Acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert has admitted that the People’s National Movement (PNM) Government has taken note of two independent polls conducted on its two-year performance in office.

One of the polls, the GML-commissioned Louis Bertrand pool was published in the T&T Guardian on Thursday.

Bertrand’s poll stated that the PNM administration was deemed to be taking the country “in the wrong direction” by the majority of respondents in a survey of Government’s performance in the last 24 months.

The findings of the opinion poll conducted by Bertrand’s HHB and Associates showed this to be the view of a startling 83 per cent of respondents. Crime and violence was ranked as the single most pressing problem facing T&T by 66 per cent of respondents.

Pressed on the poll’s findings yesterday, Imbert said the Government had taken note of it.

“We don’t ignore these things. But we don’t overreact either. So we have taken a note of it and go through the information and we will act accordingly.”

Everyday, Imbert said he reads the three daily newspapers, with the exception of the comic strips and classifieds.

“We read the papers every day. We read everything in the newspapers. We internalise it. We digest it,” he said.

“We look at it to determine if we agree with it or not. We determine what we need to do. We have taken note of everything that has been published.”

Imbert said this included the advice given by political analysts, who suggested that Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley take a firmer grip on his Cabinet as the polls were an indication of a wake-up call for the Government.

While the Government may not agree on some of the issues published, Imbert said: “If we don’t read the newspapers we would not be educating ourselves on how other people think about us.”

Less than two hours after the House of Representatives convened after nine weeks of vacation it was adjourned to September 15, much to the chagrin of the Opposition. The move was made in just under an hour of debate after questions were answered the Speaker had to use her casting vote three times.

MPs were debating motions on Senate amendments to the Bail (Access to Bail) (Amendment) Bill, 2017, which sought to address the issue of people who may become flight risks and abscond from bail.

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi said what was being proposed was that “any form of security which a judicial officer may give as a requirement for a condition of bail, be it cash, be it property, be it a bond from a licensed financial institution, whatever it may be or any combination as we now propose, that the form of security be one which can be subject to forfeiture with the consent of the defendant in the circumstances set out in the bill.”

He said there is no mandatory statement of law that the provision of security can only be in very narrow circumstances. In fact, he said the practice in the High Court, magistracy and the Court of Appeal with respect to the application or requirement to give security is not one which is uncommon.

But Opposition leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar again raised Opposition concerns made during the debate that “we, in a period when crime is the number one issue in the country, and here we are making it easier for access to bail, that is what amendments are for.”

Persad-Bissessar said on the one hand the Parliament was being asked to “ease up that process and on the other hand we are being asked to consider elsewhere locking down bail with respect to crimes given this very horrid situation.”

She said the Opposition was “not in a position to support the amendments.”

With no Opposition support likely and with the Government bench down by at least two of its members - Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, who is out of the country and La Horquetta/Talparo MP Maxie Cuffie, who is hospitalised, Leader of Government Business Camille Robinson-Regis suggested that the house adjourn debate on motion one and move on to motion two.

But Point-a-Pierre MP David Lee objected on the grounds that “we came after a long vacation to do the people’s business.”

A division was taken. The result was 17 for, 17 against with no abstentions. Speaker Bridgid Annisette-George used her casting vote in favour of the Government.

Robinson-Regis then proposed that the motion dealing with the Senate amendments to the Criminal Procedure (Plea Discussion and Plea Agreement) Bill, 2017 be dealt with. The Opposition again objected. A division was taken with a similar result - 17,17, no abstentions - and the Speaker again used her casting vote in favour of the Government.

Robinson-Regis then moved that the House be adjourned to September 15 at 1.30 pm.

However, Lee again objected saying it was “disheartening after nine weeks of vacation” they could not debate the matter.

The Speaker then put the question for the adjournment of the house to the floor and again a division was called for. The end result was 17, 17, no abstentions and she used her casting vote. The house was the adjourned.

Persad-Bissessar later told the media the Speaker had saved the day for the Government, whom she said came to the Parliament unprepared after nine weeks of vacation.

A Lance Corporal with the T&T Regiment was released on $80,000 bail when he appeared in court yesterday charged with sexually assaulting two minors ages eight and 14. The offences are alleged to have taken place almost three years ago.

