Construction on the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway extension to Manzanilla has again been halted through a legal challenge by environmental activist group Fishermen and Friends of the Sea (FFOS).

Appellate judges Rajendra Narine, Prakash Moosai and Charmaine Pemberton yesterday granted the group a temporary injunction stopping the construction as they gave them the green light to lodge their final appeal over the dismissal of its lawsuit with the Privy Council.

The judges ruled that the group’s case over the decision of the Environmental Management Authority (EMA) to grant a Certificate of Environmental Clearance (CEC) for the project had a realistic prospect of success.

They said that the injunction was necessary as the potential damage to the protected Aripo Savannas forest reserve which borders the site would be irreparable.

The court’s decision was landmark victory for the group as the court does not usually order injunctions pending appeal in cases where State infrastructure projects have reached an advanced stage as environmental activists groups cannot guarantee compensation for third party liabilities in the even that they eventually lose their legal challenges.

The court ruled that the group could not be expected to give an undertaking in damages as it was a non-profit organisation that was seeking the public’s interest in ensuring a environmentally sensitive area is protected.

Environmentalist Dr Wayne Kublalsingh’s Highway Re-Route Movement was blanked a similar injunction in its fight against the Debe to Mon Desir segment of the Point Fortin Highway, which is yet to be completed.

The group planned to seek an expedited appeal once its documents are filed with the United Kingdom court.

The group is challenging two successive decisions by the High Court and Court of Appeal to strike out its lawsuit, in which it was challenging the process used by the EMA to grant the ministry a Certificate of Environmental Clearance (CEC) for the first phase between Cumuto and Guaico.

The group is claiming that the proposed route infringes on the forest reserve, which was declared an environmentally sensitive area by the EMA in 2007.

Both courts ruled that the case was filed outside the three month statutory limit.

While FFOS was required to file the lawsuit three months after the EMA granted the ministry the CEC on June 22, last year, it filed it exactly three months after it learned of the decision on July 6.

The Court of Appeal also agreed with High Court judge Kevin Ramcharan the 14 grounds raised by the group in its judicial review lawsuit are devoid of merit.

In addition to the appeal, the group filed a separate direct private party action with the Environmental Commission, last week.

Under the action, the group is calling upon the EMA to respond to alleged breaches of the CEC which occurred while the lawsuit is ongoing.

If it does not receive a satisfactory response within 60 days, the group may then pursue its action before the commission, which has the jurisdiction to hear legal challenges of the enforcement of the instruments and policies introduced by the Environmental Management Act 2000, including CECs.

The group is being represented by Anand Ramlogan, SC, Jayanti Lutchmedial, Alvin Pariagsingh, Ganesh Saroop and Robert Abdool-Mitchell. The Ministry of Works was represented by Ian Benjamin, while Deborah Peake, SC, and Ravi Heffes-Doon represented the EMA. Contractor Kallco was represented by Dougas Mendes, SC, and Devesh Maharaj.

The South West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) has apologised to three police officers who were reportedly refused medical attention at the Couva District Health Facility.

The SWRHA was responding to an article published in this newspaper on April 20 about three officers, dressed in police uniform, who went to the health facility after receiving minor injuries during the arrest of two men.

However, WPC Anisa Ali, PC Kevon Vialva and PC Mark Ramkalwan, attached to the Couva Police claimed they were refused treatment because they did not have a medical card.

In a press release yesterday, the SWRHA stated that it was currently engaged in discussions with the officers at the Couva Police Station to finalise the report on the investigation and appropriate action will be taken.

The SWRHA sought to assure the public that it is not the authority’s policy to deny access to any client seeking medical attention at any of their healthcare facilities.

The release stated, “On Sunday, 15th April, 2018, at approximately 3.40 am three police officers accessed healthcare services at the Couva District Health Facility’s Emergency Department. As is customary, at the start of the triage process, especially for repeat clients, staff inquired the purpose of the visit and whether or not one of the officers had an Emergency Department Registration Card. It has been and continues to be our practice that all clients accessing healthcare at any of our facilities, especially emergency care, receive the best clinical care as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, the police officers left prior to completing the triage process. As a result, we wish to extend an apology to the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service, as well as the three police officers for any misunderstanding and inconvenience caused as a result.”

The SWRHA reaffirmed its commitment to the continued provision of healthcare to the population of the South-West Region.

Rachael Sukhdeo, the widow of murdered Central car dealer Sheron Sukhdeo, was arrested by police at her business place, Sheron’s Auto, along the Caroni Savannah Road in Charlieville, Chaguanas, yesterday. This was confirmed by senior police officers at the Central Division.

According to an eyewitness, at about 4 pm a bailiff and a party of police Central Division officers went to the car lot on inquiries about one of vehicles up for sale.

But Sukhdeo, 31, questioned the authenticity of the documents shown to her and became annoyed. She allegedly then used abusive language towards the police as relatives and workers looked on. The police reportedly attempted to calm her down, but she her behaviour persisted and she was arrested for obscene language and disorderly behaviour.

The T&T Guardian was told someone had previously sold a vehicle to Sheron which was mortgaged to a bank. It is believed the bank was due to seize the vehicle over non-payments of a loan and on inquiries realised it was sold to Sheron’s Auto.

A close relative who wished not to be identified, yesterday told the T&T Guardian that since her husband’s murder Sukhdeo has been under a lot of stress.

“She cares for her two children but she is going through more than we could ever imagine and we think that this was just not a good time for the police to come around. She is still in mourning for her husband and is extremely depressed. She needs professional help because she cannot deal with things in the way it has to be dealt with,” the relative said.

Up to press time she was still at the Chaguanas Police Station.

Police, however, dispelled rumours that she was arrested in connection to her husband’s killing. Sheron, 33, was killed in a drive-by shooting on March 26 while at his mother-in-law’s home in Charlieville.

Sheron’s business place at the Caroni Savannah Road was raided several times by police of various units in the T&T Police Service (TTPS), including Stolen Vehicles, Customs and Excise and Financial Investigation Bureau (FIB). He was charged with receiving stolen vehicles and had been out on $200,000 bail on a charge of receiving two stolen vehicles.

