Commonwealth Summits, one of which Trinidad and Tobago hosted in 2009, its golden year for summitry, are short, intensely busy affairs, held as the Malta one is over the last weekend in November, Friday to Sunday.

There are gala events, dinners and toasts, so the presence of Sharon Rowley is not, by itself, controversial. Indeed there is a Women’s Forum, at which participants are tasked with placing “women’s social and economic issues on the Commonwealth agenda,” and although the nature of Mrs Rowley’s participation has not been confirmed, it is the kind of summit sidebar in which leaders’ wives would be expected to participate. 

Leaders get to meet the Queen and Prince Philip. In Edinburgh in 1997, journalists got to gawp at Nelson Mandela. PMs and presidents’ spouses and First Ladies (and First Gentlemen) have their place.

However, for a government that has spent a good part of its two months in office decrying unchecked spending by the opposition and promising to be more frugal, the optics are not good. 

A Caribbean Airlines flight to London with a BA connection to Valletta, the Maltese capital, would cost over $29,000, first class. 

The real question, though, surrounds the size of the delegation. Excluding the Rowleys, two security guards and an unspecified number of GISL reporters, there are eight others in the T&T team. The new Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister is an automatic pick, as is the Acting High Commissioner to the UK. 

Questionable would be the unnamed ambassador,  protocol officer and a foreign service officer. A quick, very rough calculation based on the airfare, with the understanding that not everyone is flying first class and not everyone is starting out in T&T, would put the cost of air tickets alone at over a quarter of a million T&T$. The top hotels cost T&T$7,000 nightly. The total bill could easily rise to T&T$0.5m.

All this would raise questions about whether the new Government is walking the talk about being frugal.

Orin Gordon

Editor-in-Chief

It was a motorist’s nightmare in south Trinidad yesterday as gridlock traffic along the Solomon Hochoy Highway snaked its way from Tarouba to San Fernando, following an accident which claimed the life of a Princes Town mechanic during mid-afternoon rush-hour.

Motorists remained stuck for more than five hours as police and fire officers supervised the removal of a trailer-truck which blocked off a portion of the north-bound lane.

Mechanic Ishmael Mohammed, 37, of Iere Village Branch Road, was crushed to death by a Mitsubishi Sportero while doing repairs to the stalled truck on the shoulder of the highway. 

At least three other people were warded in serious condition at the San Fernando General Hospital after they were catapulted from the scene upon impact into bushes off the highway, near the Tarouba Interchange.

The impact was so intense the parked truck shifted. 

It was the second road fatality yesterday as Couva businessman Kevin Laggan died when his Nissan Navara slammed into a wall in Chaguanas.

Laggan, 25, an electrical and electronic engineering technician student at the School of Business and Computer Science (SBCS), died immediately after his Nissan Navara pick-up crashed into a utility pole in Edinburgh, Chaguanas.

Although Laggan’s death did not cause much traffic, the second fatality left hundreds of people leaving work, stranded in almost stand-still traffic. According to reports, truck driver Wayne Ramnarine was transporting empty bottles to Carib Brewery at Champs Fleurs when the wheels of the trailer began to lock. He parked on the shoulder of the highway and called for help.

Later on, the owner of the truck, Ramchan Matloo, 50, his wife, Sylvia, 45 and daughter, Asha Matloo, 23, all of Friendship Village, arrived with Mohammed and another mechanic, Richard Ramlogan, 35, of Princes Town.

Ramnarine said he was also sitting under the trailer, while Mohammed was tightening the wheel’s hub. Ramlogan, who was assisting Mohammed was standing near the wheel and the Matloos were standing at the side.

Reports stated that around 1.30 pm, a Mitsubishi Sportero, driven by Cadel Rajpaul, slammed into them before hitting the truck. Mohammed was crushed by the wheel while Ramchan suffered gashes to the hand, chest and face. 

His wife, Sylvia, suffered a broken leg and Ramlogan has several broken bones. Rajpaul, who sustain minor injuries, was taken to the hospital for treatment.

“All I saw was a van coming towards us and everybody was flying down the hill. It happened within a matter of seconds,” Asha said after escaping without injuries. She sat in a daze at the scene yesterday.

Investigators were told the incident actually started when Rajpaul hit a Toyota Corolla driven by Ramsaran Nagessar from behind and lost control of his vehicle. However, witnesses said another vehicle had hit Rajpaul’s from behind but drove off.

Businessman killed

In the earlier fatality, Laggan, 25, an electrical and electronic engineering technician student at the School of Business and Computer Science (SBCS), died immediately after his Nissan Navara pick-up crashed into a utility pole in Edinburgh, Chaguanas.

According to reports, Laggan was driving southward along the Old Southern Main Road around 5 am on his way home. On nearing Sugarcane Avenue, he suddenly swerved off the road and crashed into a utility pole and then a wall.

 Chaguanas police were contacted by passersby and responded with the Emergency Health Services but Laggan had already died.

At his Canary Crescent, Couva, home yesterday, his sister, Ranee Laggan, 27, said he was planning to attend a friend’s wedding tomorrow and left home around 9.30 pm to meet other friends who arrived in the country from abroad. 

She said they were all liming at Medford Grill when he left them to return home so he could prepare to open their Pearl’s Roti Shop at Dow Village, California.

With his death, she said she has lost her only sibling as her parents only had two children.

“He was a good person. There were problems at times like with any other person but he was always there for my mother, running the shop with her, foot-to-foot with her. It was just two of us, me and my brother. Now I no longer have a brother or a sibling.

“He liked to lime with his friends. He was a very popular person and if you asked anybody about Kevin Laggan, they would know him. There was no where I could have gone with my brother and people did not know him.”

Although Laggan was killed immediately, his pick-up was not totalled from the crash. An autopsy is expected to be done tomorrow.

The road fatality toll now stands at 123, compared to 142, for the comparable period last year.

‘Speed, reckless driving involved in both accidents’

Co-ordinator of the Road Safety Project, Brent Batson, says the TTPS continues to appeal to road users to drive safely, especially as most people are looking forward to spending the Christmas holidays with their families.

Batson said both accidents were indicative of motorists’ continued use of speed, adding that recklessness continues to plague the roadways.

He added: “When you look at the types of accidents that caused the two road deaths that occurred today, clearly it shows the level of risk-taking that drivers seem to have inculcated as part of their normal level of reckless driving. In the fatality on the highway, the pick-up’s driver slammed directly into a stationery object.

“It begs to question what the driver was looking at and how come he did not a see what was in front of him. One of the key ingredients coming out of that report is reckless speeding. 

“To shift a truck requires a lot of energy and it also displays the driver’s lack of scanning, way in advance of their traffic management. 

“In the second accident, for the driver to hit a light pole to be killed upon impact, it involves excessive speeding. To lose loved ones on the road at a time when most families would look forward to being together, this is something the TTPS wishes no family has to experience for the rest of this year. 

“We continue to appeal to all road users to obey the highway code, the speed limit and practise safe and courteous driving,” Batson added.

