertise at this time will receive the necessary authorisation to assist in the programme at Mt Hope Women’s Hospital. This includes doctors in the private sector as well. While we understand that they may not be able to perform a detailed ultrasound of the fetal brain, they may be able to counsel the patients by providing the most accurate and up-to-date information in a caring and compassionate manner. We would welcome any assistance.”

Sohan advised patients who have tested positive for Zika to contact the hospital to arrange their consultation.

Meanwhile, patients who have received their referrals to the MHWH can call 662-8452 ext 2360 to schedule appointments.

Persons can also fax a copy of their referral to 662-1539.

Sohan added, “There is no doubt that if we work together, we will be able to provide the necessary care for our pregnant women with zika. We recognize that this is not an individual issue but a national issue.”

Two days after four employees of the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation (CTTRC) appeared in court on fraud charges, municipal police yesterday had to stop a meeting in which one of the accused was allegedly a participant, after three of the accused still reported for duty.

Following that meeting at the CTTRC’s technical building, it was reported that Fraud Squad investigators returned to the Railway Road, Couva compound. 

CTTRC chairman, Henry Awong, told the T&T Guardian last night that those who showed up yesterday: County superintendent Maniram Mohess and engineer Barry Samaroo will report to the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development’s Port-of-Spain office today, while checker Ian Gokool was sent on leave by CTTRC acting CEO Charmaine Dookie.

The trio, along with CEO Carol Dyal, appeared before Port-of-Spain Magistrate Christine Charles on Monday, charged with conspiring to defraud the CTTRC of $149,500. The charges relate to a contract awarded for the installation of outdoor exercise equipment at the San Pablo Recreation Ground and the Todd’s Road Activity Centre. 

Businessman Mahase Sookai is also an accused in the matter. They are scheduled to reappear in the Couva Magistrate Court tomorrow.

But Independent Liberal Party (ILP) alderman, Sunil Ramjitsingh, was upset the employees had been allowed to return to work yesterday, saying it is standard practice in the public service that when officers are on criminal charges in relation to their conduct in office, those officers are immediately placed on suspension pending the outcome of the court matter.

In a joint statement, Ramjitsingh, fellow ILP alderman, Beeran Rambaran, and People’s National Movement councillor Alif Mohammed, said: “It is preposterous and insane that officers against whom criminal charges are pending should be allowed to freely roam through controlled areas of the CTTRC and to handle documents that have evidential potential.”

Speaking by telephone, Ramjitsingh said workers alerted them that the employees were not only on the compound but were holding a meeting with co-workers. 

He said workers left the meeting traumatised as they felt threatened after they were told their jobs could be in jeopardy and police could return to arrest more of them.

The councillors said they contacted the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development office, permanent secretary, Awong and Dookie, but the worker allegedly refused to stop the meeting and continued to issue instructions to the workers. The meeting was eventually stopped by a municipal police officer around 1 pm.

At the last statutory meeting, opposition representatives at the CTTRC raised a motion for the reconciliation of construction materials, concerned that substantial amounts were pilfered. The motion was approved by the council but with the accused allegedly interfering in that process, they now believe it is tainted.

Awong: Reflects

on us badly

CTTRC chairman Awong, who spent yesterday at his Tabaquite office, said yesterday that the accused workers claimed that they were not given any directive by the Dookie or the Public Service Commission to refrain from entering the compound or reporting for duty yesterday. 

He said after the matter was raised by their colleagues, Gobin was subsequently advised by the permanent secretary that Samaroo and Mohess should report to the ministry. He said she also then suspended Gokool based on her authority in the collective agreement. Dyal proceeded on vacation leave a month ago. 

Awong said he had asked for a report on the accused employees to be submitted.

“They came out to work today and I understand that they went to the CEO’s office and were awaiting her instructions. She was not there, she was in a meeting in Port-of-Spain this morning. 

“When I spoke to her, she said she was going to ask the officers to report to her office until she comes. She told me that when she came down, they were at her office awaiting her,” Awong said.

He said people did not differentiate the role of the CTTRC’s administration and the council, so everything that wens wrong there reflected badly on the elected candidates. He said as chairman he could not instruct any employees but only request information from the CEO.

He said the latest developments were unhealthy and showed the CTTRC in a “bad light”.

