Parliament meets today for what is described as a mere formality, to confirm Justice Paula Mae-Weekes as this country’s sixth President.

There a sense of hope and anticipation of the country’s first female President. Senior criminal defence attorney Israel Khan SC said Weekes “subscribes to a very high standard, vis á vis the code of ethics of the legal profession, and she tolerates fools with quiet disapproval.”

Khan, who has known Weekes in a professional capacity for more than 30 years, said: “In her professional life as lawyer, judge and senior tutor, she has demonstrated that she possesses the necessary ability, merit and integrity in the performance of her duties. In my considered opinion, she will be an excellent President of the country. Fair and fearless.”

Weekes is a “no-nonsense person,” he said.

“If she is uncomfortable with untoward circumstances around her professional life, which she knows she cannot change, she will simply leave that environment. I say no more on this issue.”

Another senior legal practitioner Martin Daly SC described Weekes’ nomination as “an elegant stroke,” by Government. He said although at times the Rowley administration had appeared to be “vooping”, they finally seem to have “played a ball with the middle of the bat.”

Daily said Weekes “is not likely to suffer from judgeitis,” which describes how unaccustomed some judges are to the concept of accountability.

He said while he has no fear of Weekes’ transition to the presidency, this is not an easy time to be entering into high office given the state of things in the country.

“Where it is in her power to do so, in her own discretion she must make appointments without yielding to the traditional pressures of class and contact to appoint somebody’s relative or batch member for which they lack decorum, suitability or qualification and without due diligence checks,” he said

Former Independent Senator Diana Mahabir-Wyatt said the country’s first female President has “a good legal record, a good legal background and is a very calm, disciplined, steady person.”

“Our loss is the country’s gain.”

So said Anglican Bishop Claude Berkley about the nomination of Justice Paula-Mae Weekes as the sixth President of T&T.

In the local Anglican community, Weekes is known as a teacher, mentor and Chancellor, providing advice on canon law and helping guide and keep the church on course. This is a little-known side of the woman who will today be elected as the country’s sixth President.

Bishop Berkley said Weekes has been a member of the Anglican church all her life “and a very active one at that.”

Commenting on her nomination he said: “I think she would do a good job at whatever the job requires. We know she gets about her business and is not into frivolity. We expect her to do her very best and are elated that she has been selected.”

Berkley said Weekes served as Chancellor, the top legal officer in the Anglican Church, for 20 years.

“She has been guiding us in terms of the canon law of the church and she did a good job. We have benefited tremendously from her guidance.”

He said Weekes was also superintendent of the Sunday School at the All Saints Anglican Church where she assisted in guiding young people.

Weekes, who lectured in ethics at the Hugh Wooding Law School, also brought some of that expertise to the church through legal education for adults, Berkley said.

A gunman yesterday opened fire on the occupants of a car stuck in traffic along Duke Street during the lunch-time rush hour, killing a passenger and injuring another.

According to police reports, Luke Adams, 19 who was seated in the front passenger seat of a blue Mitsubishi Lancer was shot repeatedly around 11.30 am.

Police said CCTV footage showed Adams greeting his intended killer, who was standing at the corner of George and Duke Street shortly after the car left Mango Rose housing scheme.

After the car drove past George Street, the killer ran up to the car and began shooting through the back glass of the car. A man seated in the back seat was shot in the buttocks and Adams was hit several times in the upper body.

Both Adams and the injured back seat passenger, who was not identified by police, were taken to hospital. Adams was pronounced dead on arrival. The driver escaped uninjured.

In an attempt to escape the shooter, the driver crashed into a light pole on the corner of Duke and Charlotte Street. The gunman escaped after he ran into the compound of the George Street buildings.

An eyewitness to the shooting told the T&T Guardian she thought at first that someone’s tyre had blown out.

“It all happened so suddenly,” said the woman, who was driving through the area at the time. She described her harrowing experience as too close for comfort, since her vehicle was damaged in the incident.

“I just did not want to think that someone could be so uncaring to take out a gun and shoot on a crowded street.”

She said the victim was in a car that slammed into an electricity pole.

“I saw the young man. He was just gasping for his breath, then he took about two more and died.

“I did not see the gunman. I just know there was about six shots very close to me. It was so loud people were just screaming.”

The shooting took place near the Maraval taxi stand and many onlookers questioned if anywhere else was safe in the country.

Police said Adams was not known to be involved in criminal activity and they had no motive for the killing.

The midday killing in the city was reminiscent of similar incident two years ago.

On December 23, 2016, Sean Thomas, 33, of Francis Road, San Juan, was shot as he was stuck in traffic along Queen Street, Port-of-Spain. Two police vehicles on patrol, were stuck in traffic, behind and in front of Thomas’ vehicle. In that case, the shooter also escaped.

Killing at Aranguez Savannah

In an unrelated killing which took place Wednesday night, police are yet to ascertain a motive for Dave Babwah’s murder.

Police reported that around 8.30 pm, after the 37-year-old man was parked his white Mitsubishi Lancer, near the Aranguez Savannah he was shot dead.

The killing took place while there were people jogging and footballers using the savannah. The killer escaped.

Police said the dead man from El

Socorro south was not robbed.

In June 2015, his brother, Mickey Babwah, 37, of Parray Lane, El Socorro Extension, was shot dead near Chanka Trace.

In 2011, their father, Basdeo “Dragon” Babwah, 58, was shot dead in a guard booth, at Chanka Trace.

To date, 37 people have been

murdered this month.