While the country’s latest lotto millionaire may forever remain a mystery, 53-year-old Ronald Rampersad, the Carapichaima agent whose machine sold the winning ticket says he feels equally as lucky.

Rampersad, who was born and raised in Orange Field, and lives in a neighbourhood surrounded by family, owns Ronald’s lotto outlet, the booth which sold the $31 million ticket on Tuesday.

Two days before, Rampersad was being discharged from the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, where he was warded for a month to treat a nerve issue which made him unable to walk.

Lounging in his living room yesterday evening, Rampersad, who has been a lotto retailer for four years, said he felt really good. “I was coming home from the hospital on Monday and I told my sister that is a big lotto you know. I told her I don’t want to win it, I want to sell the ticket.”

The retailer who sells the winning lotto ticket receives an undisclosed fixed percentage of the winnings from the National Lotteries Control Board (NLCB).

“I was thinking long-term because whoever sells the winning ticket, their outlet is viewed as a lucky outlet and more people go to buy there,” he said.

Rampersad said he received a call from G Tech, the technology provider for the NLCB, around 7 am yesterday.

“The girl asked my name and I told her. She asked me to confirm some other information and then she said I had sold the winning ticket.”

Rampersad doesn’t know much about the lucky millionaire who bought the ticket. The two women who work at the outlet also have no idea.

Ramdai Ramroop, one of the operators said it was very exciting to know that the winning ticket came from the booth where she worked.

“A lot of people pass and they stop and buy tickets. People sometimes play the same numbers over and over. Some buy $500  worth of tickets. All we know is that it was a quick pick,” Ramroop said.

Wednesday's winning numbers were 8, 12, 19, 26, 33 and the power ball 8.

“The way the place is situated a lot of people, stop, play and go. They don’t hang around. People sometimes stand up and wait but I know today will be slow.”

The outlet can be easily missed by commuters on the Orange Field Road, the only significant marker, a huge pothole on the opposite side of the road.

Rampersad said he would get a sign for the business tomorrow so people would know where it was. His commission will be saved for a rainy day. He said: “I am sick so I am glad I have this money as a security in case something happens.

“I don’t expect it to change my life in any big way. I like my life simple. I don’t like too much changes. 

“For the while, the whole community will be excited and people will be curious. I sold the big jackpot but they will forget about that soon.”

The breakdown by the NLCB revealed that five people successfully chose five numbers without the power ball to win $20,022.89 each.

Ninety-nine people selected four numbers with the power ball to win $746, while 811 people won $176 each after they successfully chose four numbers without the power ball.

Approximately 2,441 people each won $18.32 after choosing three numbers with the power ball, while 20,235 each won a free quick pick after choosing three numbers without the power ball.

In the face of two confirmed cases of swine flu and reports of other cases, the public is being advised that there is no need to panic.

The assurance came from medical director of the San Fernando General Hospital (SFGH), Dr Anand Chatoorgoon, yesterday who played down the spread of the virus.

He said there were no unique symptoms of the H1N1 virus (swine flu) which is spread by droplets from an infected patient. 

“H1N1 is with us all the time. It is not that we never have it. Every now and again patients get infected with influenza viruses. 

“There are many types of influenza and H1N1 is one. If we suspect someone has pneumonia that is galloping unusually fast and getting severe that they need to go on a ventilator, then we have a high index of suspicion this could be H1N1. So there is nothing specific about H1N1,” he added.

He said three patients, including the two deceased—Cherrie Ryce who died from H1N1 on October 16; Himraj Mungroo, 60, of Quarry Road, Quarry Village, who died earlier this month and another case involving a security officer, being treated—are all from south Trinidad but did not indicate that the virus was confined to any particular part of the country.

He also confirmed that test results done by the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) on swabs taken from 16-year-old Shannon Nashaud came back negative for H1N1. 

Autopsy results showed that Nashaud, of Couva, died on November 2 from pneumonia, one of the symptoms of the H1N1. 

He said Mungroo presented with fever, diarrhoea and developed breathing complications but he got worse and died.

Chatoorgoon said there were varying degrees of the flu, in that some people have the mild form while others develop the severe form. 

He said if the immune system of patients was compromised, “in that if you are fat, diabetic, are on durgs, steroid, have cancer, patients are more susceptible and develop complications.”

Chatoorgoon said the latest patient, while still critical, was improving. 

“I think his lungs are getting better, although with ICU one can never tell,” he added.

Citizens of this country should show more gratitude to the protective services particularly the Prison Service. 

The call came yesterday from head of the Prisons Commissioner Sterling Stewart at the funeral service for his slain colleague Supt David Millette, 50, who was murdered outside his Coconut Drive, Morvant, home on November 2. 

In a passionate speech, punctuated with biblical references, Stewart said prison officers are  charged with keeping and transforming the men and women that other people consider unfit to live among them.

He trained his guns on parents and politicians. 

Seated among the mourners was Sharon Rowley, wife of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley. 

Millette, who was last assigned to the Golden Grove Prison, Arouca, had over 20 years service. He was killed the same day he began his vacation after he was ambushed by four gunmen as he sat in his vehicle.

His death is believed to be linked to an incident, when a prisoner on a murder charge was assaulted at the Maximum Security Prison when he resisted officers during a search the day before.

“Why was he gunned down? Who are these killers and where did they come from to kill my officer without impunity? He was touching lives and saving lives and by the time the men reach to jail it is too late in many cases. 

“We have to recycle and transform. You all should bow down to the Prisons Service for saving lives,” Stewart shouted, prompting applause from the officers who gathered at the Daybreak Assembly, Coconut Drive, Morvant, to pay their final respect for the fallen officer.

“We are doing the work of parents and they call us rogues. Who are breeding these killers? The fathers are absent without leave. Parents you are the real crime stoppers not 800-TIPS, and who is holding them (parents) responsible?” he asked.

Stewart spoke of two recent criminal cases where the accused were in prison as they sought to access their bail: Dexter Gobin, who is charged with assaulting a two-year-old girl and Ricardo Jerome who is charged with assaulting his girlfriend.

 Both incidents sparked outrage after they went viral on social media and prompted hate against the accused.

Stewart said it was the job of his men to ensure the safety of the two and others like them accused of committing criminal acts that are “against the code” of fellow inmates. 

Stewart said he was speaking without fear as he was fearless of the threats made against him by “little boys who just come out of diapers.”

He was later comforted by Rowley as he broke down in tears after his speech. 

Suspects have been detained for questioning, including two cousins of the remand prisoner who was assaulted, but no one has been charged for Millette’s murder.

Sorry folks, no brawling ahead on the Opposition bench.

As Parliament resumes today that was the advisory to the Government from new Opposition Chief Whip Ganga Singh following his appointment, replacing Roodal Moonilal, who stepped down as he challenged Kamla Persad-Bissessar for leadership of the United National Congress (UNC).