“There are honest, hard working employees right now who are demoralised and demotivated. Operations at the corporations will almost grind to a halt now because the acting CEO is new and I am hoping that she can recover and put things in place to have the goods and services that the burgesses depend on from us not be hindered in any way,” Awong added.

Local Government Minister Franklin Khan says audits for other regional corporations will begin at week’s end. 

He made the comment yesterday following the court appearances on Monday of four Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation (CTTRC) employees on corruption charges. 

Speaking to reporters at a Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (Cariri’s) seminar, Khan said the allegations were a cause for concern. 

“Four officers from the CTTRC, public servants I might add, have been charged with accusations of corruption and I don’t want to comment on that in any detail because it is before the courts but it really does not look good in terms of the corporation and its management.”

While he declined to say which of the other 13 regional corporations would be audited, Khan said he had started the ball rolling.

“It is something we have heard of a lot in the local government reform consultation, that there are instances of possible corruption in the corporations and I have requested the permanent secretary to conduct audits in the specific corporations that I will not name right now, to see if this thing is more widespread than we think. The audit will start later this week by internal auditors from the Ministry of Local Government,” he added.

With local government reform aimed at giving greater autonomy to the corporations coming, Khan said Central Government would have to keep a close eye on the situation. 

During his feature address, Khan told those present from the corporations that they must take their jobs as accounting officers seriously.

“Those of you who are public officers and are accountable for state resources, take that job seriously. 

“During local government reform consultation, which was strange to me, most of the accusations of corruption were not levelled against the councils, it comes to the administration, because you are the guys that effect the work and you are the ones who sign the documents that the work is certified correct and done, etc. 

“It is your names that sign on the cheques. At the end of the day, if an investigation has to take place it is not the council or the chairman, it’s not the mayor. The only cheque the mayor could sign is from the Mayor’s Fund,” he said.

Revealing that Cabinet had approved $100 million for rural development last week, Khan called for quality assurance on all future projects.

“Quality assurance must be applied at every step of the process, from the tendering process to the planning and execution of the work and detailed assessments before certification is approved. 

“Quality assurance is so important. Something has gone fundamentally wrong, both in terms of our cost estimate, our project and contract management,” he said.

Questioning the high costs attached to projects, Khan said the ministry needed to come back down to basics. 

“All of a sudden, everything in Trinidad costs $100 million. You look at some of these projects and ask yourself what is it in these projects that cost $100 million? You look at a contract that has been awarded for $10 million to build a retaining wall and you ask yourself the question, where is this money going? We have to come back down to basics,” he added.

Lawyers representing four friends who were seriously injured in an accident during a circuit racing event in Wallerfield last month, are calling on acting Police Commissioner Harold Phillip to explain why the vehicle involved in the incident was not impounded by police. 

In a letter to Phillip yesterday, lawyers representing Kevesh Sookhan, Jynelle Maharaj, Amrika Armstrong and Tricia Persad claimed that the failure of investigators to seize and examine the vehicle is now hampering their ability to take possible legal action against the event’s organiser. 

“To our utter consternation, we have been reliably informed that the vehicle which collided with the spectators at the event has to date not been impounded by the police or sent for forensic testing to determine its worthiness or mechanical integrity. 

“We consider this a serious error, if not a dereliction of duty on the part of the police,” their lawyer Nizam Saladeen said. 

Saladeen also questioned whether police had inspected the tyre barriers which the car broke through before colliding with the four friends during the Caribbean Motor Racing Championship at the Frankie Boodram International Raceway on July 24. 

“In particular, we have been instructed that tyres placed in certain parts of the perimeter of the circuit were not affixed or adequately affixed, thereby failing to provide sufficient impediment to the vehicle which ran off the circuit and caused injury to our clients. 

“It is a source of grave concern to our clients and their legal advisors that such barriers could be the subject of tampering to the intent that certain unscrupulous persons may attempt to effect ex-post facto repair upon them,” Saladeen said, as he called upon Phillip to intervene and address their issues. 

The T&T Guardian understands that Saladeen had not received a response up to late yesterday. 

According to reports, during the last race of the event, driver David Lyons lost control of his vehicle around a hairpin turn. 

Lyons’ car crashed through the tyre barriers and was catapulted into the stand where the friends were seated in the bleachers. 

Lyons and the four friends were seriously injured, with some suffering internal injuries and other broken bones. They have since been discharged from hospital. 

The friends are also being represented by Kelvin Ramkissoon and Leon Kalicharan. 