As murdered security guard Paul Rajcoomar, 41, was buried yesterday under Muslim rites, police investigators received critical information that Rajcoomar’s murder was a hit called from within the prisons’ walls. In so doing, police said they have “very strong leads” and assured that investigations have intensified as a result. An officer, however, sought to dismiss rumours that Rajcoomar was the mastermind behind the February 22, 2010 murders of 68-year-old Carmen Mc Hutchinson and her three grandchildren— Asha Roberts, 23; Javon Roberts, 18 and LL Roberts, 13. They were all gunned down while sleep at their home at Gonzales. Two others were also shot but wounded.

Asha’s daughter, who was four years at the time of the incident, and her aunt were both shot and wounded. Carmen’s son, Mario Mc Hutchinson, the father of Asha, Javon and LL, who was at home at the time escaped by jumping through a window of the house. “Paul Rajcoomar was never a suspect in those murders. In fact was a relative of his who was eventually killed years after,” an investigating officer said yesterday. The T&T Guardian was told that those murders stemmed from gang rivalry between the Gonzales gang and the Bath Street boys. However, the connection to Wednesday’s murder of Rajcoomar, according to police, was that he was scheduled to take the witness stand on Thursday morning against a member of the Gonzales gang.

“He (referring to Paul) had no criminal records and was never known to be involved in gangs. He was just called before the court in an important trial,” a police officer said. Rajcoomar, 41, was an exemplar security guard, according to his employer, Simon Sobrian, managing director of Shield Security Services Limited. On Wednesday night, while near his place of work at Albion Plaza Energy Centre, Victoria Avenue, in Port-of-Spain, Rajcoomar was shot multiple times about his head and body.

He succumbed while undergoing emergency treatment at the Port-of-Spain General Hospital. The incident occurred at about 8 pm when Rajcoomar was approached by a vehicle. Its occupant alighted it and shot him several times. The gunman then escaped. His funeral took place yesterday at Shyam’s Islamic Funeral Home in Cunupia.

The three Cedros fishermen who have been in Venezuela for the past three weeks still cannot leave the country because one of them does not have proper identification. This was confirmed by Cedros councillor Shankar Teelucksingh, who said National Security Minister Edmund Dillon informed him of the latest impediment yesterday.

Two of the men, Awardnath Hajarie and son Nicholas, have identification cards, but Shami Seepersad does not even have a birth certificate, which means he will not be able to get the documentation needed to leave Venezuela for now.

This came a day after Dillon and acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert said the Government was seeking permission from Venezuela to send a Coast Guard vessel to bring the fishermen home. Responding to claims Government was not doing enough to help the fishermen on Thursday, Dillon said they had opted to stay at the home of a relative instead of returning home upon their release.

But their relatives in Cedros have not spoken to the fishermen since they were arrested by the Guardia Nacional for allegedly fishing in Venezuela water on April 5. They were reportedly released from custody on April 11 and were expected back home earlier this week, but the vessel they were due to come back in had no fuel.

Yesterday, Teelucksingh accompanied Seepersad’s mother Afrose Gannah and sister Rachel Hosein to the Cedros office of Justice of the Peace Deodath Toolsie to get the necessary paperwork.

Teeluckingh said, “The identification and travel documents are required for the fishermen to board a vessel in Venezuela back to Trinidad, which we have been reiterating before.”

He said the T&T Embassy in Venezuela had failed to properly update the Security Ministry on the requirements for the fishermen’s return. He said Hajarie and his son’s identification card had been faxed to the Embassy but they were trying to get the necessary documents for Seepersad. (See editorial on Page A16)

“What is the Minister of National Security’s role? And what is the Prime Minister’s role in this, he is the head of the National Security Council of T&T. I am calling on these goodly ministers, yesterday they were having good time around the table and saying that these fishermen are free to travel and free to roam the Venezuela community, which is totally false.”

As a tear streamed down her face, Seepersad’s mother said the only information she was getting about her son was from the councillor.

“It is very sad,” said the heartbroken mother.

Over 400 University of T&T (UTT) staffers have been promised regularisation and permanent employment in their respective positions, despite the fact that the institution is seeing “financial hard times.”In an OWTU/UTT branch bulletin on the UTT issue yesterday, it was revealed that 456 employees would be regularised. The bulletin was titled: “Permanency is on the Horizon!” and read: “After two hours…of heavy negotiations by OWTU a response came. UTT agreed to regularise the workers. It was agreed that the permanency letters will be confirmed and distributed in batches. These letters will be based on seniority of tenure for completion of the process.”

Acting under the directions of the Industrial Court to resume regularisation discussions, UTT finally agreed to meet with the union on Wednesday. An OWTU executive team, led by second vice president Sati Gadjadhar-Inniss and senior labour relations officers Gregory Marchan, Valarie Phillip-Paul and the OWTU-UTT branch committee, met with UTT management, led by deputy chairman of the UTT’s board of governors, Professor Clement Imbert, at the O’Meara Campus.It was agreed the first batch of workers will be confirmed in mid-May (10 years and more service), the second batch in mid-June (five to nine years service) and the third batch in mid-July (less than five years service). After selection the employee lists will be sent to the OWTU for verification, then confirmed and signed off by both parties.Whilst 456 contract workers will be made permanent, the UTT remains fixed in its proposal to retrench 287 workers, including staff from academics, as it is expected to save over $40 million. This restructuring plan was announced on January 15 by UTT president Sarim Al-Zubaidy. Gajadhar-Inniss had confirmed then that the union received the proposal.Contacted yesterday, Imbert confirmed the regularisation process had been approved, adding some employees were on three-year contracts while others were on a month-to-month basis.

The university has been facing possible turmoil since UTT’s board of governors chairman Prof Kenneth Julien announced that it would be hard to continue operations beyond January 2018 due to the challenges created by a further 11 per cent decrease in UTT’s 2017/2018 recurrent allocation to $200 million.