The Opposition Leader is also being challenged by former senator Vasant Bharath. She appointed Singh on Wednesday to replace Moonilal. The latter launched his slate last night at Rienzi Complex.

 Bharath, who was appointed to the Senate by Persad-Bissessar, resigned Wednesday after UNC’s Youth Arm questioned his continuation on the Senate team if he was contesting the leadership.

His launches his campaign tomorrow. Yesterday, Bharath received support from UNC Women’s Arm head Stacy Roopnarine although the unit’s public relations officer had issued a statement last week supporting Persad-Bissessar.

With Parliament resuming today, Singh said seating on the Opposition bench would be rearranged to accommodate the new situation. Singh who had been seated on the end of the Opposition backbench behind Moonilal, moves to the whip’s traditional seat on the front bench next to Persad-Bissessar.

UNC sources said Moonilal would remain on the Opposition front bench, “high up” the row, close to Persad-Bissessar and Congress of the People leader Prakash Ramadhar.

Singh said he was putting the People’s National Movement (PNM) on notice, “...If they are coming to Parliament to expect any fighting among the Opposition because of our internal elections, well, sorry folks, there isn’t going to be any brawling.

“There ought not to be any major fallout from our polls. At the end of the day, all members participating clearly want a strong, vibrant UNC so I am obliged to tell the PNM: We’re stronger than you think.”

 Singh expressed concern about the fact that the PNM while indicating yesterday there were bills on today’s Parliament agenda, declined to say what they were.

“We’ve not been informed of any bills. They are operating in classic PNM non-disclosure style. If there are bills, we know nothing of them. They are not on the Order Paper to date since all that is there are plans to lay reports and selection of committees.

“So there is no public disclosure on bills. We’ll just have to wait to see if there is a supplemental agenda. This modus operandi is certainly not in accordance with the Government’s stated principles of transparency,” he added.

Students of the Chaguanas Government Primary School, who have been out of classes for the last week, got a glimmer of hope on Wednesday after they got news that a contract to repair the school’s leaking sewer had been awarded to a contractor.

The school has been closed since last week Wednesday and its 888 students were sent home indefinitely because of problems resulting from the malfunctioning sewer system.

Upset parents staged a protest outside the Xavier Street School on Wednesday. They said the school term was critical for students doing the Continuous Assessment Component course work aspect for next year’s Secondary Entrance Assessment.

A ministry official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told the T&T Guardian approval for the award of a contract for repair work to the sewer system had been granted.

“Works to address the situation will begin shortly. It will take about one week, depending on the weather, so there will be no need to relocate the students,” said the official.

Contacted for a response, president of the Chaguanas Government Primary’s Parent/Teacher’s Association (PTA), Lyndon Mohammed, said: “That is excellent news. They have heard us and have responded. The problem is getting the project started. If they start tomorrow (Thursday) they can finish by early next week.”

The Chaguanas PTA posted on its Facebook page that the school had confirmed the Education Facilities Company Ltd (EFCL) was given the green light to secure a contractor and go ahead with the project.

“We called the school and they told us the EFCL was given the go-ahead to find a contractor for the job,” Mohammed told the Guardian.

Parents, responding on Facebook, said they hoped their children would resume classes on Monday.

Others thanked the PTA for its prompt and decisive action, saying that had a big part to play in the project getting the green light.

Mohammed and some 60 parents staged a peaceful protest outside the school’s gate on Wednesday morning.

Their action came after they had met with the school’s acting principal, Melissa Mitchell, on Monday, over the closure of the school.

Students were sent home because of the stench from the overflowing sewer plant. Mohammed said Mitchell told parents on Monday the school remained closed until the problem could be rectified.

“We gave them until yesterday to fix the problem. We said if the school remained closed we will protest,” he added.

He said parents met the school’s gate closed yesterday and assembled outside in protest. He said the school’s vice-principal came out and told the parents that a Water and Sewerage Authority report on the sewer system was sent to EFCL, the state body in charge of the maintenance of sewer systems in schools.

The EFCL sent the report to the ministry and was awaiting a signing off, the vice-principal had said.

Three senior local Defence Force officers have been highly recognised by the United States Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM) following an annual workshop of the Military Legal Committee of the Americas (COJUMA) held in Port-of-Spain.

The officers who received special commendation from General John F Kelly, Commander US Southern Command were:

• Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Gomez; Assistant Chief Staff Officer Sustainment and chairman of the COJUMA secretariat

•Lieutenant Colonel Sheldon Ramanan; Deputy Director Staff Judge Advocate General and Workshop Co-ordinator 

• Major Al Alexander, Senior Public Affairs Officer and Conference Protocol and Events Coordinator. 

Lt Col Ramanan received a second commendation for his efforts from Marine Col Joseph G Bowe, the Staff Judge Advocate, US Southern Command.

The workshop hosted several regional and international legal military minds and addressed several legal issues confronting this hemisphere and in particular national security challenges such as maritime border security and counter-terrorism concerns. 

A statement said: “The planning, co-ordination and execution of the workshop was flawless and its success was due in no small part to the Defence Force secretariat that was tasked to ensure that all aspects of the workshop were perfectly executed.” 

“The success of this conference was further evidenced by the production of a white paper on Developing a Robust Maritime/Border Security and Counter Terrorism Strategy.

In recognition of the standard set at this workshop all members of the COJUMA secretariat, including those recognised by USSOUTHCOM, were presented with a certificate of commendation by the Chief of Defence Staff Maj Gen Kenrick Maharaj on Monday at the Defence Force Headquarters, Chaguaramas. 

Government has appointed a committee to examine all contract workers in the public sector as a matter of priority, Communications Minister Maxie Cuffie announced yesterday, noting a huge number of such positions in the sector.

At Thursday’s weekly government press conference, held at the Office of the Prime Minister, St Clair, Cuffie said the move was in keeping with a promise made in the People’s National Movement’s manifesto.

The announcement follows the non-renewal of short-term contract employees at various government ministries who Prime Minister Keith Rowley said were hired as part of the electioneering of the previous People’s Partnership administration.

Cuffie said the committee would be chaired by Sandra Jones (permanent secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister), acting Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) Beresford Riley, as well as representatives of finance and labour.

The team will receive terms of reference soon. 

While Cuffie said he didn’t want to pre-judge their work, he said there were a wide range of contract employees in the public service and the number has been growing. He said the committee would see how best Government could go forward. “There’s a huge number of contract employment in the public service; we’ve reached a point where it’s impacting on government’s delivery, but it also has implications for those people employed in the public service,” he said.

Cuffie said it was not something Government could make an ad hoc decision on. For this reason, he said, the committee included representatives from the CPO’s division, Director of Personnel Administration and all agencies involved in securing contract employment in the public service.

NEW BOARDS ANNOUNCED

Cuffie also announced board appointments for the National Agricultural Marketing and Development Corporation (Namdevco), Metal Industries Company Ltd (MIC) and the Regulated Industries Commission (RIC).