Ezekiel Burton, 20, who was knocked down on Saturday morning, died at the Eric Williams Sciences Centre, Mt Hope, yesterday after being warded in the Intensive Care Unit for the past three days in a critical condition.

According to police reports, Burton was struck by a black Honda Civic driven by Kevon James, 30, along Malabar Extension, Arima, on Saturday around 7 am. 

A video of the accident has been widely circulated on social networking platforms like WhatsApp and Facebook. 

In the video, Burton, of Tumpuna Villas, Malabar Extension, Arima, was seen attempting to cross the road after purchasing doubles. On seeing the oncoming vehicle, Burton tried to get out of the way but slipped on the wet road. 

He was hit and thrown into the air, landing beneath a car parked nearby. 

The video initially gave the impression the driver had fled the scene, since he reversed his vehicle in the direction he came from and out of the view of the camera a few moments after hitting Burton but police said the man subsequently rendered assistance to Burton.

When the T&T Guardian visited Burton’s home yesterday, only his younger sister was there and she said her mother was still at the hospital finalising paperwork. 

Residents in the squatting community where Burton lived said the teen was a “cool one.”

But speaking on CNC3’s Crime Watch yesterday, Burton’s mother, Vanessa, said her son was hit in front her eyes on his way to get her breakfast. The Pro Sports Bar employee was videotaped running towards her son after he was hit and thrown under a nearby car. 

She said: “I saw him and I get a feeling and he come and ask me what happen and then he offered to buy me something to eat. He come back with two pies but I didn’t want that I wanted doubles so he went back and get it for me and while on his way back to bring it for me it happened.”

The distraught mother said she kept praying and encouraging her son to hold on every time she visited him at the hospital. 

She said she hoped there would now be a thorough investigation and her son’s death would not be swept under the carpet. 

In another fatal accident, motorcyclist Arnold Jones, who died after he was pinned beneath the wheels of a dump truck on Monday afternoon, was less than a mile from his home when he was killed.

Speaking with the media at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, yesterday, his friend and fellow biker, Peter Stewart, said Jones’ death had bikers from acrosss the country in mourning. 

He added that his 34-year-old friend only began riding about a year ago and did so for his job as a gardener. 

Stewart said his friend lived less than a mile from where he died.

“We (bikers) have to keep our eyes open and look out for each other. You could master the bike but you can’t master the road,” Stewart said. 

According to police reports, around 2 pm the driver of the truck, belonging to Sat Sais Company Limited, was heading south along Mausica Road when Jones lost control of the bike and slid beneath the truck’s tyres.

Former Petrotrin executives accused of paying themselves hefty pensions, performance bonuses and salaries to the tune of millions of dollars, must be investigated and charged if found guilty.

So said president general of the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union Ancel Roget as he called for a forensic audit into Petrotrin, following a media expose that Petrotrin was seeking to recover millions of dollars in unauthorised salary increases awarded retroactively to senior officials. 

During a press conference at OWTU’s Paramount Headquarters yesterday, Roget warned that the OWTU would rise up and take action if wrongdoers were not investigated and punished.

“We are not convinced that the board and minister are perusing aggressively those who are accused of wrong-doing. We had been raising those issues between 2010 and 2015 even as they continued to reorganise the company’s operations with no discussions from the union,” Roget said.

Saying the exposé was not surprising, Roget said the OWTU was hit with litigation for speaking out. Calling for a thorough investigation into corruption allegations, Roget added: “We believe these claims should be fully investigated.”

He also said a “full financial forensic audit into the financial operations of Petrotrin between 2010 to 2015,” must be done, adding: “Definitive steps must be taken to recover all the money that was paid out.”

Roget also condemned the officials for dipping into Petrotrin’s pension fund which was owned by the workers. He also called for a freeze on any extra pension allotment given to the accused officials until their names were cleared. Roget further said that some of the officials were still benefitting from free housing, electricity, water, cable and security even though they were no longer part of the company.

Officials respond

Meanwhile, a former official who requested anonymity sought to justify the hefty salary increases saying by 2012 the management (non-unionised staff) had not received adjustments for five years and higher scales unionised employees were being paid more than lower level management employees. He said in March 2012, the board approved a salary and grade schedule for some 200 members of management. The official said a salary increase was granted to former vice-president Kenneth Allum and former president Khalid Hassanali in their final months of service.