T&T is expected to get its first female President today when the Electoral College, comprising 42 members of the House of Representatives including the Speaker and 31 members of the Senate, meets this afternoon.

The lone nominee for the position, Justice Paula-Mae Weekes, will not be in Parliament when the vote is taken.

This was confirmed by Parliament’s Corporate Communications Manager Jason Elcock who said the meeting of the Electoral College will be “a very staid exercise.”

“Not a whole lot of pomp and ceremony, and the nominee will not be present,” he said.

Although there is only one nominee, the Constitution requires that the Electoral College meet and declare a President. When it convenes, chairman of the proceedings House Speaker Bridgid Annisette-George will lay out events over the past weeks from the announcement of Government’s nomination of Weekes and the Opposition’s support for her nomination.

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar will deliver remarks, following which the Speaker will announce that in keeping with the rules of the Electoral College there is only one candidate and that person is duly elected.

The nomination process for the country’s new President closed on January 8. No nominations can be made today.

There are two things which could prevent the election of the President.

One scenario that could “potentially happen”, according to Elcock, “is that the nominee writes to the Speaker and indicates they no longer interested.”

The other is if there is no quorum. Under the Constitution, a quorum is ten senators, the Speaker and 12 members of the House of Representatives. It is highly unlikely that the required quorum will not be met since all Government and Opposition MPs as well as all senators are expected to attend.

Word from the UNC is that the only MP from the Opposition bench who will not be present is San Juan/Barataria MP Dr Fuad Khan.

There have been only two times on the five occasions the Electoral College had met that members were asked to vote by secret ballot.

In 1997, there were two nominees. The Opposition PNM nominated Justice Anthony Lucky, while the UNC Government’s nominee was Arthur NR Robinson who served for one term until March 2003.

In 2003, the then PNM government nominated Professor George Maxwell Richards and the UNC nominated Ganace Ramdial, the former Senate President.

Former presidents of T&T

• Ellis Emmanuel Innocent Clarke (September 24, 1976 – March 19, 1987)
• Noor Mohamed Hassanali (March 20, 1987 – March 17, 1997)
• Arthur Napoleon Raymond Robinson (March 18, 1997 – March 16, 2003)
• George Maxwell Richards (March 17, 2003 – March 18, 2013)

PAULA-MAE’S BIO

On February 1, 2017, Justice Paula-Mae Weekes was sworn in for a three-year term as a judge of the Turks and Caicos Islands Court of Appeal by Governor Dr John Freeman.

She is a former Justice of Appeal of the Judiciary of T&T where she served for 11 years until her retirement in 2016.

Weekes was appointed a puisne judge of the Supreme Court (criminal jurisdiction) in 1996 and presided there for nine years before being elevated to the Court of Appeal. Prior to her appointment to the bench, she served with the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions for 11 years and in private practice from 1993.

In August 2012, Weekes, as the most senior of the appellate judges in the jurisdiction, was appointed to act as Chief Justice following an accident in which then Acting CJ Wendell Kangaloo sustained serious injuries. CJ Ivor Archie was out of the country at the time.

Weekes, the fifth woman to be appointed a High Court judge in T&T, earned her LLB at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill, and Legal Education Certificate from the Hugh Wooding Law School.

Weekes is a trained and experienced judicial educator having become a fellow of the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute in 2000.

National cricketers Rayad Emrit and Imran Khan are the marquee players in this year’s Trinidad Muslim League (TML) 2018 Premier League windball cricket competition, sponsored by Oasis Water and Executive General Upholsterers.

At the recent franchise auction, a first in local cricket, SWAT Kingsmen retained the services of allrounder Emrit, a former national captain, and Khan, a spin bowler who is a key player in the national Red Force team.

The auction was staged on Sunday (January 14) at TML Conference Centre in St Joseph and among the attendees were president of the T&T Cricket Board Azim Bassarath, and cricket commentator Fazeer Mohammed.

Also present were the six franchise owners who were on hand to bid for star players from a pool of approximately 100 cricketers.

Defending champions of the TML Premier League tournament are Nur-e-Islam Executive Eagles. At stake this year is $8,000 for the winners, and $4,000 for the runners-up.

At Sunday’s function, Bassarath said that the TML was doing an exceptional job in involving Muslim cricketers in the sport and he looked forward to a very exciting and competitive tournament.

The local cricket chief said that as far as he was aware the franchise auction is the first of its kind in local cricket and mirrors similar bidding processes in the Caribbean Premier League and the IPL in India.

He said that the auction is a very complicated activity where there are many rules and regulations which must be complied with and he commended the TML team headed by Naim Khan for the hard work they have done in bringing the process to fruition.

TML Cricket bowls off tonight at 8.30 pm and the TML Grounds on Eastern Main Road, St Joseph.

Former national and West Indies batsman Daren Ganga will be on hand to deliver the feature address and open the tournament.

THE FRANCHISES:
• Rockhard Cement: Rockford United representing the San Juan area
• Eniath’s Printing Co Ltd: TML Enforcers representing the TML and St Joseph area
• Office R Us: Scorpions representing Santa Cruz and north Trinidad
• Atlantic Trading: ATCO Curepe Blazers representing Curepe
• Executive General Upholsterers: Nur-e-Islam Executive Eagles also representing San Juan/Aranguez
• SWAT: Kingsmen representing central Trinidad
 

A 31-year-old Las Lomas man was killed yesterday after he was stabbed once in the chest following an argument with a close female relative.