On December 12, 2017, Al-Zubaidy also informed UTT’s student body that there will be no new intake of students for the 2018/2019 academic year in three of the university’s major programmes: Biomedical Engineering, Environmental Science and Management, Bioscience and Agriculture and Health Sciences.

Despite this, $323,059,056 of the university’s “unspent funds” have been transferred to its Signature Building Complex project at Tamana InTech Park.

It could be “nature not nurture” which led a troubled 15-year-old boy to brutally attack his mother on Thursday, head of the Coalition of Domestic Violence, Diana Mahabir-Wyatt, said yesterday.

Calling on the public to take a pause before criticising on how the teenager was raised, Mahabir-Wyatt said scientific studies show there are genes associated with violent crime which lead people to commit violent acts.

“Some young people are born with violence in their DNA and research shows if you have a parent or grandparent who is quick to anger and had a propensity to violence, it was possible that you also could inherit violent genes. I cannot be sure if that is the case with this teenager. His action was so irrational,” Mahabir-Wyatt said. However, she noted that the mother’s decision to take away the boy’s cellular phone, which is being looked at as a possible trigger to the brutal attack, was normal.

Mahabir-Wyatt said the teenager has to receive counselling and an assessment must be done to determine whether there was any incident from his childhood that imprinted a pattern of anger in him.

Asked what parents could do to identify these violent genes before it’s too late, Mahabir-Wyatt said if anyone has a child who was always angry they must seek professional help.

“The child needs to get help right from childhood, from the age or three or four,” she said.

She admitted that accessing the services of a child psychologist privately could be expensive. However, she said Childline can provide assistance to children free of charge.

“The Children’s Authority is overworked but you can call them or you can call Servol and a professional can examine and assess the child,” Mahabir-Wyatt said.

She said the Coalition Against Domestic Violence also has social workers who can provide guidance to the parents and the affected child.

She explained, however, that if a child displays a progressive pattern of violence and anger it should be picked up by school officials.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education said the Student Support Services offers counselling and advice to troubled children. Divided into four major units, Guidance and Counselling Unit, Social Work Unit, Special Education Unit and Development Assessment Intervention Unit (DAIU), the SSS provides psycho-social, educational and behavioural services for students, the ministry said.

Asked whether the SS was fully staffed to deal with all incidents, a ministry official said yes.

“There is no incident that we have not dealt with.”

In light of reports that some school principals may keep incidents of violence under wraps to protect the image of their school, the ministry official said parents can go to any educational division and lodge a report there.

“In most cases, the standard procedure is to talk to the principal and the school does a referral, but if you think that principal is covering it up you can talk to the school supervisor directly or call the SSS directly,” the official said.

The ministry said it was continuing to collaborate with the T&T Police Service to do seminars on conflict management and student indiscipline.

On Tuesday, the boy had an argument with his mother over the seizure of his cell phone, following which he chopped her several times, severing her hand. She remains warded at the San Fernando General Hospital.

FOR HELP CALL

Childline- 800-4321
The Children’s Authority Hotline Numbers: 996/800-2014
Police: 999
ChildLine: 131 or 800-4321
Victim and Witness Support: 624-8853
Child Guidance Clinic: 726-1324
National Family Services Division: 624-8218 or 627-1163
Coalition Against Domestic Violence- 624-0402
Student Support Services 622-2181; Ext 1033/1034/1035/1036

Police are investigating the death of pensioner Josephine O’Hara, whose decomposed body was found inside a house at Kenny Cyrus Street, Enterprise, Chaguanas, yesterday.

Investigators said neighbours called them after reportedly getting a foul stench from her compound. Officers said when they got into her house, they found O’Hara lying on a bed surrounded by clothing, bags and boxes. The body bore no marks of violence and police said it appeared she was in the house for more than two days.

Police officers of the Central Division, Homicide Region III and Crime Scene Investigators responded and ordered the body removed to the Forensic Science Centre for an autopsy.

The steelpan fraternity has been plunged into mourning after an avid bass players of the Invaders Steel Orchestra was killed while trying to run away from a robbery in progress yesterday.

According to a police report, at about 12.30 am, Jeffrey “Rafa” Dorant, 46, of Jeffers Lane, St James, walked into a card game lime when he saw armed gunmen robbing a group of men. The gunmen wore bandanas that partially covered their faces.

As Dorant turned around and started running away, a gunman shot him in his back at the scene on Fort George Road.

Snr Supt Neville Sankar and others from the POS Homicide Bureau visited the scene.

Dorant was described as “the best bass man you would ever meet.”

Yesterday, following the news of his killing, scores of people from the steelpan fraternity expressed condolences to the Invaders Steel Orchestra family.

One person wrote on the band’s Facebook wall: “The man who always had a smile on his face…always cracking jokes in pan…what a happy soul you were at practice with the bass section…it would never be the same again RIP Jeffery.”

A close friend described Dorant as a very peaceful man. “So saddened to learn of the passing of my friend…he was a great nine bass player from the Invaders Steel Orchestra. He was good, kind, peaceful, fun loving man. What a loss to Invaders and the pan fraternity. Rest in peace Jeff!”

An autopsy is expected to be performed at the Forensic Science Centre in St James tomorrow.

Dorant’s killing brings the murder toll to 166 for the year thus far.

Investigations are continuing.

Co-ordinator of the Senate's independent bench Dr Dhanayshar Mahabir recently tendered his resignation to President Paula-Mae Weekes to allow her to exercise her constitutional power to choose independent senators.

“I did it as I want to free Her Excellency's hand to discharge her functions under the Constitution,” Mahabir told the T&T Guardian.

Section 40 (2/c) states the President can appoint the Senate's nine independent senators “in his discretion from outstanding persons from economic, or social or community or organisations and other major fields of endeavour.”

After tendering the resignation on March 20—the President's first working day after inauguration—Mahabir said last week, “We frequently hear of misbehaviour in public office. I think it's about time we set the stage for proper behaviour in public office. As co-ordinator of the independent bench, change starts with me. Let me be the change I want to see.