The Namdevco board comprises Dennis Ramdeen (chairman), Julianne Davis, Wayne Innis (deputy chairman), Sateish Ojah, Rayber Bowen, Anne Marie Dardaine, Clarence Jacobs and Felix Clarke.

The MIC board comprises Professor Clement Imbert (chairman), Keith Toby, Delbert Edwards, Winston Boodoo, Mark Sandy, Gail Ragoo and Reynold Rooks. The RIC board comprises former Teaching Service Commission chairman Hyacinth Guy (chairman), Shalini Campbell, Clayton Blackman, Dexter Joseph, Vin Lutchman and Dr Arielle John.

RALPH BANWARIE

A neighbour of a 62-year-old retired nurse, who suffocated on a towel stuffed in her mouth, appeared in court yesterday charged with her murder.

Simeon Garcia, 29, unemployed, of Cocorite Drive, North Eastern Settlement, Ojoe Road, Sangre Grande, was remanded into custody by Sangre Grande Magistrate Siumungal Ramsaran to reappear on December 9.

Dressed in a blue long-sleeved shirt and grey pants, Garcia stood silently as Ramsaran read the murder charge. The State alleges that on October 18, he murdered mother of five, Savitri Juteram, at her Jacob Coat Road, North Eastern Settlement home.

Garcia lived three houses away from Juteram. 

Relatives of the victim and other members of the public gathered outside the courthouse to catch a glimpse of the accused as he made his way from the nearby police station to the court.

Onlookers hurled abuse at Garcia as he was escorted by police officers. Some shouted “Shame on you man, you need to be punished.”

Garcia was arrested by Sangre Grande Task Force officers last Friday and handed over to homicide investigators of Region 11, Arouca.

The accused was charged after instructions from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. 

Police investigators say they intend to arrest three more people for the crime.

WPC Joseph-Gibson laid the charge.

One relative who attended yesterday’s hearing said they were happy someone was charged.

“We all missed our mother, and this Christmas will be very sad as we have no mother to visit and purchase gifts for but await the trial and its outcome,” he said.

“There will be no Rudy 2020!”

This was the assurance given to United National Congress (UNC) supporters at the Rienzi Complex, Couva, on Thursday night as Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal announced his slate for the party’s internal election.

Moonilal introduced his picks for all but one on his Loyalist slate, saying the third deputy political leader would be introduced in the coming days. 

The party will hold internal elections on December 5 to select a new leader and executive.

Throwing jabs at the party’s incumbent, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who is seeking re-election, Moonilal said if elected he would present a team and not an individual to contest general elections. 

“In 2020, there will be no ‘Rudy2020,’ there will be UNC 2020,” Moonilal said. 

“We will not be scrambling for candidates, putting them in the morning and remove them by night.”

He was referring to the UNC’s selection and removal of Roger Morales as Mayaro MP for the September 7 general election. 

Morales was replaced by Rushton Paray after a video of Morales criticising the UNC was leaked on social media. 

Although he paid tribute to Persad-Bissessar for her leadership, Moonilal urged supporters not to vote on the basis of sentiment in the upcoming election.

“I salute her for her leadership, but this is not the time for sympathy. 

“I can bring a slate weeks before nomination day, we must not take long and make the wrong decisions.”

Sending out a message to the third contender for the position, Vasant Bharath, Moonilal urged him to rethink.

“I see we have one contender for leadership, my brother Vasant Bharath, who is not an elected Member of the Parliament. This is a recipe for chaos. We cannot have a political leader who is not the leader of the Opposition.”

Referring to the dual leadership of the UNC in 2007, where Winston Dookeran was political leader and Basdeo Panday opposition leader, Moonilal said: “We will then have two leaders in the UNC, a situation that could split the party asunder as happened before, causing us to lose the elections in 2007.”

He questioned how Bharath would act as leader, saying: “Is he going to sit in Rienzi, draft a party agenda and give it to someone else to take to Parliament?”

He then invited Bharath to join the Loyalist slate.

“I am asking Vasant, for the sake of the party, to think carefully. 

“There are other very senior positions in the party for which he is eminently qualified. Join us and we can discuss this.”

Moonilal also announced plans to hold 70 cottage meetings across T&T before the December 5 elections. 

He said if selected, he would begin screening candidates for the 2016 Local Government elections as early as January 2016 and have a local government manifesto ready by May 2016.

“We will start screening candidates in January, to get the best possible team so the UNC can claim victory in local government elections.”

Moonilal’s loyalist slate

Regional Representatives

Tobago Barrington ‘Skippy’ Thomas

South Joanne Leacock

Central Devika Thomas

North/West Cassandra Samuel

North East Sharla Alexander

International Relations Officer Ken Emrit

Party Organiser Jairam Seemungal

Treasurer Neil Gosine

Elections Officer Nela Khan

Education Officer Usha Rampersad

Policy and Strategy Officer Colin Partap

Research Officer Yvette Richards

Deputy Chairman Jehan Mohammed

Chairman Dr Tim Gopeesingh 

Deputy Political Leader James Lambert

Deputy Political Leader Larry Lalla

Mickela Panday has put to rest speculation that she intends to follow in the footsteps of her father and contest the top or any other post in the December 5 internal elections of the United National Congress (UNC).

Panday, daughter of UNC founder former prime minister Basdeo Panday, announced yesterday that she would be sitting this election out because of numerous irregularities in the process.

The young attorney, who has represented the party in the Oropouche West constituency, made it clear that although she was approached by both Dr Roodal Moonilal, who is contesting the top position on the Loyalist slate and Vasant Bharath, who is expected to announce his slate today, she would not be joining either of their slates. She said she also could not endorse any of the candidates who sat idly by for five years and did nothing to save the party.

Panday said instead of fighting for a position, she would embark on a campaign to restore democracy to the party.

“This election should not be about who will be leader, it should be about how we can save the party from those who sat by and did nothing as it was dying a slow death. But our members need to first understand, believe and accept, it is not the leader or the national executive that holds the power, it is the members themselves.”

Flanked by UNC foundation member John Humphrey, former Tabaquite MP Dr Adesh Nanan and former executive member Vashist Maharaj, in the Basdeo Panday Foundation Conference room at the Rienzi Complex, Couva, Panday declared, “My campaign begins today.”

She said she would be sensitising the membership to the irregularities and illegalities in the electoral process.

“As long as the party is run by people perceived to be corrupt, it will never see power. We cannot expect to do the same thing over and over and get different results.”

She also questioned the validity of the elections, “given the constitutional term limits of both the incumbent leader and all other 17 members of the national executive officers had expired. Surely, if you are not duly elected, it follows you can’t make decisions and speak on behalf of the membership.”

She said she gave consideration to heading a slate after being approached by people to do so, although people she respected, including her father, advised against it unless the elections would be free and fair.

Nevertheless, Panday said, she felt it important to give people the benefit of the doubt and so she attempted to get basic information, such as whether her name was on the UNC’s current membership list, but she encountered a brick wall every step of the way.