“This is not an uncommon practice at Petrotrin. It is generally designed to facilitate the enhancement of an employee’s pension benefits by granting an increase in the last month or year of employment depending on the employee’s pensionable service and performance and the length of time since the employee’s last salary increase,” the source said. 

He noted that a bonus to the president of up to six months base salary was an established Petrotrin policy and Hassanali’s salary was not finalised until May 2015 and applied retroactively to date of appointment as president in May 2012. The official also said none of the individuals gave themselves salary increases. 

“The increases for Allum and Hassanali were granted by the chairman, acting on authority given to him by the board. The vice-president of human resources and corporate services was required to sign off on these increases as an administrative requirement and to instruct payroll staff to implement the salary increases,” the source added.

Makandal Daaga’s words will still linger on among the elders of the National Joint Action Committee (NJAC) when he called on them to represent the soul of the movement.

“On you depends the survival of the movement. You safeguard its spiritual strength,” Daaga said.

The advice came from his book, Thoughts of Chief Servant Makandal Daaga, which was part of the shrine that was set up yesterday at NJAC’s office on Duke Street, Port-of-Spain.

Next to the shrine was a condolence book where scores of people were seen trickling in throughout the day to sign as part of their respects to a man, who most described as a “humble but yet powerful person.”

In his advice to the elders, Daaga said they ought to reflect all that was good... “all the movement is aspiring to. While others ponder how to achieve, you are the achievement reflecting the recovery of all that was lost. Be a light.

“Study how to bring peace to the warring spirits among us, without putting yourself up as a peacemaker. You have to be able to bear the test of time,” Daaga said.

Speaking to the T&T Guardian yesterday, NJAC’s deputy political leader, Embau Moheni, assured that NJAC leaders have vowed to continue Daaga’s dream of developing a united and enlightened population for the building of a strong nation.

Knowing and standing by the side of Daaga for the past 46 years, Moheni described Daaga as a humanitarian because he (Daaga) believed in the people.

“One of the essences of the movement that he built was that he always told us our motivation must be the love of the people. That is why his members and supporters were willing to make personal sacrifices in the interest of the people beyond imagination,” Moheni said.

He explained that Daaga’s NJAC was labelled incorrectly in the 70s as the Black Power Movement but was adamant to correct that “historical imposition,” saying that it was a movement for a new and just society in T&T.

“Yes, there was black power in the air in the United States and it was a strategy used here to label us the Black Movement in a bid to alienate NJAC from the other ethnic groups but during the demonstration in March 12, 1970, which Daaga led he made it clear it was a march to foster racial and gender unity and harmony,” Moheni said.

“All efforts were made to stop it from taking place because they started saying that we will go into the Indian communities and take over the businesses and rape the women and rob them but the response we got was far more fantastic. 

“We were welcomed by the Indian community in Caroni and Couva. The meeting went on so late that night that there were no transport to take us back to Port-of-Spain and the people in the community took us into their homes for the night. It was a growing support ever since,” he added.

Moheni said he believed that more needed to be done to enlighten the young people of the country.

“I am sure that the children do not know that Makandal in 1970 advocated that there must be a Caribbean exam for the people of the Caribbean and that is how CXC exams came about. 

“Also, pension benefits. Daaga was the first man to say that any government who cannot serve the people cannot exist,” he added.

Former Independent senator, Noble Khan, who also signed the condolence book yesterday, said he grew up with Daaga in the hills of Laventille and described him (Daaga) as a man with a strong personality.

“He was highly respected and a very pleasant person from my personal interactions with him. He displayed his strong personality well and I am fortunate to have known him and to have supported him throughout the years,” he said.

Daaga’s funeral will be held at the Grand Stand, Queen’s Park Savannah, on Saturday, from 9 am. 

At the end of the service, the cortege will proceed from the Savannah to the Lapeyrouse Cemetery for interment.

Kafra Kambon, head of the Emancipation Support Committee, one of Makandal Daaga’s right hand men during the 1970s Black Power revolution, first met him when he was president of the guild at the University of the West Indies (UWI) in the late 1960s.

Daaga, born Geddes Granger, was the son of a mechanic and a housewife of Laventille Road, Laventille, who placed a strong emphasis on education.

“Once Daaga took over the guild, students became more involved in the wider community.

“Students were encouraged to go into poorer communities like Laventille and give young people lessons and get involved with trade unions and civil groups,” Kambon recalled.