“When I assumed office in August in 2013, President Anthony Carmona who appointed me was villified for replacing four senators who were appointed by his incumbent. I don't wish Her Excellency to face the same situation.”

Mahabir has sought to make the resignation effective from September when the current third Parliamentary session of the five-year term ends and Parliament prorogues for the fourth session to begin.

“This is because there's a lot of ongoing work in hand including with Parliamentary committees. It's left to Her Excellency whether she will accept the resignation as of that date or whether she would want to bring it up,” he said.

Mahabir currently chairs Parliament's Joint Select Committee (JSC) on Social Services and Public Administration and is a member of other committees including on autonomy for Tobago.

In his tenure in the Senate, Mahabir also served on the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and JSCs on Foreign Affairs, Privileges Committee, and on other teams examining proposed legislation on the insurance sector, judges' salaries and allowances. He also served as a temporary independent senator over the period 1995-2000.

Mahabir said it would be injurious to the Parliament for any senator to leave immediately. He felt it better to “clear his plate” of current work at Senate and committee levels and allow his replacement to start afresh on issues.

The NGC Bocas Lit Fest, T&T's annual festival of words, stories and ideas, is as much about nurturing talent and building capacity across the book industry as it is about celebrating the highest levels of literary achievement.

On April 25, the NGC Bocas Lit Fest gets underway with Writers First: a series of free sessions for budding and self-published authors on crucial aspects of the book business.

For the third consecutive year, this seminar will take place in partnership with the annual First-Time Authors initiative hosted by the National Library Information Systems Authority (Nalis) to recognise local writers on their debut publications.

“It's remarkable how this eco-system works: the first-time authors feed directly into this seminar that aims to equip writers with tools to navigate the challenges of publishing and marketing. Sometimes writing is the easy part, the real work is often to get folks reading,” says founder/director of the NGC Bocas Lit Fest, Marina Salandy-Brown.

This year's programme involves three presentations from 1 to 4 pm in the Nalis AV Room—all free and open to the public.

Children and Education Programme Director at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Janet Smyth will focus on breaking into the international children's book market. UWI librarian Lorraine Nero and scholar Alison Donnell together pick up on one of the festival's big ideas—the importance of archiving, particularly for budding writers. Self-publishing consultant Corine LaFont will share insights into becoming an Amazon bestseller.

Identifying and developing emerging Caribbean talent has been integral to Bocas' growth and expansion over the past eight years of the festival's existence.

Festival title sponsor is the National Gas Company, lead sponsor is First Citizens, main sponsors are the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and the Arts and One Caribbean Media. Massy Foundation and UWI are also sponsors.

Employees of the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation (SGRC) including chief executive officer Dianne Lakhan and chairman Terry Rondon along with members of the Sangre Grande Volunteer Network journeyed to Rincon Bay, Matura, on Friday to remove sargassum seaweed from the beach.

The sargassum which is increasing in volume, as much as ten inches high, has been affecting the turtles visiting the shore to lay their eggs.

When volunteers and employees of the SGRC arrived on the beach and saw the large volume of seaweed they decided to use a backhoe to remove it, but they were forced to change their plan as turtles had already laid eggs on the beach and they did not want to disturb the hatching process. They armed themselves instead with rakes, hay forks, and garbage bags and started the clean-up operation. The sargassum was removed from the shore, filled into garbage bags, and packed onto a truck to be transported to a farm in the area. Rondon said it was a difficult task. As fast as you remove the seaweed more washes ashore.

With the permission and support of the CEO and county superintendent, they will continue this process every day to ensure the safety of the turtles nesting.

“We are going to assist this community, Nature Seekers and others who seek the protection of the turtles. We will assist in removing the sargassum from this shore, we don’t know how far we will reach, but we are going to assist,” said Rondon.

“I am proud of the workers of the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation as everyone including the CEO and administration staff came out to assist. We are doing it with joy from our heart.”

Lakhan said “I will be happy to see more volunteers joining and assisting in clearing the seaweed at Rincon Bay. It is about one mile of shore to remove the seaweed and we are appealing to the public to assist in removing the seaweed so that the turtles can have a successful nesting period.”

April 22 is World Environment Day and the Corporation has embarked on this clean-up project with the theme “End Plastic Pollution.”

Lakhan is also appealing to the public to take away their garbage after using the beaches.

—reporting by RALPH BANWARIE

A Venezuelan military aircraft landed at Piarco International Airport yesterday to take back 82 nationals to their homeland.

This was confirmed by National Security Minister Edmund Dillon. The arrangement between both governments–T&T and Venezuela—were finalised on Friday.

The military aircraft, flight number FAV2410, landed at Piarco International Airport South Terminal at 10.51 am from El Libertador Air Base Airport in Palo Negra, Venezuela.

It was agreed that upon instructions by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro a military aircraft would be despatched “for pick-up.”

Just under 40 of those 82 Venezuelan nationals were said to have applied for asylum and refugee status in T&T but according to sources, the certificates they had in their possession were allegedly disregarded by Immigration officers here in T&T.

The Sunday Guardian was reliably informed that the 82 Venezuelan nationals were escorted by Immigration officers to the Venezuelan Embassy on Friday for the processing of the necessary documents for repatriation/travel.

"The operation was supposed to be a covert one but the public got wind of it and this prompted a release from the ministry," a diplomatic source said.

Shortly before 5 pm yesterday, some 53 men and 29 women were processed by Immigration Officers and Customs and Excise officials at the Southern Terminal at the Piarco International Airport.

In a release issued last evening, the Ministry of National Security said that the Venezuelan nationals were voluntarily repatriated with the assistance of the Ambassador of Venezuela to T&T, Coromoto Godoy.

At that meeting, the release stated, Godoy offered to provide transportation by both sea and air to ensure the successful repatriation of the Venezuelan nationals.

During that meeting Godoy requested that the T&T authorities take the Venezuelan nationals who were being kept at the Immigration Detention Centre (IDC) to the Venezuelan Embassy in Port-of-Spain to process their travel documents. This exercise was completed on Friday.