Panday said she was shocked at the irregular and highly unreasonable request that she, a life member who has never sought political membership of another party in the country, should submit her name to the office for verification. She said she was still awaiting confirmation of her membership number and to ascertain that her name was on the electoral list. She said impossible and unrealistic two-day deadlines were also set for registration of new members and to date she was still awaiting membership forms for new members.

“Why would a political party be afraid of people joining?” she asked.

“It is unacceptable in a party where the incumbent leader continues to preach democracy, such dictatorial decisions are being taken. 

“In these circumstances and without a valid, updated membership list, I am convinced the election will not be free or fair. Not only will my contesting indicate an acceptance of this madness, it will guarantee things never change and we will be destined to continuously repeat our mistakes of the past and never move forward.”

She added, “Immediately, we have to take steps to return our party to the ideological position on which it was founded, to restore the democracy and dignity of the party, so that all of its members, old and new, can hold their heads up high and be proud of their party.”

She said her campaign to educate and remind members of the ideology that led to the foundation of the party would start next week.

“After such time, the members will have to decide if they wish to participate in the elections on December 5, and if they decide not to, they must demand those strangling the party release it and hold free and fair elections that not only the members, but the public at large, can have confidence in.”

A secret contract millhouse was discovered at the Education Facilities Company Ltd (EFCL) in Maraval, and armed guards have been called in to secure a mountain of potentially damning evidence which points to the illegal manufacturing of backdated tender documents worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

The discovery was made one day after the new board of the state-owned company suspended its Chief Executive Officer Kiran Shah and Chief Operating Officer Sharma Maharaj over claims of impropriety.

Informed sources told the T&T Guardian that a member of the board found the “secret room” on the first floor of the Maraval building, which is opposite the Country Club and also houses the main branch of FirstCaribbean International Bank (Trinidad and Tobago) Ltd. EFCL occupies the second floor of the building and, unknown to staff, another room was rented on the first floor.

Sources said a new board member was stunned after finding three people busy at work in the “secret room” and called in security after realising they were working on EFCL business. The three people in the room, and another who was subsequently found to be part of the same operation, were sent home and their access to information technology at the company was suspended, sources said.

Accounting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers has been called in to conduct a forensic audit of the company and has already taken a snapshot of the systems used in the ‘millhouse.’

Sources said they have already discovered that the four select employees were hired to create contracts and tender documents for several existing projects which were already paid for in full. This was being done, according to company insiders, to validate the tendering processes to make them appear transparent and legal.

A preliminary report has revealed that contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars were given out to select contractors in the run-up to the September 7 general election and they were paid in full without any work being done. Two contractors, who are financiers of the United National Congress, have been identified as the major beneficiaries of the scheme, sources said.

Sources said the forensic audit and a criminal investigation by the Anti-Corruption Investigations Bureau, which began in April, triggered this week’s suspension of the two executive officers.

A whistleblower initially went to the police with a 108-page dossier detailing several instances of fraud and mismanagement. This sparked a police investigation centering around the award of several contracts over the last five years.

Sources said efforts had been made to axe the whistleblower but she stood up against her employers.

The T&T Guardian also learned that the execs’ suspensions come mere months after the dismissal of a female civil engineer who clashed with the seniors over the contract with a preferred EFCL contractor. 

Contacted yesterday, recently installed EFCL chairman Arnold Piggott confirmed the suspensions and audit.

“The forensic audit has commenced immediately and the two were suspended with full pay pending the outcome of the investigation,” he said.

An internal memo, penned by EFCL corporate secretary Verity Bynoe and dated November 13, informed the staff about the suspensions. That memo also informed the staff that international accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers had been retained to conduct the forensic investigation and urged compliance by all staff members.

Piggott noted that the EFCL’s line minister, Education Minister Anthony Garcia, in his budget presentation, had called for a forensic audit into the spending and award of construction contracts by the former board. 

He said while he did not know how long the audit would take, he was hoping it would be completed in a timely manner “so we can move forward.” He said the future of the two suspended officers depended on the outcome of the investigation. 

“Yes the suspensions are pending the outcome of the investigation,” he said.

While Piggott did not say whether the forensic audit and criminal probe were two separate investigations, the T&T Guardian learned that the two would be running parallel and should be completed within the same timeframe. The forensic audit and the probe will focus on the EFCL’s use of two preferred contractors.

The newly installed board of directors, chaired by the former People’s National Movement (PNM) agriculture minister, met for the second time on Wednesday and immediately suspended the two executives as the investigations began. 

About the EFCL

The EFCL is a special state enterprise formed to build, deliver and maintain modern building facilities utilising best practices in project management. 

Its mandate is to ensure the development of modern and efficient physical infrastructure for the Ministry of Education, and support the strategic goals of the ministry. 

The company has been criticised frequently over its inadequate facilities for several schools which remain incomplete, or fail, leaving hundreds of children without accommodation since the new term opened in September.

More info

This is not the first time the EFCL has faced public scrutiny. 

Contacted yesterday, former line minister Dr Tim Gopeesingh would only detail the line of approvals and payment structure between EFCL and the ministry, saying that everything went through the ministry’s permanent secretary and that it was all done above board. 

Back in 2012, then opposition member, now Finance Minister Colm Imbert, described the operations at EFCL as enabling a “feeding frenzy.” Gopeesingh had said then that an audit into EFCL was already in progress and a team from the Finance Ministry was examining operations at EFCL.

Imbert had raised suspicions of “irregularities” in the award of contracts by EFCL and had called for a forensic audit into several scopes of works, including electrical upgrades at Tranquillity Government School and Lakshmi Girls’ Hindu College. Imbert also claimed then that former minister in the Ministry of Education, Clifton De Coteau, used his position to help a friend benefit from EFCL contracts. 

The 20-year-old man charged with murdering prison superintendent David Millette claimed yesterday that he has received death threats from prisons officers. 

Speaking through his lawyer Criston J Williams after appearing in the Port-of-Spain Eighth Magistrates Court yesterday afternoon, Sean “Devil” Coa claimed that the threats were sent through his relatives while he was in police custody over the past week. 

“My instructions are that his relatives were told that prison officers were eagerly awaiting his arrival in prison,” Williams said, as he called upon Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar to intervene to ensure his client’s safety while on remand. 

Without giving any details of the alleged threats, Williams said that his client did not want to be sent to the Golden Grove State Prison in Arouca, from where he believed the threats had emanated. 

In response, police prosecutor Insp Winston Dillon said that Coa had nothing to fear as “Prison Service had measures in place to ensure the safety of all persons under their care.”

Ayers-Caesar did not appear convinced by Dillon’s assurance as she made a note of Coa’s complaint and ruled that he should not be sent to the Arouca facility. 

Coa is accused, together with a group of unknown people, of murdering Millette on November 2. Millette, who had more than 20 years service, was shot dead as he was entering his car in front of his Cipriani Avenue, Second Caledonia, home. He was on the first day of his vacation leave. 

Coa, who surrendered to police a day after Millette’s murder, was also charged with being in possession of an illegal gun and ammunition and possession of the illegal items with intent to endanger life. 