Curt Collins appeared before Magistrate Adia Mohammed in the Port-of-Spain court. He was not called upon to plead to the charges.

As with all cases of sexual offences, Mohammed cleared the courtroom of members of the public including media personnel before the soldier’s appearance.

Only police officers, his relatives, his attorney Brent Winter and a uniformed member of the Regiment’s Military Police were allowed in court for the hearing.

The soldier is accused of three charges of indecently assaulting the children in 2014.

His father was accepted as surety for his bail by Mohammed but his relatives were still seeking approval of his bail bond to secure his release up to late yesterday.

The soldier was arrested by Cpl Reyes of the Carenage Police Station at e Teteron Base in Chaguaramas on Thursday at the end of an investigation which began after the children told their parents of the attacks and they were reported to police.

Hewas remanded to reappear in court on September 22.

Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh says the public health systems continue to be overburdened because in many instances, patients, including pregnant women, fail to take personal responsibility.

Speaking at a press conference held at the ministry’s office in Port-of-Spain yesterday Deyalsingh said too often when patients go to the public hospitals they fail to take important information including their blood work and in the case of pregnant women, their ultrasound copies.

Citing an example Deyalsingh said on Thursday he was speaking to an obstetrician in the public sector who told him that after spending close to 45 minutes with a pregnant patient it was learnt that the patient failed to walk with past ultra sound reports.

“We now have to do another ultra sound. So because persons don’t take some responsibility it clogs the system and this is multiplied over and over,” he added.

Saying it was difficult not to have any maternal deaths in any country Deyalsingh said in any country where there are 100,000 live births per year there should be more than 13 women dying in child birth.

“When you scale that down to Trinidad where you have about 17,000 to 18,000 live births per year it means we should not have more than four per year,” Deyalsingh said.

He said for this year to date there were three recorded deaths in the public sector and one in the private sector.

Compared to the same period last year, Deyalsingh said there were no more than “three or fours deaths.”

“All in the public sector have been due to patient factors not due to any fault of the public health system.

“The one in the private sector in under investigation,” the minister said.

Saying there was “no equity” in health care in this country, Deyalsingh said there were many factors which attributed to this including people who fell into the lower socio-economic strata which placed them at a disadvantage.

“When you look at maternal mortality rates most of the women who die in child birth come from the lower socio-economic backgrounds because they don’t appreciate or have access to anti-natal care.

“ Their health status predisposes them to complications in childbirth like diabetes and obesity,” Deyalsingh said.

Pressed that those from poor background ought to access an acceptable level of health care the minister said while public health care was always free it was, however, a “partnership” and urged people to be more conscious of their personal health.

In a bid to locate T&T nationals in the hurricane-affected Caribbean countries, Ministry of Foreign and Caricom Affairs officials are urging nationals and/or their families to make urgent contact with them.

Yesterday, Trinidadian Tim Nagee, who is said to be stranded at a St Maarten resort with partner Charlotte Ramnath, said in a video posted to his Facebook timeline that he was not sure how and when they would be able to leave the island.

“We need to get out because another storm is on its way. The place is in a mess,” Nagee said in his video.

Nagee attempted to describe the situation there now, saying there was severe looting.

“In a matter of hours everything so changed. Staff here at the hotel have all lost their homes and they have brought their families in here and still their really helpful and trying their best,” Nagee said.

Jose is said to be about 435 miles (700 km) east-southeast of the Northern Leeward Islands with maximum sustained winds of 150 miles per hour (240 kph). The National Hurricane Center advised yesterday that Jose has gained in strength and intensified into an extremely dangerous Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson wind scale.

All information of missing T&T nationals, such as names; dates of birth; Passport bio-data and contact information are to be sent to the ministry via consular@foreign.gov.tt

Contact can also be made via telephone at 868-715-2154.

Local individuals and organisations wishing to provide assistance to affected countries should contact the Office of the Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM), the coordinating agency, via telephone at emergency number 511 or via email at publicinfo.odpm@gmail.com

Acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert has admitted that the People’s National Movement (PNM) Government has taken note of two independent polls conducted on its two-year performance in office.

One of the polls, the GML-commissioned Louis Bertrand pool was published in the T&T Guardian on Thursday.