Tracing his experience with Daaga, Kambon said a protest by students at the Sir George Williams University of Canada against a racist professor in February 1969 triggered the formation of the National Joint Action Committee (NJAC).

Canada’s Governor General, Roland Michener, visited the UWI campuses which were supporting the protest in a bid to appease them but he never got past the St Augustine gate.

Daaga, Kambon and other students, including former government minister, Augustus Ramrekarsingh, blocked him, causing a major uproar in society.

“We met and formed NJAC that same evening. We put together a group of students, trade unionists and other stakeholders to deal with Canadian imperialism in the Caribbean and the situation at Sir George Williams University.

“We became immediately active, holding public meetings every night all over the country about racism home and abroad,” Kambon said.

NJAC joined the bus strike headed by former Transport and Industrial Workers Trade Union president, Clive Nunez, and Daaga and Kambon were arrested in May 1969 for blocking buses.

After that they continued to mobilise.

“Units of NJAC were built up in communities all over the country and by the time 1970 came around, we were well known and well entrenched. Of course, we were also absolutely hated by a section of society,” he recalled.

The famous Black Power march of February 1970 started almost innocently and quietly, Kambon said.

“A small group of 200 or 300 of us were planning to go and protest by the Canadian embassy on the day the students at the Canadian university were going on trial.

“We took the demonstration to RBC on Independence Square instead and the police came and expelled us from the bank.

“That changed the whole mood of the protest and, as we were crossing Independence Square, we went into a store owned by a Montano with our flags and came back out. Just to intimidate them,” he added.

Kambon said the Catholic church in Montreal had made racist remarks about the protesting students at Sir George Williams University and Daaga and his supporters reached the Catholic church on Independence Square, somebody said: “Man, let’s go in the church.”

They draped white statues in the church with black flags and preached from the pulpit.

“By the time we came out the church, thousands had joined us and shops were closing and workers were being sent home,” he added.

The next morning Daaga, Kambon and a few others were picked up by the police for desecration of a public place of worship, conspiracy to cause public riots and assaulting a police officer.

When they were released, NJAC, led by Daaga, described as a powerful speaker, held two months of intense demonstrations all over the country, joined by thousands of public servants and sugar workers.

“We held a march from Port-of-Spain to Caroni but it was when we decided to march from Caroni to Port-of-Spain the State decided to strike. They declared a state of emergency on April 21, 1970,” he said.

Daaga, Kambon, George Weekes and others were arrested the next day as political detainees and spent seven to eight months in prison.

Kambon, summing up Daaga’s contribution to T&T, said: “He had a significant influence on the major changes in the country in the 20th century, including the nationalisation of private entities.

“He made a serious dent in bridging the gap between Africans and Indians in T&T at the time and helped Afro-Trinidadians reaffirm their identity.

“There was also a resurgence of Indian culture after the 1970s revolution.”

Raffique Shah

Former leader of the army mutiny of 1970, Raffique Shah, first met Daaga in the Royal Gaol (renamed Port-of-Spain State Prison).

Daaga was arrested on April 21 when a state of emergency was declared after he and thousands of NJAC supporters staged a protest march.

Shah said the army mutiny, led by he and Rex la Salle, partly came out of that. “Rex and I were arrested on May 1, 1970,” he added.

He said he did not interact much with Daaga and his group since soldiering made that difficult.

“We met from time-to-time in the prison yard but never formed the kind of friendship where we would visit each other’s homes,” he said.

Giving his take on Daaga’s contribution to T&T, Shah said: “I give him credit for bringing some pride to Afro-Trinidadians.

“He also opened the doors for non-White, dark skinned people to get jobs in banks, with the cabin crew in BWIA and middle to upper level management in companies.”

As for bringing African and Indians together, albeit for a brief time, Shah said he was not sure that stemmed from Daaga alone since decisions were made collectively by others in his group, including Winston Lennard, George Weekes, Kafra Kambon and a lot of others.

He recalled the unity march from Port-of-Spain to Caroni on February 26, 1970 was under the banner, Africans and Indians Unite.

“NJAC has to take credit for reaching out to Indians too. There was a large response from sugar workers in particular, who united with NJAC.

“Others came out their homes during the march to Couva and applauded and gave water and fruit,” he added.

Shah said after Daaga came out of prison he became reclusive and NJAC became a shadow of itself.