A stony-faced Coa stood silently in the prisoner’s enclosure of the court as the charges were read. 

Moments before his court appearance, Coa made an obscene gesture towards media personnel as he was being led into the St Vincent Street courthouse.

Coa, whose hands were handcuffed in front of him, extended his middle finger and maintained the gesture until he entered the building. None of Coa’s relatives were in court for the brief hearing. 

In addition to the special security measures, Williams also requested that prosecutors disclose the evidence against his client as soon as possible to ensure the speedy start of his case. 

In particular, Williams requested the results of forensic tests performed on spent shells found at the scene of Millette’s murder. 

“The results may implicate or exonerate the accused,” Williams said, as he also requested that investigators disclose whether an illegal firearm was seized and would be used as evidence. 

Coa will reappear in court on December 10. 

A total of 53 illegal immigrants were detained yesterday as a joint task force swooped down on known hideouts along the East/West corridor.

According to a release from the T&T Police Service, the two-hour exercise, which was held at varying points along the Priority Bus Route, from the Aranguez Savannah to Morvant Junction, began at 6 am, and initially led to the detention of 107 foreign nationals. 

They included the following nationalities: 39 Jamaicans, 25 Guyanese, 18 Chinese, five Ghanaians, six Colombians, five Nigerians, two Cubans, one Filipino, two Dominican Republic nationals, one Vincentian and five Grenadians. A total of 16 women were among the detainees.

The task force stopped passenger vehicles travelling along the PBR and foreign nationals suspected of being illegal immigrants were detained after being unable to verify their immigration status at the time. 

The detainees were taken to the Immigration Investigation Department, Port-of-Spain, where further enquiries were conducted leading to the release of 54 foreign nationals whose status in the country was verified and found to be legal.

The remaining foreign nationals were taken to the Immigration Detention Centre, Aripo, pending further investigations as preliminary enquiries suggest they are in the country illegally. 

The raid targeting illegal immigrants was carried out by officers of the Criminal Investigations Department, Inter-Agency Task Force, Immigration Investigation Department, transit police and traffic wardens.

It was co-ordinated by Snr Supt Mc Donald Jacob of the Port-of-Spain Criminal Investigations Department and led by ASP Mervyn Edwards, assisted by immigration officers.

Two men, charged with separate assaults on a two-year-old girl and a 36-year-old woman, after videos of the incidents went viral on social media, are closer to coming out of prison. 

Dexter Gobin, of Maracas, St Joseph, and Ricardo Jerome, of Oropune Gardens, Piarco, obtained variations to their bail yesterday.

Gobin, who is charged with wilfully assaulting the toddler while attempting to force feed the child a bottle of milk, applied to High Court Judge Norton Jack for his $175,000 bail to be reduced to a more “manageable sum.”

After hearing submissions from Gobin’s lawyer, Fareed Ali, in the Port-of-Spain High Court yesterday, Jack reduced the bail to $100,000. 

However, Jack maintained the conditions of his bail initially granted on October 26, which stipulated that he stay away from the victim and her family and that he should report to police three times weekly. 

His wife, Yanique Taylor-Gobin, a Jamaican national, was also charged but was denied bail as she was found to have overstayed her time in T&T. She will remain detained at the Immigration Detention Centre in Aripo until the case is determined. 

Last night CNC3 reported that the teen who video-taped the incident and her mother have been threatened by a relative of Gobin and were offered protection at a safe house.

Meanwhile, Jerome, an Arouca bar owner and labourer with the Customs and Excise Division, who is accused of assaulting his common-law wife, Ornella Ruth Marchan, at Nella’s Sports bar, in Arima Old Road, last week, also managed to secure a variation of his bail. 

Jerome, who was granted $60,000 bail on Monday when he first appeared in court, was unable to access it because of administrative issues at the Arima Magistrates Court. He was due to reappear before Magistrate Debbie-Ann Bassaw yesterday. However, when the case was called in court, Ali, who is also representing him, learnt that his client had not been brought to court by prison authorities. 

In his absence, Bassaw agreed to reduce his bail and allow for a cash deposit of $10,000.

Jerome is charged with causing a public disturbance, assault by beating and possession of a weapon. He surrendered to police last week after a short clip, allegedly depicting him attacking his common-law wife with a metal object and then repeatedly kicking her while she was on the ground, went viral.

Despite both men receiving the variations the T&T Guardian understands that neither was able to secure their bail up to late yesterday, effectively forcing them to spend the weekend on remand. 

(DA) 

Proposed legislation to protect whistleblowers from prosecution, victimisation, harassment and danger to their employment, as well as the past People’s Partnership government’s procurement/disposal of public property legislation, has been forwarded to parliamentary Joint Select Committees (JSC) for scrutiny.

This was done at yesterday’s parliament session. Two JSCs appointed to examine the bills are to report back by January 22, 2016.

Attorney-General Faris Al-Rawi said the whistleblower protection bill was necessary due to the paucity of witnesses.

“Everyone suspects who is guilty but no one steps forward to testify to guilt-bearing evidence. The fear of victimisation and reprisal for honest exposure is not only perceived but real,” he said.

The bill is a hybrid based on models in Malta, Jamaica and Malaysia, he said. He said it would protect people from criminal or civil suit, and would also cover detrimental action ranging from victimisation and harassment to injury, loss or damage to employment, family life, career, profession, trade or business. Malicious or fraudulent action on the part of the whistleblower is taken into account in the bill.

Al-Rawi also said his ministry was dealing with the legislative mechanism for the appointment of a commissioner of police, which was expected to be completed by monthend. 

Finance Minister Colm Imbert, speaking about the procurement bill, said the JSC scrutiny would examine the policy and merits of the legislation and procedures for appointing a procurement regulator to see if these “make sense and are in the best interests of T&T.”

However, former planning minister Dr Bhoe Tewarie, who had piloted the procurement bill under the PP, accused the Government of delaying on the bill and attempting to water it down. He said the procurement regulator was the strongest aspect of the bill. Al-Rawi subsequently denied this, saying the Government aimed to strengthen the role of the regulator. He said the bill would cover procurement concerning all state land. 

The JSC which will examine the whistleblower legislation comprises government ministers Al-Rawi, Stuart Young, Edmund Dillon, an opposition MP and four senators to be named. 

The JSC examining the procurement bill comprises Ministers Imbert, Cherrie Ann Cockburn-Crichlow, Adrian Leonce, an opposition MP and four senators.

Also in Parliament, Imbert, replying to opposition questions, said a certificate in the sum of $102 million has been made in favour of OAS (Constructora) and the Government was carefully considering this and all matters of a contractual nature regarding the Point Fortin highway contract. 

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh, in addressing the House on another matter, also said that based on World Health Organisation statistics on non-communicable diseases, T&T hadn’t progressed between 1990 and 2013. He noted factors, including pre-existing conditions such as obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure. He also noted lack of succession planning in public institutions and the length of experience of doctors.