Bertrand’s poll stated that the PNM administration was deemed to be taking the country “in the wrong direction” by the majority of respondents in a survey of Government’s performance in the last 24 months.

The findings of the opinion poll conducted by Bertrand’s HHB and Associates showed this to be the view of a startling 83 per cent of respondents. Crime and violence was ranked as the single most pressing problem facing T&T by 66 per cent of respondents.

Pressed on the poll’s findings yesterday, Imbert said the Government had taken note of it.

“We don’t ignore these things. But we don’t overreact either. So we have taken a note of it and go through the information and we will act accordingly.”

Everyday, Imbert said he reads the three daily newspapers, with the exception of the comic strips and classifieds.

“We read the papers every day. We read everything in the newspapers. We internalise it. We digest it,” he said.

“We look at it to determine if we agree with it or not. We determine what we need to do. We have taken note of everything that has been published.”

Imbert said this included the advice given by political analysts, who suggested that Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley take a firmer grip on his Cabinet as the polls were an indication of a wake-up call for the Government.

While the Government may not agree on some of the issues published, Imbert said: “If we don’t read the newspapers we would not be educating ourselves on how other people think about us.”

Des Vignes, Borris at FSC

Pathologists Dr Hughvon De Vignes and Dr Eastlyn McDonald-Borris will handle Forensic Science Centre duties following the recent resignation of forensic pathologist Dr Valery Alexandrov, acting National Security Minister Stuart Young said yesterday.

Replying to United National Congress MP Dr Lackram Bodoe’s queries, Young said Alexandrov’s resignation is effective December 31 - but Alexandrov asked not to be scheduled with further matters up to them.

In the interim, Des Vignes will be on duty up to October. Mc-Donald-Borris will be on subsequently.

Alexandrov would be expected to return if required to deal with evidence in court matters, Young added.

Cabinet to handle Child

Marriage proclamation

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi says he’ll take a note to Cabinet next Thursday to set a date for proclamation of the Child Marriage law.

He told UNC MP Ramona Ramdial - who queried delays in proclaiming the law - that he’s formalising arrangements at the Registrar General’s Division for necessary forms to be available to the public.

Reafforestation workers paid soon

Agriculture Minister Clarence Rambharat has assured that National Reafforestation Programme employees will be paid outstanding monies before the end of this financial year. The new financial year begins from end of October.

Delays were caused by shortfall in programme funding, he said.

Smith talking to SporTT on Boldon ban

Sports Minister Darryl Smith is taking up UNC MP Dr Bhoe Tewarie’s suggestion to meet with Sport Company of T&T (SporTT) officials to seek solutions on banning the public from using the facilities outside the Ato Boldon Stadium in Couva.

People who exercise outside the stadium were recently banned from using it after SporTT announced it was conducting a security review. However, a group of individuals who use the facility subsequently staged a protest calling on Smith to intervene, noting that they did not feel safe using the roads outside the facility to exercise.

Replying to UNC MP Vidya Guyadeen-Gopeesingh’s queries on under-utilisation of sports facilities, Smith explained that after exercising, people from the area had been using the pool. He said this was curtailed since heavy machinery is on the site for construction work, and the Ministry didn’t “want anyone being hurt” as a result.

Tewarie, who said some of his constituents use the complex, suggested Smith meet all parties to work the issue out.

Police have 1,591 vehicles

The T&T Police Service has 1, 591 vehicles, some of which have dashboard cameras, acting National Security Minister Stuart Young told UNC MP Suruj Rambachan.

Meanwhile, drugs for diabetes and high blood pressure - Metformin and Enalapril - have been removed from the Health Ministry’s list of prescribable medicines, Health Ministry Terrence Deyalsingh also said.

Less than two hours after the House of Representatives convened after nine weeks of vacation it was adjourned to September 15, much to the chagrin of the Opposition. The move was made in just under an hour of debate after questions were answered the Speaker had to use her casting vote three times.

MPs were debating motions on Senate amendments to the Bail (Access to Bail) (Amendment) Bill, 2017, which sought to address the issue of people who may become flight risks and abscond from bail.