Oil dollars were flowing and the Williams adminstration doled out generously to perceived political opponents in a successful bid to quell them, he said.

“When the 1986 general election came around, not one NJAC candidate got 1,000 votes.”

Shah said by the time Daaga went on the People’s Partnership platform in 2010, he was but a shadow of himself, due to age.

“He was 75 and no longer possessed his former oratorial skills. The PP appointed him a Caricom ambassador plenipotentiary but little is known about his activities in this sphere.”

Shah said he last saw Daaga in 2009 at the launch of a documentary on the Black Power Revolution at MovieTowne.

Sunity Maharaj

Media worker, Sunity Maharaj, wife of deceased Lloyd Best, who headed the Tapia House Movement which supported Black Power, said Daaga’s place in T&T’s history was assured.

“In one of the thresholds between political independence and real independence, he emerged as one of the leading figures.”

Daaga, she said, would be remembered for leading a movement to help black youths get an equal place in society and equal opportunities.

“There were many who came out of university in 1962 who really felt they would have gotten a place in society but that was not so,” she said.

She said Daaga helped raise, not just black, but national consciousness. “He made us all aware of discrimination on the basis of colour and race.”

She said his actions pushed the Williams government to change its policies and come out and mingle more with the people.

Dr Keith Rowley

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, who is in the US undergoing medical examinations, sent condolences to family, friends and colleagues on the passing of Daaga. 

Lauding Daaga’s contribution to T&T, he said: “Mr Daaga made his mark as a political activist in the 1970s as leader of the Black Power Movement. 

“He was not afraid to challenge the status quo, speak up against injustice and advocate for equality. 

“Even in the latter years of his life, he continued to be a presence on the political landscape of Trinidad and Tobago which, undoubtedly, attested to the fact that his interest in the development of our twin island state never waned. 

"I join the rest of the national community in mourning the loss of Mr Daaga and hold up his loved ones in prayer. May he rest in peace.”

In 2012, Rowley, at a public meeting, chastised Daaga for not speaking out against insufficient funding given to the Emancipation Support Committee for emancipation celebrations that year.

He said Daaga was silent because he was “eating ah food” in the then government.

He said Daaga’s biggest input into the People's Partnership government was the creation of the "absolute nonsense" Ministry of National Diversity and Social Integration”.

Several people associated with Daaga the T&T Guardian spoke to felt those statements did not mean Rowley did not respect Daaga.

Kambon said it may have been a political statement made in a certain context but did not necessarily mean that was how Rowley measured the whole man.

Kwasi Mutema, NJAC chief servant, said he felt one should rise above those statements at this point in time and Daaga himself would not have placed any importance on it.

Maxie Cuffie, Public Administration and Communications Minister, said: “A man is dead and the Prime Minister sent condolences.

“If he didn’t, they would ask why. This is not the kind of question the media should be asking at this time.”

Acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert has also offered condolences on the passing of Daaga.

“On behalf of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, I join with the national community in extending heartfelt condolences to the Daaga family in this time of grief.

“His leadership of the Black Power Movement in the 1970s brought about far- reaching change which have helped to shape the social and political reality of Trinidad and Tobago.”

With no money to buy food or books for their children, OAS workers turned on the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union yesterday, accusing senior union officials of using poor people to fulfil a political agenda.

The rancour occurred around 3 pm at the union’s Paramount Headquarters where chief labour relations officer, Lyndon Mendoza, informed the workers of the Government’s stance to withhold OAS performance bonds. 

The union had called for the bonds to be used to pay the workers’ outstanding wages, merit increases and severance pay.

Mendoza said two meetings were held with Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus on June 24 and July 1 but the OWTU was told that the bonds could not be released to pay the 1,200 OAS workers.

Calling for the workers to take mass protest action outside the National Infrastructure Development Company (Nidco) on August 18 when the union again meets with Baptiste-Primus, Mendoza said it was public knowledge that OAS had “abandoned ship.”

He added: “We got no resolution from the Labour Minister but another meeting is carded for August 18. 

“The minister has said that there is a bond that Nidco is holding but it cannot be used to pay outstanding matters. 

“That is an opinion we do not agree with. We need mass action to change that opinion,” Mendoza said. 

He also added that the OWTU was planning major protest action tomorrow in Port-of-Spain and he wanted the OAS workers to join in.