“Venezuelan nationals from the IDC—comprising nationals who would have breached this country’s immigration laws and those who have served time in the prisons and were awaiting deportation on the completion of their sentences—were placed on board the aircraft,” the release stated.

Additionally, the release disclosed that over the last two weeks members of the T&T Police Service as well as Immigration officers made several raids in the South where they detained a number of Venezuelan nationals who were in the country illegally, “These Venezuelan nationals were also allowed to leave the country for their homeland with no charges laid against them.”

Yesenia: It’s discriminatory, insensitive, inhumane

Venezuelan-born Psychic and activist Yesenia Gonzalez said she did not know much about the arrangement.

However, the very emotional Gonzalez said that the treatment meted out by Immigration officers and police in T&T towards the Venezuelan nationals were “discriminatory, insensitive, inhumane and uncompassionate.”

“I am being told that people who have certificates that they applied for asylum and refugee status to the Living Water Community are being told that the certificates mean nothing and they are still being detained. It is too much discrimination and a violation of human rights,” Gonzalez said.

Godoy was on site to observe the proceedings along with Chief Immigration Officer, Charmaine Ghandi-Andrews.

Several calls to Godoy’s cell phone yesterday went unanswered.

MORE INFO

Earlier this month, during Joint Select Committee meeting on Human Rights, Equality and Diversity at the Parliament Building in Port-of-Spain, Gandhi-Andrews said that to date, approximately 2,000 Venezuelans have applied for asylum in T&T and the numbers are increasing.

Gandhi-Andrews told the committee that Venezuelans have been coming in droves as a result of their country’s current situation.

On a weekly basis, she said between 150 to 200 Venezuelans come to T&T via the sea but noted that based on the numbers seen at the Immigration Detention Centre, the majority of them—at least 90 per cent of those people have entered the country illegally or have a criminal conviction.

Ghandi-Andrews disclosed that between 2014 to 2016, approximately 60,000 Venezuelans came to T&T. In 2016, 28,000 Venezuelan nationals arrived at a legal port of entry.

Despite safety enhancements to part of the M2 Ring Road that is prone to serious accidents, another crash has claimed the life of a Princes Town man.

Adesh Ramnath, 34, of Cedar Hill Village, Princes Town, died within minutes of his silver Nissan Wingroad wagon hitting a white Toyota minivan in the area known as the Debe death strip.

A report stated that around 8.30 am, Ramnath was driving along the road when his vehicle picked up a skid in the vicinity of a gas installation and collided with a white Toyota minivan travelling in the opposite direction. San Fernando police responded along with an ambulance, but Ramnath had already died. Varenda Gangaram, who drove the Toyota minivan, was taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where he was being treated up to late yesterday.

In 2017, following an inspection of the road by former works and transport minister Fitzgerald Hinds, milling was done around the corners to increase traction and rumple strips were added. There were also increased signage near the dangerous curves however, several fatal accidents followed.

Moruga villager finds man's body

Investigators are awaiting the results of an autopsy to determine whether the death of Ronald Mohan, 40, of Rochard Douglas Road, St Mary's Village, Moruga, who was found with a wound to the head, was a murder or accidental.

Mohan's body was discovered behind a villager's house around 6.30 am yesterday. Police said that he was last seen alive in a bar in the area around 1 am. Later on, when a villager awoke, he found Mohan lying on his back and bleeding from a wound to his head.

Princes Town police, including ASP Ali Mohammed and Sgt Roland Ramlogan, interviewed several people. Investigators said the wound could have been caused by a blow to the head or a fall. Mohan, who worked at a sawmill in the area, was identified by his employer. The body was taken to the mortuary of the San Fernando General Hospital where it is expected to be transferred to the Forensic Science Centre for an autopsy on Monday.

The kiss between Awardnath Hajarie and his bride-to-be Heermatie Sanker was almost like a fairytale ending when they embraced each other for the first time in 16 days.

It was the first time since Harjarie, their son Nicholas, and colleague Shami Seepersad were arrested and dragged to Venezuela by La Guardia Nacional de Venezuela that Sanker smiled so brightly. Grinning from ear to ear at their Fullerton Village, Cedros home yesterday, all Sanker could mutter was, "I'm so proud and it is nice to see him home after 16 days."

The stress of her family being stranded in Venezuela since April 5 had taken a toll on Sanker's health.

Outside the National Security Complex yesterday, Hajarie acknowledged Sanker's grief, saying that the first thing he was going to do was to show his love for her. He said while in Venezuela, he spoke to her on the telephone and she uttered some weird comments.

"With frustration, anything can come out your mouth. My plan is to go and love my wife, to hug her up and give her a loving kiss. People were putting up on Facebook that we (fishermen) were going to get married down there, but I love my wife. I don’t love anybody else. I never hurt my wife, I never cheated on her. It’s 27 years together and I looking to live another 27 with her," Hajarie said.

The couple will now continue plans for their wedding on May 16.

The fishermen, along with Hajarie's stepson, Vicky Sanker, left Tucupita, Venezuela, around 8.52 am yesterday with two members of the La Guardia aboard their pirogue. Around 12.37 pm, they met the T&T coast guard vessel, TTS Moruga, near Soldado Rock where the two La Guardia Nacional officers returned to their parent vessel. The TTS Moruga deployed its interceptor and escorted the fishermen's pirogue to the Cedros port where their relatives were waiting for hours. The fishermen were processed by Immigration Division officials and Custom and Excise officers.

The first thing Nicholas did was to purchase a pack of cigarette and a bottle of Coca-Cola, which he said was too expensive in Venezuela. Nicholas said he was glad to be home given the harsh economy in Venezuela. He said after being reprimanded and discharged by the Venezuela court, they just "chilled out" at Vicky's in-laws' home.

"When we were supposed to come home yesterday, the Immigration (Venezuela) did not want to stamp our papers. I don't know why they did that. I wanted to come back home because down in Tucupita they're not making any money because people are seeing real trouble. But in Trinidad now, you can still make money or you can go to somebody's house. You can't go by anybody down there and get anything. You must have money to buy things to eat and things very expensive down there," Nicholas said.