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi said what was being proposed was that “any form of security which a judicial officer may give as a requirement for a condition of bail, be it cash, be it property, be it a bond from a licensed financial institution, whatever it may be or any combination as we now propose, that the form of security be one which can be subject to forfeiture with the consent of the defendant in the circumstances set out in the bill.”

He said there is no mandatory statement of law that the provision of security can only be in very narrow circumstances. In fact, he said the practice in the High Court, magistracy and the Court of Appeal with respect to the application or requirement to give security is not one which is uncommon.

But Opposition leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar again raised Opposition concerns made during the debate that “we, in a period when crime is the number one issue in the country, and here we are making it easier for access to bail, that is what amendments are for.”

Persad-Bissessar said on the one hand the Parliament was being asked to “ease up that process and on the other hand we are being asked to consider elsewhere locking down bail with respect to crimes given this very horrid situation.”

She said the Opposition was “not in a position to support the amendments.”

With no Opposition support likely and with the Government bench down by at least two of its members - Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, who is out of the country and La Horquetta/Talparo MP Maxie Cuffie, who is hospitalised, Leader of Government Business Camille Robinson-Regis suggested that the house adjourn debate on motion one and move on to motion two.

But Point-a-Pierre MP David Lee objected on the grounds that “we came after a long vacation to do the people’s business.”

A division was taken. The result was 17 for, 17 against with no abstentions. Speaker Bridgid Annisette-George used her casting vote in favour of the Government.

Robinson-Regis then proposed that the motion dealing with the Senate amendments to the Criminal Procedure (Plea Discussion and Plea Agreement) Bill, 2017 be dealt with. The Opposition again objected. A division was taken with a similar result - 17,17, no abstentions - and the Speaker again used her casting vote in favour of the Government.

Robinson-Regis then moved that the House be adjourned to September 15 at 1.30 pm.

However, Lee again objected saying it was “disheartening after nine weeks of vacation” they could not debate the matter.

The Speaker then put the question for the adjournment of the house to the floor and again a division was called for. The end result was 17, 17, no abstentions and she used her casting vote. The house was the adjourned.

Persad-Bissessar later told the media the Speaker had saved the day for the Government, whom she said came to the Parliament unprepared after nine weeks of vacation.

There have been three investigations into the March 2015 Day of Total Policing which brought traffic to a standstill on major highways across the country and resulted in business activity coming to a halt.

One was by a Joint Select Committee of Parliament in May 2015 which heard from a number of persons, including then head of the Central Division of the Police Service Johnny Abraham who said he felt the action was meant to send a message. That claim was denied by then vice president of the T&T Police Social and Welfare Association (TTPSWA) Inspector Roger Alexander.

In May the JSC, which is headed by Minister in the Ministry of the Attorney General Fitzgerald Hinds, criticised acting Commissioner of Police Stephen Williams for his failure to take disciplinary action against officers involved in the action.

Williams had reportedly been awaiting the final report of the PCA on the matter.

Another report, compiled by Acting Assistant Commissioner of Police Vincel Edwards, was and tabled in Parliament in April 2015, three weeks after the action. It found that senior police officers in charge of six of the nine police divisions “lost control of their divisions and stations respectively to a small group of junior officers,” who enacted a “malicious obedience” campaign.

Edwards recommended that those in charge of the divisions be “reprimanded” for their failure to be in control of their officers.

He also expressed concern about the Special Branch, saying it should provide support in terms of intelligence and that its officers should “avoid participating in situations like these.”

The PCA investigation, which was made public yesterday, has recommended disciplinary and criminal action against some of the officers involved in the action.

The entire East-West Corridor was affected by the police action, with traffic extending as far as San Fernando was gridlocked. There was also congestion on the Claude Noel Highway in Tobago and gridlock traffic in Scarborough. RS

Residents of New Grant, Princes Town were forced to lock their windows and doors, some too frighten to venture outdoors, as millions of locusts invaded their community yesterday morning.

However, one of the braver residents of Watt’s Road, Harold Rambaran, walked out onto the road to get a better view of the swarms of locust as they passed over his house and into the forested area across the road.

The short-horned grasshoppers left in their wake bitten leaves, with some branches almost bear after the insects had their fill and flew away.

Rambaran’s wife, Sandra, said she first noticed the locusts around 11 am.