According to police reports, Dianand Dookie, of Madras Settlement, Las Lomas #1, was at home when he had an argument with a 29-year-old woman.

During the argument, the woman is alleged to have stabbed Dookie, once in the chest.

He was taken to the Chaguanas Health Facility where he died while being treated.

The woman is assisting police with their investigations.

Environmental activist group Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS) is accusing the Government of breaching an interim injunction stopping work on the controversial $400 million Churchill Roosevelt Highway Extension to Manzanilla.

Addressing an emergency press conference on the steps of the Hall of Justice in Port-of-Spain yesterday, FFOS secretary Gary Aboud claimed to have evidence of at least four breaches of the injunction, which was granted by High Court Judge Kevin Ramcharan on Tuesday.

Aboud claimed his lawyers felt the action constituted contempt of court and would file such proceedings when application for the substantive injunction comes up for hearing before Ramcharan, on Monday.

“We are not against any road or highway but don’t break the law and defy the court,” an emotional Aboud said.

Under the injunction, the Ministry of Works, the National Infrastructure Development Company (Nidco) and contractor Kallco were stopped from continuing work on the project save and except the construction of a temporary site office, the removal of already felled trees and surveying.

Video footage, which was purportedly recorded by the group between Thursday evening and yesterday morning and distributed to the media, appeared to show excavators digging trenches and clearing a portion of land.

“They are doing major earth works. They are cutting a myriad of drains, remodelling the land and levelling it because it is uneven land. This is a forest reserve,” Aboud claimed.

Aboud also claimed he had additional evidence of new trees being felled, minor natural drainage being diverted and heavy equipment being operated within the 120-metre buffer-zone between the proposed route and the environmentally protected Airpo Savannas forest reserve.

In response to the claims, Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan said he did not want to comment explicitly on Aboud’s allegations as the issue was before the court.

However, he stated: “In the injunction there was certain work that could continue. My information is that that is the work being undertaken at this point in time.”

In a press release issued after the injunction was granted on Tuesday, Nidco stated that it was confident that it had compiled with all statutory regulations before embarking on construction of the highway and disputed FFOS claims on the potential impact of the project.

Nidco’s lawyers had requested the variation of the temporary injunction to exclude the minor works as it claimed that it did not want to incur remobilisation fees from the contractor, which would apply if the project is stopped and restarted.

ABOUT THE LAWSUIT

In the lawsuit, the group is challenging the process used by the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) for granting a Certificate of Environmental Clearance (CEC) for first phase of the project between Cumuto and Guaico.

It is claiming that the process was procedural flawed and failed to consider alternative routes for the project, which would have less impact on the environment and existing communities.

It is questioning why the EMA took 10 days to publish the CEC in the national register after it was granted on June 22, last year.

The group is contending that the construction works, which commenced on January 8, will and has infringed on the Aripo Savannas forest reserve.

The Aripo Savannas is one of three locations across T&T that is designated an Environmentally Sensitive Area by the EMA.

The other two are the Matura National Park and Nariva Swamp.

According the EMA’s website the area is internationally renowned for its unusual flora and striking vegetation communities and is one of the more intensively studied natural ecosystems in Trinidad.

Attorney Sharma Boodram, son of deceased drug kingpin Nankissoon Boodram, aka Dole Chadee, was shot during an altercation with two men yesterday.

Police said that around 3 am, Boodram, 36, was sitting in a makeshift camp along Pascal Road, Piparo near his home.

He told police that two men approached him and following an argument, they began a scuffle. He told police that he heard a loud explosion and was shot in his abdomen. The men ran off, leaving him bleeding in the camp. Princes Town police responded along with an ambulance and Boodram was taken to the Princes Town District Health Facility where he was treated and transferred to the San Fernando General Hospital. He was reported to be in a stable condition up to late yesterday.

Sharma is currently before the Princes Town Magistrates’ Court for the 2015 charges of possession of a firearm, ammunition and one gramme of marijuana. He pleaded not guilty to all three charges. He was jointly charged with Venezuelan Ramon Small de Jesus for the firearm and ammunition offences.

De Jesus had pleaded guilty to the possession of a firearm and ammunition, saying that he had the weapon to protect himself from pirates at sea. He was sentenced to two years hard labour in jail and was scheduled for deportation following his incarceration.

Boodram’s father, Dole Chadee was one of Caribbean’s most notorious drug lords but was never convicted of drug-related offences. He along with eight members of his gang was executed by the State in January 1999 after they were convicted of murdering four members of the Baboolal family in Piparo five years earlier.

Stakeholders in Tobago say they want more answers on the ferry which the Government has purchased for the seabridge and which the Finance Minister Colm Imbert says will be here in April to add to the fleet which now exists.

President of the Tobago Chamber Demi John Cruickshank told the T&T Guardian that “while we are happy we getting another vessel, we have to make sure that the vessel is suitable. We need the specs and details about the vessel, so then we can comment properly.”

Imbert told the media at the post-Cabinet news conference on Thursday that the vessel will take just over four hours on the trip between Trinidad and Tobago. Cruickshank said the current “so-called fast ferries take four and a half hours. But we not sure if what we getting is a fast Catamaran.”

He is looking forward to getting answers to technical questions on the boat relating to “what it can do, how many knots it running at, we hoping that all these things can be answered.”

The ferry it seems was bought with the construction of a Port from Toco to Tobago in mind. Imbert said the trip would be one hour between the Port of Toco and the Port of Scarborough.