Deyalsingh said the ministry would meet next Wednesday with stakeholders and would go through the 76 recommendations made on the situation arising from various reports. He said very few were implemented and those would start being implemented as of Wednesday.

The ease of doing business in T&T could be hampered by recent downgrades of the country by the US and Canada concerning our compliance with Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) recommendations, Attorney-General Faris Al-Rawi said yesterday.

In a statement to Parliament in which Al-Rawi also announced T&T had now assumed the chairmanship of Caribbean FATF, he said, “This Government fully acknowledges its responsibility to the people and the international community to achieve effective systems to address the threats of money laundering, the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. As the incoming chair of CFATF and host nation of the secretariat, we have an even higher duty in this regard.”

The FATF’s 40 recommendations include implementing adequate procedures to identify and freeze terrorist assets without delay, implementing adequate procedures for the confiscation of funds related to money laundering and ensuring a fully operational and effectively functioning Financial Intelligence Unit, including supervisory powers.

The evaluation used to verify compliance with FATF recommendations involves a team of regional experts in the legal, financial and law enforcement fields examining T&T’s regime on the issue.

Al-Rawi said T&T’s fourth-round evaluation in June 2014 included a site assessment in January 2015.

“T&T must now seek adjustments to the ratings and observations of the assessors as appropriate. The evaluation will culminate with the report being discussed and finalised at the XLII Plenary this month, when we’ll also ascend to the chair of CFATF.”

On November 22 there will also be a meeting, including T&T representatives, the assessors and reviewers, to attempt to resolve any outstanding issues. At that meeting, ratings will be finalised and a determination made on what action is to be taken in respect of T&T.

Al-Rawi added: “No one should have expected T&T to be cut any slack by its contemporaries in the mutual evaluation. There are already calls for further downgrades of some of the ratings given to our country. 

“In respect of Immediate Outcome 1 (Risk, Policy and Coordination), the United States has recommended that we be downgraded from moderate to low. 

Gaps in respect of transparency of beneficial ownership of legal persons and regulation of the non-profit organisation sector are also high on the list of concerns of the Americans. 

“With respect to Recommendation 29—Financial Intelligence Units, Canada has recommended that we be downgraded from ‘largely compliant’ to ‘partially compliant’ based on the hiring system in respect of the FIU. Canada has also made similar recommendations in respect of Recommendations 27 (Powers of Supervisors) and 34 (Guidance and Feedback).”

Al-Rawi added, “Canada also highlighted that several immediate outcomes point to substantial lack of effectiveness due to deficiencies with the sanctions regime. The Government will strongly defend the national position. 

The inter-ministerial committee will continue to work with the National Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism Committee to select the strongest team to represent the country in the evaluation review. We’ve identified several statements and conclusions in the report that we view as inaccurate and which should be reviewed and amended.”

Al-Rawi said the upcoming plenary could also adopt other measures, ranging from a letter being sent from the CFATF chairman drawing attention to the lack of compliance with the FATF Standards, to suspension of membership in CFATF, to termination of membership.

“Any level of sanctions can have wide-ranging negative impacts on the country and citizens. The comments already received from the United States and Canada do not bode well for our position. 

The international investment marketplace is increasingly using mutual evaluations and follow-up reports and data on AML/CFT compliance to place and maintain foreign direct investments.

“Conversely, we may encounter challenges to capital investments abroad by government wholly or majority-owned entities. Multi-national financial institutions may also reconsider their tenability in a country with weak ratings to avoid being stained through association and possible declines in their share pricing.”

The ease of doing business in T&T, especially through financial institutions, could also be hampered, he said. Al-Rawi said T&T would likely have to report on further progress in May 2017.

Action

AG Al-Rawi said a complete assessment of the legislative requirements to correct the legislative deficiencies would be completed shortly, including key amendments to address confiscation and restraint of assets under the Proceeds of Crime Act and the freezing of assets under the Anti-Terrorism Act. 

The Anti-Terrorism Act will also be amended to strengthen the terrorism and terrorist financing sanctions regime, including financing travel for the purpose of partaking in terrorist training. 

“We’ll explore amendments to the Financial Intelligence Unit Act to allow for greater autonomy and strengthened powers of this critical regulator,” he said. 

“The Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act will also be amended to allow the Central Authority to accede to a request that relates to a criminal offence under the tax laws of a Commonwealth country. 

“Procedural mechanisms to support the legislative regimes will also be strengthened, including, for example, the formalisation of a case management system for the Central Authority and the implementation of the seized assets fund. Greater emphasis will also be placed on effectiveness mechanisms.”

Al-Rawi said higher priority must be given to the investigation and prosecution of offences. 

“This will require us to ensure that institutions such as the Financial Investigations Branch (FIB) and the DPP are staffed by adequately trained and experienced personnel and there is effective communication and information sharing among the intelligence community, law enforcement investigators and prosecutors...” 

Minutes after launching the slate for his newly-formed “Team Reconnect” at the Couva South Hall yesterday, Vasant Bharath raised concerns about the United National Congress’ (UNC) internal elections process, saying he does not believe it would be free and fair when voters go to the polls on December 5.

“I do have concerns.... serious concerns. I have alluded to the fact that people have said to me that they received a text message that I sent to them asking whether they would support me.”

But he denied sending text messages to UNC members who are illegible to vote and warned that he would “expose” the irregularities in the elections “in due course.” 

“But I suspect from what I am told that those text messages are being used to take supporters of certain contenders off the (electoral) list,” he said.

In the lead up to the September 7 general election voters also received unsolicited telephone calls to private mobile numbers aimed at seeking their support for the UNC. Told that allegation he was making was similar to one of the strategies used in former prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s general election campaign, Bharath said he could not say that.

“The point I am signalling to the existing national executive at Rienzi Complex and hierarchy of the party is that we are going to be very vigilant in terms of the areas where we believe there can be manipulation of the votes.”

Bharath said he found out about the calls by accident on Thursday.

“Someone came to me and apologised for not responding to the text messages. I knew nothing about it,” he said.

Bharath said, however, that it was impossible to control the election process to ensure that it was free and fair.

“This is what Mr (Basdeo) Panday has been alluding to.” (See page 17)

Addressing a small group of party supporters at the venue, Bharath said based on previous campaigns he suspects the election will get nasty.

“I don’t hold out much hope that it’s going to be very clean,” he said.

Among those present at the launch were Garvin Nicholas, Stacy Roopnarine and Stephen Cadiz, who are part of his slate, Dhanoo Sookoo, Manohar Ramsaran and Gideon Hanoomansingh.

Asked if he was not successful at the polls what would be his next move, Bharath said he intends to take things one step at a time and lead his team to victory.

“The intention is to reconnect with the UNC population and thereafter with the wider population. We have a lot of work to do.”

Bharath said he was confident he could topple his opponents, Dr Roodal Moonilal and Persad-Bissessar, because he had a strong, experienced, dedicated and young team. Asked what gives him the edge over his contenders, Bharath said he was known regionally and internationally for having what is required to take a local organisation and fix it very quickly. 