“I did not know what it was at first. I close up the place. When my husband came from work he told me what they were,” she said.

Rambaran was not sure if the insects attacked the gardeners’ crops as they had done last week in other communities.

“We didn’t hear anything yet,” he said.

Last week, locusts had terrorised residents in Rio Claro, Agostini, Clear Water, Enid Village, Ecclesville, El Guanapo, Tabaquite Road and Deep Ravine.

There were also reports, prior to that, of the locusts invading communities in Moruga.

Commenting on the locusts during a function at Petrotrin yesterday morning, Agriculture Minister Clarence Rambharat said they were now heading into the forest to nest.

“They have chosen the pathway from Moruga, through Mora Valley to Rio Claro and into the forests. So that is gone,” he said.

However, he said the bigger challenge is the nesting period.

“They next is the ground so we will have to intensify our work during the September to November period so we could locate the nest and destroy them because once they get wings and start to fly, it becomes very, very difficult to manage them, in this stage.”

He added: “What we saw in Rio Claro, they were high up in the trees. I saw no damage to any food crops, those were low down on the ground, they weren’t eating, they were interested in getting up in the trees.

“But when they hatch, before they get wings, that is when they are low in the ground looking for food and that is when they become destructive.”

He said as a result of this, in the first quarter of 2018 they “will be seeing signs of whether we have done a good job or whether we have not done a good job.”

Relatives of two men killed under similar circumstances in south Trinidad are baffled as to what may have triggered their deaths.

The relatives spoke with the media at the Forensic Science Centre, St James yesterday.

The deceased men, Ryan Alexander, 27 of Union Village, La Brea and Recardo Duntin, 35, of Samuel Cooper Road Fifth Company Moruga, were both found murdered in cars parked in lonely areas.

Duntin was found at Murray Trace, Siparia on the driver’s seat. Police suspect he was shot to the back of the head and robbed of his wallet and one of his two smart phones.

He was left with $1000 cash. Alexander was found early yesterday morning in the front passenger seat.

Alexander’s relatives said he left his home to catch crab. The father of two was described as a helpful man who was a labourer. They said he had no enemies.

Duntin’s relatives said the father of one was a quiet man, They added that on Thursday afternoon when they last saw him he was telling them about enrolling his son in a primary school in Ste Madeleine. The relatives added that vengeance will be God’s and they are hopeful that police will apprehend his killers soon.

In an unrelated killing, police were yesterday seeking assistance in identifying a man found murdered at Upper Duncan Street, Port of Spain.

Police said residents heard gunshots around 11.55 am and found the man, of African descent, face down on the ground.

The victim is believed to be on his early 20s and was wearing a pair of black slippers, blue three quarter jeans and blue jersey.

The location of the body comes two years after the headless body of David Maraj was found stuffed in the trunk of a BMW. His head was found near a dumpster in Gonzales hours earlier.

A Lance Corporal with the T&T Regiment was released on $80,000 bail when he appeared in court yesterday charged with sexually assaulting two minors ages eight and 14. The offences are alleged to have taken place almost three years ago.

Curt Collins appeared before Magistrate Adia Mohammed in the Port-of-Spain court. He was not called upon to plead to the charges.

As with all cases of sexual offences, Mohammed cleared the courtroom of members of the public including media personnel before the soldier’s appearance.

Only police officers, his relatives, his attorney Brent Winter and a uniformed member of the Regiment’s Military Police were allowed in court for the hearing.

The soldier is accused of three charges of indecently assaulting the children in 2014.

His father was accepted as surety for his bail by Mohammed but his relatives were still seeking approval of his bail bond to secure his release up to late yesterday.

The soldier was arrested by Cpl Reyes of the Carenage Police Station at e Teteron Base in Chaguaramas on Thursday at the end of an investigation which began after the children told their parents of the attacks and they were reported to police.

Hewas remanded to reappear in court on September 22.

The Cabinet-appointed Police Manpower Audit Committee headed by Prof Ramesh Deosaran has made a recommendation to scrap the Police Service Commission (PSC.)

The recommendation comes even as the PSC is now busy advertising for a commissioner and deputy commissoner of police.