Cruickshank said “we would have to do the feasibility as to how effective it is to take that route.”

Some of the issues which will need to be addressed, he said, would be “the infrastructure, security, the traffic and time it will take to get from Port-of-Spain to Toco and the question of whether Government will be able to reassign government offices to the eastern end of the island.”

During an interview on Power 102FM yesterday Imbert said the government is “moving full speed ahead” with the Toco Ferry Port.

He said in the Prime Minister’s address to the nation “he made it very clear that upgrading the road to Toco is among the highest priorities of the Government.”

He estimated that “if everything goes according to plan we will have a ferry service between Toco and Tobago in three years.”

Meantime, former Transport Minister Devant Maharaj wrote another letter to the Chairman of the Integrity Commission Justice Melville Baird yesterday seeking answers again on the procurement of the process used by NIDCO to purchase the new inter-island ferry.

Maharaj said there is no clarity on how the Ministerial Committee, headed by Imbert, “identified an appropriate vessel” as the Minister described the discovery of the vessel as “happen-stance.”

Imbert said on Thursday that maritime experts from Hong Kong and Australia as well as UTT were used in the process, but Maharaj said there was no clarity on the process used to select those experts.

In addition, he said, the Government needs to clear the air on “who exactly are they paying for the vessel given that the vessel is owned by Sea Transport Corporation of Australia and was built at the Nansha Shipyard in Guangzhou, China for a ferry operator in Venezuela.”

It is critical, he said, that the Commission conducts its investigation before the purchase of the ferry is finalised or that it advises the Government to delay the purchase pending the outcome of the investigation by the Commission.

A 27-year-old interior decorator was charged with three offences of firearm possession after police claimed they found three revolvers hidden in a toilet tank at her San Fernando home yesterday.

Around 12.15 am, Southern Division Task Force executed a search warrant at the home of Sinead Kasha Maharaj, on Cedar Grove Road, Hermitage Village.

The officers, including Insp Don Gajadhar, Sgt Vishal Parasram, Cpl Dinton Dinoo, PC Hayden Dookie and PC Avidesh Narine scoured the house and found three firearms in a handbag, concealed in a toilet tank.

The revolvers were a Smith & Wesson .38 special revolver, a.357 Magnum revolver and a Taurus .38 special revolver. Maharaj, who was home at the time, was arrested and charged.

Planning Minister Camille Robinson-Regis has expressed pride in the election of retired Justice of Appeal Paula-Mae Weekes as this country’s first female president.

The Minister recalled Weekes was in a lower form than her at Bishop’s Anstey High School and noted that she portrayed the same personality now as back in school days.

“Then she was very straight-forward and has the same personality today,” Robinson-Regis said.Robinson-Regis recalled that many times she went up against Weekes at school debates.

“I have known her through high school life and she did law too so we were on the same campus…we were not friends but we were friendly. I am very happy and proud of her,” she said.Robinson-Regis said even on behalf of the PNM’s Women’s League there is a lot of excitement as the Government saw it necessary for a female president.

“This sends a positive signal to women and girls of T&T, similarly, as PM said when we had the first female PM, we were all excited of the mere fact that a woman has reached that stage.”

“It is clear that one of the things as T&T, as a country, it has never denied women access to education or any job and that is something commendable,” the Minister said.

Independent Senator, David Small said he was very happy to be part of history-making and added that the magnitude of this decision will show up in years to come.

T&T’s first female prime minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar said she could not wait to address Weekes as “Madame President.”

The grieving father of a a teenaged murder victim said yesterday that he relocated his family from Laventille in an attempt top spare them from the gun and gang violence in the community.

But he said the stubbornness of his 19-year-old son, Luke Adams, led to his death.

Adams who was seated in the front passenger seat of a blue Mitsubishi Lancer was shot repeatedly around 11.30 am by a gunman who ran after the vehicle which was stuck in traffic on the busy Duke Street close to midday. Another occupant in the car was injured in the shooting and the killer escaped.

Speaking with the media at the Forensic Science Centre, St James yesterday, Bertram Adams said his third of seven children failed adhere to his warnings not to venture into Port-of-Spain and paid with his life for his stubbornness.

He said he had relocated the family to Pleasantville, in San Fernando two years ago to protect them.

But his son moved back to the city after he became an adult.

“I do more than warn him, I actually went myself in these areas to try and get him out. Men pull gun for me and ask me who is me. When I say Luke father they say well you don’t come in here just so. That was the ultimate. That was a couple months ago. I talk to him every time I see him. Everyone talk to him, his aunt, the grandmother, boy everyone talk to him. Everyone liked him, but he just wanted to do what he want and what he felt was right. And that was a major problem.”

The Adams family moved from their Desperlie Crescent, Laventille home to Pleasantville two years ago.

Since then, Luke would leave his southern home, which he found to be “too slow and dead” and spend days with friends in Nelson Street and then more recently at Mango Rose, off Piccadilly Street.

The two areas, separated by the East Dry River and Duncan Street, are at war with each other.

Police suspect that Adams was killed for being deemed a traitor after leaving one area to stay in another. His father said his girlfriend lived at Mango Rose and he too believed his son’s switch in residence led to his death.

“I speak to him more than 1,000 times, I do all kind of thing, I pull the devil by the tail and all to try to get him to settle down at home, and stay away from Mango Rose. And he’s not a stupid guy. I believed that he understood the nature of life. Because he grow up in Desperlie Crescent where you hear the gunshots every day,” Adams said.