“While this action on Thursday is important, we do not want it to take away from our main objective on August 18, so each of you has to act as a messenger to get people out to support the struggle,” Mendoza said.

However, some of the workers became incensed.

“What will be achieve by going to Nidco. Ent Nidco has a boss. Why we don’t protest outside Rowley office? Not Nidco,” Akeil Matthews shouted. 

Asking what the union hoped to achieve, Matthews added: “We stand up with this union since OAS was here and we reach nowhere.” 

Steffon Cummings, who has been unemployed since January, said he was in danger of losing his home because he could no longer afford mortgage.

Michael Joseph said he took his 14-year-old daughter, Sheniqua, out of public school and enrolled her at ACE Academy private school to get quality education but he could no longer afford the fees since he lost his job.

“I looking for a job. I dropped in ten resumes yesterday. I want work but it’s nothing I could get. 

“Where is the union? They just using people,” Joseph shouted, before walking out. 

He later said that he had lost faith in the union which was using poor people to get political mileage.

Other workers also asked why Roget was not present at yesterday’s meeting. Mendoza assured that Roget would be present at the meeting on August 18. 

Contacted yesterday, Roget said he understood the workers’ frustration but assured the OWTU was doing everything possible to ensure outstanding salaries, merit increases and severance were paid.

“They have to understand that the union continues to do all that is necessary within the confines of the law. That is why we have to change the existing law so we have embarked on an active campaign to change the law and for this we need their support,” Roget said.

He added that people must understand all the issues and visibly put themselves in place to fight for their rights.

Two police officers who allegedly took money from a man to forego his arrest are expected to appear before a Princes Town Magistrate on Friday.

Police Constables Ramesh Ramlokhan and Davenand Bissoon were charged last week and appeared before Port-of-Spain Magistrate Alexander Prince on Friday. 

They were granted bail totally $50,000 and $100,000 bail respectively and their matters were transferred to the Princes Town Magistrates’ Court.

Both officers were charged with corruptly soliciting and receiving $1,200 from a Barrackpore man at his home on July 16.

Bissoon was slapped with a second offence of allegedly receiving another $1,200 bribe from the man on August 2.

It is alleged that the police officers went to the man’s Barrackpore home to arrest him on a warrant but took the money to forego his arrest.

Bissoon who has six years service and Ramlokhan who has 13 years service were subsequently arrested and charged by Cpl Joefield of the Professional Standard Bureau.

They were last attached to the Barrackpore Police Station. 

An initiative supported by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to engender a greater sense of patriotism and republicanism in the minds and attitudes of young people was launched officially yesterday.

The T&T Patriotic Song Competition will seek to reconnect and reinforce values among the youths, through music.

Born out of an idea by Rowley shortly after he assumed office last September, music consultant Junior Howell said: "At this point in time, we are trying to reconnect a disconnect among our youth in the area of aesthetic education."

Pointing out that music was a language understood by people of all ages and ethnicity, Howell said if attempts were not made now to bridge the gaps that existed in a respectful manner, "we are going to lose it."

Elaborating about the competition which is fully supported by the Ministry of Education, chairman of the T&T Patriotic Song Committee, Lennox Sirjuesingh, said it was a timely event as the nation got ready to celebrate 40 years as a republic.

Under the theme “For the Love of Country”, Sirjuesingh said the event, which was expected to become an annual fixture on the school calendar, would encourage students from the primary, secondary and tertiary levels to explore their creativity by composing original lyrics and music highlighting positive aspects of the country's development.

Although the committee is set to meet with the 48 contestants today to draw for positions, Sirjuesingh said they were optimistic efforts to attract corporate sponsorship would prove fruitful over the coming weeks.

Revealing that they were offering $117,000 in prize money but that they "don't even have $200 yet," Sirjuesingh said the initial budget to host the event had been adjusted downwards from $353,000 to $267,000.

Claiming they were overwhelmed by the response and types of compositions submitted, Sirjuesingh said the entire event would be held at the Rudranath Capildeo Learning Resource Centre, Mc Bean, Couva.

The preliminary competition will be held on September 6 with 25 competitors moving on to the semi-finals on September 12, of which 15 will move on to the finals on September 16.

On the issue of sustaining that initiative, Sirjuesingh said they would also be producing a CD and DVD which could be purchased by the corporate sector to be distributed as part of their Christmas goodie basket.