Last month, the committee, which was chaired by criminologist and former PSC chairman Deosaran, submitted a short list of proposals to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, pending the committee's final report, due before December 2017.

The Sunday Guardian was informed that the eight-member committee proposed two options for replacing the PSC and the method of appointments.

These new proposals for appointing the commissioner and deputy, according to the committee, are crucial if crime management in T&T and accountability in the T&T Police Service are to be improved in these times of great public worry over the crime situation.

One option is a Police Oversight and Management Board (POMB) to replace the PSC and the present "convoluted, costly and confusing system" of appointing a CoP and deputy commissioner.

The other option is a radically changed PSC which came out of a report from the Multi-sectoral Review team appointed by the last government in 2011. This review team submitted its report with recommendations to the last government in March 2013. However, none of the recommendations were implemented.

The committee's proposals—to scrap the PSC or radically change it—are for Government to choose either option and conduct negotiations with the Opposition where required.

According to the committee, the POMB would be a more representative and accountable body.

The committee proposed a seven-member board to be appointed by the President on advice, with four from the Government, one from the Opposition, one form the Police Service Social and Welfare Association and one independent person selected by the President as chairman.

This is a departure from the present system in which the President appoints five members after consultation with the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader.

The POMB will be empowered on its own to advertise, interview, recruit and appoint the commissioner and deputy so as to gain increased efficiency and accountability while "democratizing" the process. Calling for radical changes in reforming the Police Service and the PSC, the committee, in its ten-point list, advised that further details need to be worked out for the legislative and administrative framework for the POMB, PSC and Police Inspectorate.

The commission further proposed that the new POMB be appropriately staffed and resourced with administrative independence and accountability to Parliament. The legislative and administrative framework of the POMB, as proposed by the committee, should be configured to exercise oversight from the commissioner down to assistant commissioner in order to obtain a tighter control of the system of accountability for succession planning and maintaining high performance standards.

The Police Inspectorate, also contained in the PNM's 2015 manifesto, will operate mainly as an inspection, evaluation and high-level training body to support the POMB or amended PSC.

The other option proposed with several administrative and legislative changes is the substantially amended report of the Multi-sectoral Review team on the PSC submitted in 2013.

It is proposed that the new PSC be totally delinked from the office of the director of personnel administration and that it be empowered on its own to advertise, interview, recruit and appoint the CoP and deputy CoP pending the PM's veto.

When PM Rowley met with Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar for joint talks on anti-gang legislation, campaign finance reform and the effectiveness of Service Commissions among other matters in July, they agreed to repeal the PSC's legislation.

Efforts to contact Prof Deosaran by phone were unsuccessful.

Members of the Police Manpower Audit Committee

Prof Ramesh Deosaran (chairman); Jacqueline Wilson (retired permanent secretary); Allan Meiguel (Police Complaints Authority); Dr Levis Guy-Obiakoe (security consultant); Harold Phillip (deputy commissioner); Erla Christopher (deputy commissioner); Anand Ramesar (secretary of the Police Service Social and Welfare Association); and Zameer Mohammed (University of T&T).

Members of the Multi-sectoral Review team:

Prof Ramesh Deosaran (chairman); AG Anand Ramlogan, SC; National Security Minister Brig John Sandy followed by Jack Warner; Public Administration Minister Caroline Seepersad-Bachan; Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley (represented by MP Donna Cox); Chief Parliamentary Council representative Ian MacIntyre, Sc; Law Reform Commission chairman Samraj Harripaul, SC; management consultant Alwyn Daniel; Police Service Social and Welfare President Sgt Anand Ramesar, who it is understood is applying for the post of police commissioner.

Who is Maxwell Phillips? It’s a question some parents across the country are asking as they reviewed their children’s social studies book in the first week of school.

The question stems from an error in the Social Studies: My Self, My World, Student’s Book 3 for primary school students, which indicate that in 2010 President “Maxwell Phillips” was present at the military parade in Port-of-Spain saluting soldiers.

In the photo, positioned above the caption, is the image of this country’s fourth president, Maxwell Richards, who held office for ten years from 2003 to 2013.

Images of the error appeared on social media last week, prompting publishers Macmillan Caribbean to respond in an online post, advising that the mistake would be corrected in new editions of the book, to be published in 2018.