He said he taught his son and his siblings from young to lay on the floor when they heard gunshots and not move until the bullets stopped.

Adams is the second son of his mother to be murdered. On October 27, 2016, at a house at Enterprise, Chaguanas, Keron “Panther” James was gunned down.

Attorney General Faris Al Rawi is expected to give a “fulsome” response in writing to the Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar on her request for a meeting with Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley with respect to the Anti-Gang legislation.

Al Rawi was responding to Persad-Bissessar’s complaint that since she has sent the letter she is yet to be given a response, even as much less, an acknowledgement.“I am disturbed in having seen reports and watch an expose on National Geographic of the Isis fighters from T&T. This is a very urgent matter and we have nothing in place, no law in place, in addition, to the Anti-Gang legislation I have asked that we consider two pieces of legislation, two Bills - yet we have no law in place,” Persad-Bissessar said.The Opposition Leader called for a meeting between Government and Opposition aimed at a “bipartisan legislative approach in the fight against crime and the criminal element” and suggested they start with the Anti-Gang Bill and the Anti-Terrorism Amendment Bill.In similar nature to the collaborative effort her party had with the Government in electing the country’s first female President, Persad-Bissessar said there should be the same level of collaborative effort with respect to the two Bills.

“Look how wonderful it turned out today (yesterday and referring to the Electoral College of the Parliament)…that is what the country needs again with these two pieces of legislation.”

However, Planning Minister Camille Robinson-Regis, in an immediate response to the Opposition Leader’s letter said the PM have asked the Attorney General to respond “in its entirety.”

She stressed on the fact that on many occasions they have met with the Opposition on several issues over the past two years and said that they are left in awe that when those said issues are brought to the Parliament floor there is “an about turn” by the Opposition. “That is why a fulsome response is better for us to put everything in writing,” Robinson-Regis said.

Al Rawi said that too many times T&T has witnessed a “he say, she say” between political parties and because of that reason the government has now adopted the approach to put its position in writing, “to avoid that…there can be no debate. The approach is in a measured way and we will respond in a fulsome way and treat with full transparency in the public’s eye.”

With respect to the disagreement on the sunset clause, Al Rawi did not say whether or not the period could be negotiated but did recognise the fact other stakeholders input, including the T&T Police Service wanted a longer period.

During the consideration of the Bill, several issues were discussed and compromises reached. In fact, the inclusion of a sunset clause as a proposed Government amendment was a result of the initiative of the Prime Minister. The question on the inclusion of a sunset clause for a period of four years was suggested by the Government, however, the Opposition disagreed saying that it wanted a shorter period, of two years.

MORE INFO

On December 7, the Bill failed to get the required three-fifths majority. Although 21 Government MPs supported the legislation, 12 Opposition MP’s voted against it and there was one abstention.

The Anti-Gang Bill 2017 seeks to maintain public safety and order by discouraging membership n criminal gangs, suppressing criminal gang activity and other related matters. It makes it an offence to be a member of a gang, be in possession of a bullet-proof vest, participate in, or contribute to, gang activities, support or invite support for a gang, or harbour or conceal gang members, or recruit persons to a gang.

A 27-year-old taxi driver was killed in an accident on Thursday night, shortly after dropping off passengers, near La Joya Complex, in St Joseph.

According to police reports, around 11.50 pm Prakash Roopia, of Beebakhee Avenue, Curepe was heading east along the Eastern Main Road, St Joseph when he crashed into a wall off the west bound lanes.

Roopia was thrown from the vehicle and died on the spot.

Speaking briefly with the T&T Guardian at the Forensic Science Centre, St James yesterday, Roopia’s father said his son had moments before gotten a job to drop off passengers and was on his way back home when he died.

Roopia is the third person to die as a result of a road traffic accident for the year.

A San Fernando mason was granted $175,000 bail when he appeared before a San Fernando magistrate yesterday, charged with the unlawful killing of Asaf Khan.

Richard Dillon, aka Ricky Jai, 35, appeared before Gloria Jasmath at the Madinah Building yesterday, mere hours after the Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, Joan Honore-Paul, gave directions to charge him with manslaughter.

The charge stemmed from an altercation between Dillon and Khan over a financial debt on December 23, 2017, at a bar in Golconda. It was alleged that Dillion slapped Khan in the face. Khan then fell to the ground and injured his head.

Khan, 52, of Diamond Village, was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where he died on Christmas Day.

CHARLES KONG SOO

Union leaders say workers are not to be blamed for the low productivity in the work force.

President of the Banking, Insurance and General Workers Union (BIGWU) Vincent Cabrera, Leader of the Movement for Social Justice (MSJ) David Abdulah and Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus spoke to the Sunday Guardian about what trade unions and the Government can do to engage workers to be more productive in a declining period.

BIGWU

Cabrera said he did not believe that workers' attendance rates are to blame for the lack or fall in productivity in the economy.

"When a businessman in particular talks about productivity, he's speaking about labour productivity. There is something called capital productivity. Is anyone talking about whether the level of capital productivity in T&T is at an optimal and acceptable level? Think tanks and universities are not looking at labour and capital productivity again; they're looking at Total Factor Productivity (TFP)."

TFP is the measure of the output of an industry or economy relative to the size of all of its primary factor inputs. Increases in TFP result usually from technological innovations or improvements.

He said the country cannot develop a culture of work if management was absent or missing and then blamed workers when they came late if there was no management system in place.