Despite the trauma of being arrested by heavily armed guards at sea, he said fishing was his life and he will return to sea once the fishing pirogue, Shaketie, is returned to them. The pirogue, which is owned by Suklal Mannah, remained in Venezuela as officials requested the original registration document for the vessel. Mannah had originally submitted a photocopy.

Kidnapping or arrest?

On April 5, Hajarie, 52, Nicholas, 26 and Seepersad, 35, were fishing in the Soldado Main Field located in Trinidad waters when they were chased by La Guardia Nacional. They were arrested near a Trinmar installation. A video of the arrest, shot from the installation, was published on Facebook.

Coast guard reported that during routine operations, they saw two unidentified pirogues crossing between Venezuela and T&T waters. However, it appeared that when the vessels observed the T&T Coast Guard, they retreated to Venezuelan waters. The Coast Guard vessel, in accordance with international law, did not pursue those vessels into Venezuelan waters.

Dillon: Investigations ongoing

National Security Minister Edmund Dillon, who greeted the fishermen on arrival at the Cedros port, told journalists that investigations into the arrests were ongoing.

A release from the Ministry of National Security on April 5 stated that the coast guard observed that several T&T vessels being pursued by Venezuelan vessels and that the chase "apparently encroached into the waters of Trinidad and Tobago." However, when asked about the arrested men being in local waters, Dillon said this was just an assumption.

The pharmaceutical industry in T&T is a very lucrative, multi-million dollar business both on the legitimate end and the grey area where drugs are being imported but not registered.

Unregistered drugs have been making their way to pharmacies and supermarkets in T&T via the suitcase trade, online pharmacies, and countries in the region with little or no regulations.

The population is now left in a quandary having to choose wisely as they navigate through a maze of branded and generic drugs. With counterfeit and unregistered drugs now in the mix, the average person is hard pressed to tell the difference.

Trinidadians buying unregistered drugs for diabetes, hypertension, cancer, Erectile Dysfunction (ED), and cardiac issues could be playing medical Russian roulette with their health and lives. Former health minister Fuad Khan said some generic or fake drugs can contain hazardous materials such as paint, chalk, rat poison, arsenic, floor wax, boric acid, antifreeze, brick dust, and paint thinner.

As long as there is a high demand and money to be made, entrepreneurs will supply unregistered drugs to the market for chronic conditions which were most popular, from hypertensive drugs, diabetes medicines, pain-killers, antibiotics, diet pills, corticosteroids, cancer drugs to Viagra.

Sandeep Maharaj, from the UWI School of Pharmacy and lecturer pharmacy administration along with several pharmacy students and a professor published an article in 2009 on Researchgate titled “Suitcase Trading and the Pharmaceutical Industry in Trinidad,” which showed that suitcase traders provided the best prices available to consumers, and it was the number one as well as the most important reason for engaging in the trade.

The article stated that suitcase drugs had no difference in drug quality as compared to non-suitcase drugs and can also be acquired at a cheaper rate of zero-15 per cent. The effect of suitcase drugs on pharmacy sales can be concluded as very positive. In Trinidad it was common for pharmacies to purchase products from unauthorised distributors when supply was unavailable from authorised agents.

Anecdotally, the suitcase trade had significantly impacted on the pharmaceutical industry within T&T. The main incentives for engaging in this trade were the attractive comparatively lower prices for the same product. Maharaj said, however, it was a small study and the situation may have changed.

Drug counterfeiting a US $200-billion business

On the other hand, drug counterfeiting has become a US $200-billion business annually according to the World Customs Organization.

Interpol carries a warning on its website that counterfeit products are harmful and can even be fatal.

The organisation said fake medicines ranged from useless to highly dangerous. They often contained the wrong level of active ingredient–too little, too much or none at all–or an active ingredient intended for a different purpose. In some cases, fake medicines had been found to contain highly toxic substances such as rat poison. In all these scenarios, the person taking the counterfeit medicine is putting their health, even their life, at risk.

One can easily be deceived by counterfeit medicines: they were often packaged to a high standard with fake pills that look identical to the genuine ones. Sometimes a laboratory test is the only way to identify the difference.

Chief executive officer of the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (Cariri) Liaquat Ali Shah announced last week that counterfeit drugs were even bigger than the cocaine and gun trade worldwide.

Tracking counterfeit drugs

Khan, meanwhile, said during his tenure the Health Ministry was moving to introduce a policy to detect counterfeit drugs using tracking, tracing, and authentication technologies.

Speaking to the Sunday Guardian on Friday, he said “The ministry was working on a policy together with the Chemistry, Food and Drugs Division (CFDD) for all importers of pharmaceuticals to have an identifying number, to streamline the system, but I have no idea what became of the policy.

“Each one would have a specific number that would be stamped on pharmaceuticals so that it can be traced back to the distributor. By doing that you would know if anybody or a pharmacy was bringing in any counterfeit drugs and did not get it from a bona fide distributor.

“If distributors have a number and it was stamped on a package, you can determine where the drug comes from.”

Khan said if an inspector went to a pharmacy and it did not have a proper number on its products, but looked like it was genuine, he can ask where the pharmacy got them from, who was the distributor and have the power to remove pharmacy drugs off the shelves operator.

He said while the pharmaceutical industry in T&T was a very lucrative business, there was tardiness in the Food and Drug division in registering and inspecting drug samples.

Khan said the division should be doing random testing but there was not enough staff, suffered from bureaucratic inefficiency and archaic system that had to switch to a computerized system during his term in office.

He said under the PP administration there were around 12 inspectors, it was not enough and they needed to hire about 25 or 30 more inspectors for drugs and food items.

He said there were also lots of fake foods entering T&T with no proper labelling, some items had Chinese writing with no English and this should not happen.

Trinis beating the system, go to pharmacies you can trust

He said many drugs that entered T&T came from Barbados and were unregistered, but bona fide.