“We have recently been alerted to a mistake in one of our books, Social Studies: My Self, My World, Student’s Book 3, where former president George Maxwell Richards was wrongly named as “President Maxwell Phillips”.

“We sincerely apologise for this, and will be correcting the mistake in the new edition of this book, coming out in 2018. We try to ensure accuracy in all of our books, but regret that occasionally mistakes do happen. If you spot any, it would be greatly appreciated if you message or email us directly, so we can correct the error in future editions. Thank you,” the publishers wrote on social media.

Garcia: We have received many complaints about the quality of books

The mistake, according to Education Minister Anthony Garcia, is one of many which have found their way into the education system.

“We (the ministry) have received many complaints about the quality of books and we have a Learning Materials Evaluation Committee that is looking at all materials, reading and learning materials within schools.

“So they would make recommendations on all aspects pertaining to textbooks.”

Why are these mistakes making their way into the backpacks and minds of the nations children, in an area that should see stringent quality assurance practices?

Garcia said while the complaints had come over a period of time, a specific policy implemented by the previous government had contributed to the problem.

“Under the previous regime, principals were allowed the free choice to select whichever textbooks to use in the schools and that contributed to the problems they are having with regards to defective textbooks and learning materials in the school.”

He said the Learning Materials Evaluation Committee was meant to improve the quality.

Garcia advised parents who spot errors to bring it to the attention of the Education Ministry.

An emergency CARICOM Heads of Government meeting was held yesterday to coordinate the region's response to Hurricane Irma. The meeting was held around 9.30 am yesterday with leaders joining in using video conferencing technology.

Meanwhile, Guardian Media Limited (GML) is partnering with the American Chamber of Commerce of T&T (AMCHAM) and the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF) to raise much needed funds to provide immediate assistance to those affected by Hurricane Irma.

One of the most powerful storms ever recorded in recent history, Irma has devastated many of our Caribbean neighbours.

At least 11 people were killed on Saint Martin and Saint Barts, four in the US Virgin Islands, four in the British Virgin Islands, and one each in Barbuda, Anguilla and Barbados.

Irma is expected to hit South West, Florida, this morning, with winds up to 110 mph.

We must help those in dire need immediately. PADF, which has worked to rebuild devastated communities across the Americas, has created a special portal for any financial contributions.

Join us and make a difference.

Go to http://www.padf.org/irmaamchamtt to make a donation if you can.

Taxpayers will pay an estimated $3.2 million (TT) to local consulting firm KPMG in its search for a new Commissioner of Police (CoP) and new Deputy Commissioner of Police.

The search has already begun with advertisements of the positions placed in local newspapers from September 4 to 29.

The funding for the search came from the Police Service Commission's budgetary provision for "other contracted services" for financial year 2017. This provision was revised and increased from $2.5 million to $4.55 million in order to facilitate the search for a new CoP.

No one has held the substantive post since 2012, when Stephen Williams was appointed as Acting Commissioner of Police, a position for which he has received 11 six-month extensions since that time.

Williams is expected to apply for the substantive post.

The Guardian understands that last month the Police Service Commission (PSC) contacted the Service Commissions Department regarding outstanding payments for the firm.

The firm has already submitted invoices for several deliverables, including monitoring and evaluation consultancy services to operationalise the new performance appraisal framework for the commissioner and deputy commissioners of police, and a public perception and satisfaction survey of the general public.

The firm is expected to supply the PSC with recruitment process guidelines, job competency models, application forms, feedback documents, prospectus of the Police Service, advertisement of vacancies, list of applicants and a list of eligible and ineligible applicants.

Only this week, the PSC published a vacancy notice for the positions of commissioner and deputy commissioner in the daily newspaper.

•The advertisement said the applicants must possess "a strong work ethic, thrive on challenges, be committed to reducing the level of crime within the country and dedicated to providing outstanding public service".

•It also said the applicants should be proficient in leading and managing large, complex law enforcement organisation with high public visibility.

The last such recruitment process cost the Government a reported $4 million dollars, paid to foreign consultants Penn State university, who were retained by the PSC to assist in the recruitment process.

When the position was first advertised in 2007, it was reported that 41 people applied for the job, four were locals.