Team Reconnect’s campaign will being funded by donations from the business community and ordinary folks, he said.

Bharath said “no longer should we be beholden to a very few financiers, who then unfortunately will extract their pound of flesh from the organisation. We need to move away from that.”

Many wrongs in last 5 years

In the last five years, Bharath said the UNC had made many mistakes, but primarily allowed the institutions of authority to almost irretrievably break down. 

“We were not listening to the people and their concerns and understanding that ultimately the party can only grow or the government could only survive if the party was strong. It may or may not have been deliberate, but at the end of the day the end result was the party’s institutions were allowed to flounder.”

Saying the party would require a lot of healing, Bharath said should he win the leadership post he intends to visit all 41 constituencies with the national executives. He said he would also examine the party’s constitution.

He insisted that the election was not about him or his slate, but the hope of every member and supporter.

Bharath received loud applause when he said that his team would not “tolerate arrogance, high handedness, mediocrity and indiscipline.”

He said several UNC members had complained that quite a few government ministers were arrogant and high handed.

“I think that is what led to our defeat. As you all know, we have an election petition to is currently before the court. 

“And while we eagerly await the outcome of that matter, we must ask ourselves if we are prepared as a party to win those six seats if the matter goes in our favour. Have we recaptured the imagination of those who may not have voted for us. I think we all know the answer,” he said.

Bharath said the wrongs committed by the UNC were when monies were amassed by some over the last five years and used to buy radio stations, journalists and announcers, or remove the names from the membership list because of the perceived preference for one candidate over another.

Bharath said maximum leadership was a recipe for disaster.

“We must treat with allegations of misconduct head on. As a party our future must not be coloured by the inappropriate actions of a few in office. Today, I say to you it is time to move away from the political rhetoric that has nothing to do with improving the quality of your lives but everything to do with selfish leaders wanting to stay in power.”

Team Reconnect slate

Vasant Bharath—leader

Dr Fuad Khan—chairman (MP for San Juan/Barataria)

Garvin Nicholas—deputy political leader 

Stephen Cadiz—deputy political leader 

Rishi Tripathi—regional coordinator central

Dr Ramchand Rampersad—policy and strategy officer

Rishi Ramkissoon—treasurer

Ralph Henry—north/west regional coordinator

Prakash Williams—elections officer

Camille Elie-Govind—south coordinator

Sharon Harrilal—international relations officer

Valini Chadee-Dhanraj—research officer

Vishnu Koon Koon—regional coordinator north/east

Shane Mohammed—vice chairman

Wazeer Aleem—party organiser

Nirmala Sesnarayan—education officer

The half-a-billion United States dollars injected into the system by the Central Bank to ease the currency crisis in the country has already been used up by the business community. 

On October 29, Minister of Finance Colm Imbert mandated that some US$500 million be immediately injected into the banking system. 

The massive injection was expected to clear existing trade credit and also ease some of the currency crunch being experienced by private citizens and small businesses; hardship which many argued was caused by the new foreign exchange system which was introduced last year. 

The injection was also meant to clear the way for the smooth return to the old system of purchasing currency, which Imbert mandated Central Bank Governor Jwala Rambaran to reimplement last month due to the issues with the new system.

However, the Sunday Guardian has been reliably informed that the majority of that money has already been soaked up by the big business sector, leaving private citizens and small business owners still scrambling to access US dollars.

Visits by the Sunday Guardian to several banks throughout T&T last week revealed that customers and small business were only being afforded US$200 per day. Upset customers who called the Central Bank about their woes were merely directed back to commercial bank branch managers if they hoped to be allowed to buy more US.

One bank executive, speaking under the condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, explained that “trade creditors” were responsible for the quick absorption of the US$500 million injected into the system last month. She said the concern for currency now stemmed from the fact that the quick absorption meant little ease to the daily hassle faced by the banks’ clientele.

“The money is gone,” she said.

“If you go to stores, high-end stores, you would see where the money is. 

“It has been used by business owners to stock stores, but the US injected into the system is just not coming back into the country. We are just not earning enough of it.” 

Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers Association (TTMA) president, former senator Rolph Balgobin, agreed that the money was already utilised to pay off existing debts incurred by the business community. He said, however, that the TTMA was not concerned about the shortage affecting businesses.

“The US$500 million injection was to clear the existing overhang in the system. Once that was cleared up, even with the implementation of the old system of allocation, it would still take some time before it would ease the need for the US currency,” he told the Sunday Guardian.

Apart from the fact that buyers can now only access US$200 per day through the legitimate banking system, they are also doing so at an increased exchange rate of US$1 to TT$6.43. The currency crisis has, however, also now facilitated the growth of a black market exchange trade, with purchasers being offered the now scarce US currency at a TT$7 rate.

According to RBC’s October 2015 Caribbean Economic Report, local business owners and private citizens accessed some US$695 million in October 2015 alone, meaning that the total amount of US injected into the local banking system had reached unprecedented figures by the end of October. 

The RBC report stated that the year-to-date total was now just under US$2.5 billion, which signalled “an increase of just over US$1.0 billion or 73 per cent over the same period last year.”

When it released the US$500 million on October 29, the Central Bank was reported as saying that T&T’s net official reserves remained at US$10.1 billion, which it said was equivalent to almost one year’s worth of imports.

DOMA boss concerned

Head of the Downtown Owners and Merchants Association (DOMA) Gregory Aboud said he too understood the business absorption took the majority of the latest injection, leaving private citizens in difficulty.

“It helped dissolve the existing backlog, queued among commercial interests and the business community,” Aboud said.

“But it seems now that another queue has developed and indeed that private citizens are still experiencing tremendous difficulty in accessing foreign exchange.” 

Aboud said, however, that only rational and frank national discussions would help the country better understand the currency crisis facing the country.

“Now it seems for some reason that the exchange rate has come to be known as a sort of economic barometer for measuring the performance of regional governments. We do not know if that phenomena is at work in T&T, but we do know that any shortage and scarcity points to a discussion regarding the price of the commodity,” Aboud said.

The Central Bank, which has now fully reverted to the original allocation method, is expected to provide a full analysis on the operations of the FX market early next month.

The Sunday Guardian texted Imbert seeking clarification on where the injection went and if the currency crisis could be rectified before the very busy Christmas season but was unable to get an explanation from him.

But the Central Bank said it has been receiving reports from the commercial banking sector on the daily movement of the foreign exchange (FX) in the system since its injection.

“The US$500m intervention was mainly to settle trade related transactions,” communications manger Charlene Ramdhanie explained in an email exchange.

She said that the free market system governing banking in T&T means that commercial banks can use their own discretion on who and how much to sell when approached by a would-be buyer.

“Central Bank does not determine what FX amount customers receive, when they receive FX/who gets FX...Apart from our intervention, commercial banks receive FX from the energy companies, other companies and the public which can be used to meet demand,” she said.