Khan said the Barbados Government subsidised drugs for its citizens, but taking advantage of non-existent registration systems and a developing food and drugs division at best in Barbados, Trinidadian entrepreneurs buy the drugs in bulk cheap, sometimes at cost price or below, and pass through T&T Customs without hassle.

He said they sell the drugs to certain pharmacies that then undercut bona fide distributors and pharmacies.

Khan gave as an example, Norvasc, an anti-hypertensive drug that normally sold at $9.50 per tablet, but because of Barbados and the underhand dealing in unregistered drugs and suitcase traders pharmacies sell the unregistered drug for $5.

He said about 20 per cent of pharmaceutical drugs imported into the country in 2013 were counterfeit and most likely that figure would have increased.

He said many of the counterfeit drugs were bought online and people wanting easy or fast money were driven by greed to turn over a fast profit and to prey on unsuspecting people looking for a deal.

Khan cautioned that buying drugs online was a big risk. The US pharmaceutical society also dissuaded people from buying drugs online.

Khan said the Ministry of Trade was trying its best to bring the Food and Drugs division under its purview and that a committee was put together to work on the registration of drugs.

He said a committee between the health and trade ministries should be resuscitated.

Khan said people needed to go to pharmacies they trust—they are the real gatekeepers.

He urged Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh to act on these findings.

Pharmacy Board president: Test drugs, non-registered does not mean fake

President of the Pharmacy Board of T&T Andrew Rahaman said an unregistered drug may not necessarily mean that it was fake and it can have the full potency or efficacy of registered drugs.

He was asking the powers-that-be to stop interchanging the term “non registered” with “counterfeit”. Cariri claimed that it tested some 20 drugs yet there was not a whimper of how many were counterfeit, he added.

Speaking to the Sunday Guardian on Friday, Rahaman revealed that many of the popular products and brands sold in large chain stores and supermarkets in the US were unregistered in T&T.

He said they would not be on US shelves if they did not pass the stringent testing by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Rahaman said many people had been equating the non-registration of drugs with being counterfeit and that was not the view of the board members.

He said the ministry was guilty of double standards, it chastised pharmacies for selling unregistered drugs while using unregistered drugs in its hospitals, and some were life-saving drugs necessary to perform surgery.

Rahaman said in a country where there was efficiency of registration, if it continued to have non registered drugs, the registration process can’t be blamed and called for testing to prove counterfeit as was done in first world countries.

$40k to register cancer drug samples

Rahaman said it took between three and five years for an item to be registered and the Food and Drug division insisted if a supplier or manufacturer did not provide samples, it was not taking their submission of application for registration of the drug.

He said in the case of sample drugs for cancer drugs, they may cost more than $40,000, one vial may cost $8,000 to register and if the batch expires, the distributor may have to come up with an additional $40,000.

Rahaman said if there were too many applications for the year, the Food and Drug division would not take any more.

He said minor changes in the colour of the packaging or a tablet by a manufacturer could result in that product being off the market for years. As an example, Andrews liver salts lemon flavour which has been in short supply for one year.

Rahaman said if a drug was listed as a treatment for four ailments and people were taking it for 20 years and was working well, if researchers found that it could treat six ailments, the drug had to be re-registered and taken off the market for years to the detriment of users.

He advocated that the registration system be fixed, test drugs, employ UWI doctorate chemistry graduates and other Trinidadian graduates from other universities in other parts of the world to work with an expert from abroad to train them for one year, supply them with appropriate reagents and equipment which was less than 0.5 per cent of the budget for National Security.

Deyalsingh: It’s not ministry’s job to fill positions in Food and Drugs

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh was contacted Friday and asked several questions.

On when more personnel will be hired for its Food and Drug division, he said that he made the announcement in Parliament that it was up to the Chief Personnel Officer and the Public Service Commission to fill those positions.

Deyalsingh said the ministry had made all applications to have them filled, it was not the ministry to fill them but the PSC.

When asked if the ministry was considering a track and trace system for drugs or numbers for distributors and pharmacies, he said they were considering many options.

After five pharmacies had been investigated for the sale of unregistered drugs, Deyalsingh was asked if there will be more checks, he said that was an ongoing process since May 2015.

He said the ministry had also written to the pharmacy board reporting certain pharmacies for their actions.

He said the fake diabetes and blood pressure drugs that made their way into the Chronic Disease Assistance Programme (CDAP), according to a 2017 report, had already been removed.

Cariri’s Liaquat Ali Shah and Trade Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon did not return the Sunday Guardian’s calls on Friday.

Cariri will be hosting a pharmaceutical counterfeiting conference on April 26 at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre.

Calypsonians, panmen, and bandleaders are looking forward to a brighter future under Winston 'Gypsy' Peters, the new chairman of the National Carnival Commission (NCC).

Shortly after the announcement that the Ministry of Community Development, Culture and the Arts had given Peters his letters of appointment on Friday by Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly and Permanent Secretary Angela Edwards, Edwin “Crazy” Ayoung posted on his website “With Winston Gypsy Peters at the head of the NCC— calypsonians, pan men and bandleaders are looking forward to a brighter future hoping that things get better financially and NCC will run smoothly without no problems and happiness will prevail making Peters the best NCC Chairman T&T ever had and it could happen—Gypsy is capable of doing this and making every one comfortable—You bet.

When Peters was contacted yesterday and asked if there were any challenges for him in his appointment, he said “I don’t have any challenges, there are guidelines that the NCC have and they are to be followed.

“There are subventions that have to be made from the NCC to the interest groups, I have a line ministry, the Ministry of Culture which will give us some directive.

“Of course the NCC will have to carry out what we are given, we have a board which will decide what has to be done, what could and can’t be done and we would follow through.”

Ex-chairman Colin Lucas did not return the Sunday Guardian’s calls yesterday.

A Diego Martin mother is now appealing to the Housing Development Corporation for home after she and four relatives were chopped about their bodies at their Bagatelle Road, Diego Martin home yesterday.