Cabrera said the Public Service was vilified, most of the people the public came into contact with were "green" or very entry-grade public servants. He said the really well-trained people working hard behind the scenes, right up to the position of Permanent Secretary, are not usually seen by the public.

David Abdulah

Abdulah, former Chief Education & Research Officer and General Secretary of the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union and former president of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions and NGOs, said the party's position was that the issue of work and productivity were not simply the responsibility of trade unions or workers alone.

He said national discussions were needed about a whole range of matters that had an impact on work productivity.

Abdulah said some of the challenges to workers' ability to get to work on time included traffic and transport problems, crime and security, lack of water had nothing to do with trade unions or workers.

He said what also had to be discussed was transforming the culture of the country in terms of having a sense of responsibility which had to start at the top where leaders take no responsibility for matters that take place.

Abdulah said if a person going to work does not feel his labour, input and ideas were deemed valuable and respected, it will impact on the effort he puts in.

He said the education system was also not producing outcomes to the demands of the labour market as it was disappointing for university graduates to be cashing in fast food restaurants because they can't get jobs to suit their qualifications.

Labour Minister

Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus said that it was a very important issue which must be addressed by all parties.

She said the relevant forum to discuss was at the level of the National Tripartite Advisory Council (NTAC) and the council had already begun to address the issue.

Running alongside the Valencia Bypass Road there is a fence constructed by the State that separates the roadway and the public from the environmentally sensitive Aripo Savannas Scientific Reserve.

On that fence, however, there is a gate that leads directly into the prohibited scientific reserve toward a wooden blue house.

When photographer Abraham Diaz and I approached the gate on Friday, it was locked.

After calling for a bit, a shirtless gentleman walked to the gate and spoke to us.

We explained that we were from the newspaper and were doing a story focusing on the area.

The Aripo Savannas came to the national fore earlier this week after conservation group Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS) showed photos of large swathes of land within the protected area being bulldozed in preparation for construction works on an extension to the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway from Cumuto to Sangre Grande.

FFOS accused Government of breaching an interim injunction stopping work on the $400 million highway.

The man at the gate, who identified himself as 44-year-old Anthony Dean, unlocked the padlock, removed the chain from the gate and let us in.

Dean said the gate was locked because people had a habit of coming on to the property and stealing his produce.

Dean is a farmer on the protected land.

He carried us to the back of his house where he showed us his crops.

Among the things being grown were bodi, peas, lemons and limes.

Dean said he grew up nearby and began squatting in the prohibited area because he could not find a job and had a wife to take care of.

Also farming on the land was 62-year-old Stephenson Alexander.

Alexander also had a house nearby.

He too said he was driven to the area because of a lack of employment.

Alexander said when he came to the area it was already destroyed by loggers and he simply made use of the affected area.

"We are making use of the area and we are putting food on people's tables and we are doing so without encroaching further into the protect area," Alexander said.

Alexander pointed to the marsh forest surrounding the crops as evidence.

"What we are doing may be unlawful but we are not lawless, there's a difference. Yes, we are not supposed to be here but we are not doing anything to harm anybody, we are working hard," Alexander said.

Damage irreversible

According to the Environmental Management Authority (EMA), the land is unsuitable for agriculture because of its low fertility. Alexander, however, said his produce flies in the face of that argument.

"The land gives you back what you put in and we keep proving that time and time again," Alexander said.

According to the EMA's resource management plan for the Aripo Savannas, one of the "critical threats" to the long-term viability of the area is the "incremental loss of habitat to agricultural and residential squatting".

"With regard to the former, agricultural squatting farmers remove the native vegetation and grow short term vegetable crops. These types of habitat transformation have to date been confined to the northern, western and eastern edges of the protected area," the EMA report states.

The EMA said it has had some success in slowing down the rate of new squatting in the area however, "from an ecological standpoint the changes which have already taken place are largely irreversible".

Dean said when the bypass road was being constructed some of the other people who were squatting in the savannas were relocated.

He and Alexander remained because of their crops.

"Apart from the loss of the native vegetation and wildlife habitat from sites which have been transformed by squatting, there are several issues associated with farming and residential use of lands within the protected area," the EMA report stated.

In 2003, it was estimated that approximately 375 hectares of land within the savannas is squatted upon.

This includes 150 hectares at Turure, 200 hectares at Kangalee and 25 hectares at Cumuto.

However, as late as April 2006, members of the Aripo Savannas Stakeholder Management Committee (ASSMC) noted increased squatting in the northern and southern boundaries of the proposed environmentally sensitive area.

"Despite successful legal action in 1998 against 42 squatters, no action has been taken and the problem remains. The Land Settlement Agency (LSA) is working with the ASSMC and Forestry Division to address this situation but as it remains unresolved," the EMA stated in its Literature Review—Aripo Savannas Environmentally Sensitive Area.

"Despite the fact that land capability studies indicate that the area is unsuitable for agriculture especially because of its extremely low fertility, land clearance in the proposed ASESA for short-term agriculture and animal husbandry continues. In 1966, a pig farming project on 60 hectares in the southern sector of the proposed ASESA was initiated. However, it was stopped after public criticism," it stated.

Living in the protected area over 30 years

Agriculture squatting is not the only issue that the Aripo area is faced with.

There are also residential squatters in the area.

One of the squatters closer to the Sangre Grande section of the savannas has a four-bedroom concrete house.

When the Sunday Guardian spoke to one of the occupants of that house he said the family had been living in the protected area for over 30 years.

He was born there.

Preferring not to reveal his identity the man said because his family's home was close to the periphery of the savannas he felt they were not doing any harm.