Suggestions have also been proffered for the music to be played on airwaves in public and private school transport.

Visual and Performing Arts Curriculum Officer, Ministry of Education, Paul Massy. said the competition would prove to be interesting as they had received submissions from students attending UWI, UTT and Costaatt at the tertiary level, with submissions from private, public and denominational primary schools. There were no submissions from Tobago.

The first place winner will receive $40,000 with the student's school being awarded $10,000; the second place winner will take home $20,000, with $5,000 being awarded to the respective school, and the third place winner will take home $10,000 with the school being awarded $3,000.

For the 12 unplaced finalists, Sirjuesingh said they would each receive a $2,000 appearance fee while the student who achieved best participant in the categories of primary, secondary and tertiary level will each receive $5,000.

The competition is open to soloists who must perform an original composition.

Each primary school is allowed two entrants, secondary schools three entrants and tertiary level institutions five entrants.

Students will be judged on lyrics (30 points); melody (30 points); arrangement (15 points); rendition (15 points) and presentation (10 points).

Contestants will be required to perform the song that they performed during all rounds of the competition.

Songs performed publicly on electronic media and for competitions prior to June 1 are not eligible for the competition.

Students who have received funding under the Government Assistance for Tuition Expenses (Gate) programme and failed to complete their course of study may soon be tracked down and asked to repay those monies.

This was the word from the director of the Ministry of Education’s Funding and Grants Administration Department, Teresa Davidson, yesterday, as she noted they had received approval from Cabinet for increased financial and human resources to be invested in order to restructure and improve the department’s operations.

Speaking at a press conference at the ministry’s St Clair head office, Davidson said: “Going forward in terms of trying to recover money, we will have to look at ways to verify the students in the database and their status.”

She said the drive could soon become a reality, noting that previously they were hampered by staffing problems. The increase in staffing, she said, would now allow them to investigate cases of students who had failed to meet their Gate contractual obligations by passing courses and initiate the fund recovery process.

Davidson said with the proposed changes, “we can put someone to work on it in terms of setting procedures on how that recovery can be done. 

“Within our database, we may have paid for three years for a student attending UWI but because we may not have collected data that this person has graduated, we are not sure.”

Davidson pointed out that if students did not meet performance standards, they were required to refund the money for the programme. “We have been collecting money from students over the years,” she explained.

She estimated that upwards of $70 million had so far been collected since 2006 and that the amounts collected had increased yearly, with close to $14 million collected last year. She said students continued to visit the department on a daily basis to repay monies.

But she added: “That’s one of the problems that we have to monitor right now. We can only monitor the students who come back seeking Gate. If you come back and try to access Gate for another programme, then we will not fund you if you cannot show proof that you have successfully completed the previous programme.”

“If, however, the students drop out of their programmes and are no longer in the system, they have no immediate way of tracking them and will now have to research the individual cases.”

Noting that funding was provided to both public and private institutions, Davidson said the latter were subjected to audits to ensure students met the stipulated requirements.

“If we find there are students who did not meet the requirements, the institution is billed and asked to refund monies spent,” Davidson said. She said prior to the current restructuring processes “Gate was very, very open.” She said one only needed proof of T&T nationality as there was no age limit.

But going forward she assured that students would not be allowed to abuse the programme, including pursuing more than one course through Gate. “At this point in time, students cannot be in more than one programme,” she added

On another issue, Davidson said the question of obligatory service for successful students who accessed Gate was also something which was still being worked out.

Education Minister Anthony Garcia also provided a list of areas in which Government had made significant financial contributions to education over the last five years.

These include:
Infrastructure: $2.7 billion.
Recurrent expenditure: $10.5 billion.
Gate: $3.2 billion.
HELP loans: $101,836 million.
Scholarships: $912 million.

Law student owing 
One student, who yesterday admitted to still being financially beholden to the Gate programme, was a first-time law student.

The 35-year-old woman successfully completed a two-year certificate programme at the UWI Open Campus more than five years ago, following which she was granted funding to pursue a Diploma in Law.

After failing two exams, the woman was told that she would have to pay $5,000 to re-write the two exams before she was allowed to continue on in the programme.

Additionally, she was advised if she was to pursue another course of study she would have to repay the outstanding sum to the Government before being allowed to apply for funding for other programmes.

The woman, who did not want to be identified, admitted she was one of the “bad pay” students who had failed to honour the requirement to repay the monies.