Nicole Edwards, 32, a mother of two, common-law husband Darren Joseph, 42, and relatives Rico Joseph, 29, Wendell Joseph, 37 and Simon Ganteaume were chopped about their bodies by another relative.

In an interview outside the St James Infirmary yesterday, Edwards said she was told by her attacker that they should leave the property although her family paid $7,000 for their home, which is located on squatting land. She said this latest attack was preceded by an incident on March 23 in which two relatives went to her house and burnt the property to the ground.

However, she said although she moved next door to a neighbour’s house, the relative, who was alleged to have sold them the land, visited them yesterday and told them to leave.

Edwards, who sells T&T Guardian newspapers, said she was inside the house yesterday morning when the latest incident began and realised there was something awry when she heard her children crying.

“When I heard the drama and the children crying I see they (relatives) holding him (common-law husband) and chopping him,” she said.

She said her husband sustained injuries to both hands and other relatives who intervened, including the son of her attacker, was even chopped by mistake.

“I tried to intervene and I was chopped by my breast, my arm and my wrist,” she said, showing the bandages.

“We was in the hospital and he (attacker) still threatening me. He say nobody don’t come back down there.”

Edwards said up until late yesterday evening no statements had been taken from her by the police.

“I was paying $700 for a month and we pay him $7,000. Is squatting land but we had no other alternative, we have nowhere to go. I really scared to go back with my children and them. When we try to do better that is when the bacchanal start.”

Contacted on Edwards’ appeal yesterday, HDC managing director Brent Lyons said: “This requires much more information and investigation before any determination can be made.”

Also contacted yesterday, Western Division senior officers said the fire and the incident were under investigation and they were in the process of taking statements from the victims.

kevon.felmine@guardian.co.tt

Terror groups who commit violence in the name of Islam are not true Muslims, Amir of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, Maulana Ibrahim Bin Yaqub, said yesterday as he explained the name Islam means peace.

Speaking at their annual Peace Conference in Preysal, Couva, Bin Yaqub said a true Muslim is a person people can feel safe around. He said while the Islamic faith locally has been under scrutiny since several followers left to join the Islamic State, this was a small amount compared to the population of Muslims living in T&T.

“A true Muslim is that person from whose tongue and whose hands people are safe in and secure. So if you would not allow people to become safe and secure, then you are not a true Muslim because you are not practising the teachings of Islam,” Bin Yaqub said.

“The majority of Muslims in the world are very peaceful. Why is it that we go after those individuals who are creating problems and then try to tell the world that it is Islam? That is not Islam.

“The true Islam are those people who are very peaceful. How many Muslims are there in Trinidad and Tobago? More than 100,000 persons and you are talking about how many people went to join ISIS. How many of them?”

Asked if there was a wrong perception of Islam by non-disciples, Bin Yaqub said in every religion you would have people with various views and who would create upheavals, just like what has happened in Islam.

“Therefore, if there is a Muslim who is misbehaving, we believe that that person or persons are far away from the true teachings of Islam.”

Bin Yaqub said local Muslims are free to travel the world and that even after 9/11 he went to the United States.

“We have a solid relationship with the US government.”

The conference is an annual event that is also held in other countries by Muslims.

Its purpose is to educate people so they can understand peace has become an expensive commodity. Bin Yaqub said with so many upheavals in the world, the Ahmadiyya Muslims believe that unless they try to know themselves entirely, they will not be able to arrive at peace.

“It is also our firm belief that various religions in the world can bring peace, because if you study the scriptures of all major religions of the world, they all speak with one tongue and that is about peace. Unless the world comes to realise its maker, that is the Creator, we will never be able to see peace.”

kevon.felmine@guardian.co.tt

Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal says many of the 352 tenants who are in arrears in four Housing Development Corporation (HDC) communities are people who have lost their jobs in recent times.

His comment comes on the heels of a statement in Parliament on Friday by acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert, that the HDC had increased resources in a bid to recover the arrears and also to set up payment plans to help those who find it difficult to pay.

Imbert was speaking in the Senate in the capacity of acting Minister of Housing and Urban Development in the absence of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, who assumed the housing ministry portfolio on April 9. Of the 352 errant tenants, Imbert said there were 56 in the East Grove community, 132 in the Oasis development, 18 at Eden Gardens and 146 at Cashew Gardens. He did not give the sum owed to the HDC.

Responding to Imbert yesterday, Moonilal, a former housing minister, said the steps being taken by the HDC were the “most illogical and heartless policy” by the ministry.

He described it as the “cruel irony” of the Government, who fired workers who had HDC homes and were paying their mortgages. He said it was the same Government who were hiring debt collectors to collect money the tenants cannot afford now due to their situations.

“This is obscene and nonsensical and speaks to a Government without compassion and an understanding of the needs of its citizens. I call upon the Ministry of Housing and the HDC to immediately profile those in debt and institute a humane policy of a moratorium on payments due in cases, particularly where such home owners in debt have been fired and/or retrenched or had their contracts terminated or not renewed by the very Government that now seeks to evict such HDC clients,” Moonilal said in a statement.

“It is shameful for the Government to fire a worker and then kick him out of a house for not paying his monthly instalment. Many persons on that list of 352 have been without jobs and had their small contracts terminated from which they eke out a living and paid their instalments.”

Calls and messages to HDC chairman Newman George and managing director Brent Lyon went yesterday.

For several years the HDC has been battling with errant tenants. Back in April 2017, Lyons told a Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC) that up to April 13, 2017, 3,155 people were owing over $106 million, adding 79 per cent of their mortgage portfolio was in arrears. The HDC’s policy on debt recovery is to send letters of notice to errant tenants indicating they had seven days to respond. But Lyons told the PAAC the HDC was not in the business of putting people out of houses.

Last year, former housing minister Randall Mitchell said that once successful applicants occupied a unit, it was difficult to get them to complete their mortgage arrangements, which was a serious problem for HDC. The HDC relies on the conversion of its License-to-Occupy and Rent-to-Own programmes to mortgages in order to fund new development projects.