"We do not bother any one, my family came here years before I was born and we have always cared for the area," he said.

In between the signs stating that "squatting, hunting and trespassing" on the Aripo Savannas are prohibited several houses built have been built.

One of those house was built from discarded wooden signs advertising long gone parties.

The squatters do not believe that they are a threat to the area.

On the Cumuto side of the reserve there is a street with some four houses.

"I understand the need for protecting the environment, but I also understand that there is a need for progress, for people to live and even for a highway to help people get home and back," he said.

ENVIORNMENTALLY SENSITIVE AREA

The Aripo Savannas, located in east-central Trinidad, represents the largest remaining natural savannas ecosystem with endemic flora in T&T. As such, it takes on special significance. It is also an outstanding representation of a naturally occurring marsh formation consisting of marsh forest, palm-marsh and savannas. It provides a habitat for a number of the country’s rare and threatened species of plants and animals.

In 1980, the Government, in association with the OAS, developed the Systems Plan of National Parks and other Protected Areas. In this plan, the Aripo Savannas was identified as an area to be designated as a Scientific Reserve, as it was the major remaining natural savannas in the country and supported a unique assemblage of flora. In 1987, the Aripo Savannas was declared a Prohibited Area under Legal Notice #113 of 1987 so designated under the Forests Act. Later, in 2004, the EMA began the process of designating the Aripo Savannas as an Environmentally Sensitive Area. In June 2007 the Aripo Savannas was declared an Environmentally Sensitive Area. It was designated as a Strict Nature Reserve because it is one of the areas in T&T with high scientific value, as it is the best remaining example of the types of ecosystems found within its boundaries. This designation makes the area eligible for special protection and management under the laws of T&T.

Angela Lee Loy, Keston Nancoo and Richard P Young participated in a conversation about productivity with a former trade unionist "who is professional, open and candid," in an attempt to better understand the underlying causes of this distinguishing feature of our work ethic in T&T.

They refer to low productivity in our work force which manifests itself in high levels of absenteeism. "As we seek investors to “set up shop” here as one of the country's initiative to diversify from energy by the creation of jobs and to also earn the much-needed foreign exchange, we have to ensure that our work force is prepared to work and be productive and that “scourge” of absenteeism is removed."

They connected with a business which suffers from an absenteeism rate of over 40 per cent and has to overstaff by 10 per cent to ensure the stores open and at times they still cannot open a store because of the no-show by staff. They were also told by a business colleague in the hospitality sector that they suffered badly by the no-show of staff over the recent Christmas season.

"This phenomenon of low productivity driven by high levels of absenteeism really baffles us because we logically assumed that our population has finally realised that the country has lost over 90 per cent of its energy revenue and the signs of economic challenges are very clear and apparent, so the work force will hold on to their jobs dearly. But, maybe we are wrong. A significant portion of our work force do not arrive to work on time, and, if indeed, they show up to work, the provision of eight hours of daily work is fast becoming a thing of the past," they said.

The former trade unionist proffered what he considered to be the major contributing factors for the low productivity:

•It is deeply rooted in culture and there is an absence of a shared national vision so we work, but towards what end?

•Relative to the previous comment, there is also the loss of confidence and trust in our elites which leads to an absence of hope.

•There are deep divisions and growing polarisation—race, religion, geography, gender, age, wealth and income.

•The manager does not show up to work on time and projects that as a perk of the job where he/she does not have to come to work on time. We interpreted that to be a challenge of leadership and the inability of many “to walk the talk”.

•The infrastructure of our country, both physical and social are not enabling. Crime is at the top of the list and is a contributing factor to absenteeism; traffic could mean spending an average of over four hours a day commuting to and from work, which is not an enabler. Lack or absence of water is deemed to be a disabler. The absence of family support as mothers can't leave their children at home unattended if the help does not show up. In a sense, there is a vicious cycle.

•There should be some form of child care at the workplace so parents can focus on their jobs without worrying about their children after school. Some form of transport facility/subsidy should be offered.

•Process and procedures in the business may be archaic or old school, leading to inefficiency. This is more pronounced in government ministries and many state enterprises.

•There is a lack of proper and adequate training that is aligned to the needs of the society.

'Lackadaisical attitude towards work'

"While we understand the reasons being suggested, we believe there is a lackadaisical attitude towards work by a large segment of our population in that we generally do not like work and, if we can produce the minimal to get by, we will do so. There is an absence of “hunger” to work. We do not understand that we should work for a minimum of eight hours a day. We do not understand that it is not proper to be paid for eight hours a day but work less.

"We also have a segment of our society who do not want to work and believe the State must provide. Government after government perpetuates the dependency culture. One just has to look at the “Job Vacancies” section to confirm this point.

"Time and time again, we hear business people state that they cannot find staff. We are mindful that some employers as a policy pay the minimum so as to maximise their profits, referred to as exploitation. We would venture though to say that if a productive staff is identified, the smart employer would improve the compensation to retain and engage the productive staff."

The people behind the conversation

Angela Lee Loy is the president of the T&T Coalition of Services Industries is Partner of Aegis & Co, external audit company.

Keston Nancoo is chairman of the Employers' Consultative Association and the vice-president of human resources at Guardian Holdings Ltd.

Richard Young is chairman of the T&T International Financial Centre is a chartered accountant and his career comprises the highest leadership levels in accounting, auditing, insurance and banking.

The conversation on poor work ethic in T&T continues next week

Staff at the University of T&T (UTT) have started clearing their desks as management gets ready for its retrenchment process by month’s end, just ten days away.

287 members of staff, including academics, are expected to be sent home. When this exercise is completed, it is expected to save the university approximately $41.5 million.

The Sunday Guardian understands that on January 15, in a letter signed by UTT’s President Sarim Al-Zubaidy, he sought to update staff on the restructuring.

In the letter, he stated that on January 11, the separation proposal was submitted to the Recognised Majority Union, the Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU), as well as the Ministry of Education. “We are currently awaiting feedback from both entities,” Al-Zubaidy stated.

A UTT source said staffers remain "very concerned and scared of what the future holds".

"It is very grim, with this list of 287 to go home, some of them have already cleaned up their desks and just waiting on letters now...it is very frightening."

When contacted yesterday, OWTU’s 2nd vice president Sati-Gajadhar Inniss confirmed that the union received a proposal from Al-Zubaidy.

“We are now carefully reviewing the UTT’s proposal and as such, we have replied informing them an extension of time is required to review and submit a cogent response to both themselves and the ministry,” Inniss said.

The cost saving from the last restructuring exercise which involved academics staff has been estimated at $35.5 million, while the upcoming retrenchment will save an estimated $41.5 million.

"But he is saying a further sum of $20 million as an additional proposal in further reduction of staff…" Inniss added.

"So, who is going to run the administrative aspect of the university?”

She believes the aim is to break workers’ tenure of employment but assured that the union will “do everything within the law” to protect workers.

“We will ensure that even whatever they do, and they can also do things untimely, that we will do everything within the law to protect workers.”

Some people have been working at UTT on contract for the past ten years or more.

It is believed that UTT is moving to have workers sent home before the scheduled March 2018 court date, where workers are seeking regularisation to become permanent members of staff.

Inniss said in December 2016 they requested information about the department sin the university’s structure, each position that exists and the name of the person in that post. They only received that information on January 11, 2018.

Attempts to contact the vice chairman Prof Clement Imbert were unsuccessful.

Roget: We will be responding to Education Minister

OWTU head Ancel Roget said they will be responding directly to Education Minister Anthony Garcia, because he has been presiding at all meetings between the union and UTT. “Indeed, they have intentions of retrenching over 200 workers.”

He also admitted that UTT’s management and the Board have not been providing all the information requested for them to make sense of what they are trying to do at the university.

“If UTT is going to have retrenchment letters sent out they would be acting so in bad faith as we are still in discussions. If they are in violation of instructions from the minister and good industrial relations practice, we will have a problem with that,” Roget said.

More info

For the past several months, UTT has been seeing “hard times” including the cutting of staff—both managerial and academic, the discontinuation of programmes and the late delivery of salaries to staff.

On November 1, 2017, UTT’s Chairman of the Board of Governors Prof Kenneth Julien announced that UTT will not be able to continue operations beyond January 2018.

He also noted that effective November 10, there was expected to be significant job cuts at the managerial and academic levels. Julien said this was a result of severe financial constraints over the past year.

UTT recorded a deficit of $33 million in November 2017 while its reserves currently stand at $2 million.

Meanwhile, $323,059,056 of the university's “unspent funds” have been transferred to the UTT's Signature Building Complex project at Tamana InTech Park.

The State's land acquisition process has long been a source of concern due to overpayment for private lands and should be an item of priority for this country’s first ever Board of the Office of Procurement (OPR). The board was installed by President Anthony Carmona on January 12.

This was the advice from past president of the Joint Consultative Council (JCC) and chartered surveyor Afra Raymond.

He believes that the OPR should look into the acquisition process as the new Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property Act comes into operation.

“The OPR needs to develop strong rules within the regulations for this new system to prevent the abuses of the past,” Raymond said as he directed his advice to the OPR chairman, Moonilal Lalchan.

“The OPR now has to move rapidly to establish the regulations and administrative arrangements so that this new system can start functioning.”

Based on the “good collaboration” he had with Lalchan in the past as chairman of the T&T Chamber of Industry and Commerce, Raymond said he expected him to “provide solid leadership of this important new public institution which is responsible for overseeing all transactions in public monies”.

Raymond said dishonest professionals who endorse fraudulent claims should be reported to their professional bodies, their insurers and the police.

“We need to go beyond sound bites and get to taking decisive action on these matters of professional misconduct. Not one of those many scandalous cases of grand corruption could have happened without the connivance of crooked professionals who were active participants in the fraud. We have to rusticate these people from our midst if we are ever to regain control of this situation,” Raymond said.

He suggested that the best impact of the new system will be that the role of Cabinet in the contract award process “be greatly reduced, if not entirely eliminated”.

“That will be a great step forward as the actual responsibility for these spending decisions will be properly concentrated,” Raymond said.

“Finally, I do not expect a recurrence of the Kallco situation, in which a company being sued by the State was awarded a large contract at the same time. Those detrimental silos will now be a thing of the past, as the new system allows for cross-disbarment so that infractions in one state agency can have the effect of disqualifying those contractors or suppliers in all state agencies.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said last Tuesday during the JCC’s breakfast meeting that while these new arrangements should bring about a new way of doing business and such new approaches should see benefits such as better transparency, value for money and a reduction in corruption, “it would be naïve to believe that this law will be the panacea which will solve all our contracting and related problems”.

“In fact it comes with significant risks if there is not a societal abhorrence of the widespread corruption as a way of life and favours as an entitlement,” he added.