The payment of a reported $4 million to Penn State had come under criticism at the time from criminologist Prof Ramesh Deosaran. That same figure was reported as $2.3 million in Parliament hansard by then Chaguanas West MP Jack Warner during a motion to notify the President to approve Dwayne Gibbs as Commissioner of Police. The Guardian has not been able to confirm the actual figure.

Deosaran, at the time, said he believed the PSC needed to be re-examined because the evidence showed that there were “some elements of disrepair and shortcoming” in its operations. (See story on Page A4)

Sources close to prior recruitment searches, who did not want to be named, said $3.2 million was a high price tag for a local firm to search for a local Commissioner of Police.

In August the PSC told the public that KPMG had been awarded the contract to assist with the recruitment and selection process of the CoP.

The release said on July 20, a meeting took place at the commission’s offices which brought together representatives from the Police Service Commission and KPMG T&T to discuss implementation of the project.

The recruitment phase of the project is expected to take four months.

Parliament still has veto power

According to section 123 (2) of the Constitution of T&T Parliament can veto the decision of the PSC and force the search to be restarted.

Under the Commissioner of Police and Deputy Commissioner of Police (Selection Process Order) the PSC must take into account all information on the candidates and thereafter establish an Order of Merit list.

The PSC must then select the highest graded candidate on the list and submit that candidate's name to the President.

If the House of Representatives does not approve of the highest graded candidate on the Order of Merit List, subsequent Nominations in order of merit may be submitted to the House from the Order of Merit List only.

If the Order of Merit list is exhausted, the process must be recommenced.

A brief history of CoP searches

After Trevor Paul retired as Commissioner of Police in 2008, James Philbert, who was the most senior officer in the service after Paul, was appointed to act in the role.

At that time, Acting Deputy Commissioner Stephen Williams, who was the PSC’s nominee for CoP in 2008 after being recommended by Penn State, had been rejected by the PNM in Parliament.

In 2010, during a search under the People's Partnership coalition, Parliament rejected Canadian Neal Parker for the post, citing that he had been part of the evaluation team for the selection of the commissioner in 2008.

The last appointed commissioner, Canadian Dwayne Gibbs was the second-rated nominee on Penn State's evaluation.

Graduates of the Queen’s Royal College (QRC) have made their contribution around the world says President Anthony Carmona.

“I have always been a very strong advocate of nationalism and regionalism. I have seen how vibrant intellects from QRC have been able to engage the world with a level of competence. Every single life mentioned (of inductees) that has left us can be a block buster movie of human spirit and human resilience,” he said.

Carmona spoke on Friday night at the 6th QRC Hall of Honour Induction Ceremony at the Central Bank Auditorium, Port-of-Spain.

Fifteen past students of QRC were inducted. Out of this, seven were inducted posthumously and the other eight continue to make their contributions to society.

Some of the inductees who collected their awards include Lutalo Masimba aka Brother Resistance, Dr Merlyn Price and Prof Emeritus Felix Durity.

“All of these men have contributed in defining ways to shape the social, economic, political and cultural tapestry of this great nation, touching lives locally and internationally in an undeniable way.”

Carmona said QRC graduates will continue to make contribution in all fields.

“My wish for this College is that it will continue to grow, thrive and flourish even though your hall does not have a ceiling because the sky is the ceiling.

Produce more distinguished CEOs, olympic athletes, diplomats, media personalities, entrepreneurs and innovators. Each generation that enters this institution must be able to supersede that which came before,” he said.

Homeowners occupying the Felicity Residential Development are pleading with the relevant authorities to bring some measure of relief to them.

David Martin, chairman and spokesman for the community, said the area was overrun with bush, bandits and lacked basic services such as garbage collection. Armed with brush cutters, Martin and a group of residents started cleaning up the main road into area yesterday morning and launched their own neighbourhood watch group. He said the development has 800 housing lots at Peters Field, Chaguanas, but only 30 lots are occupied.

Martin said there are no basic services because the Estate Management Business Development company and Caroni (1975) Limited did not hand over the development to the Chaguanas Borough Corporation. Martin said because of this there are no clearing of bushes along the roadways, no garbage collection services, Cepep does not operate in the area and there is limited street lighting.

Martin said there was also a lot of criminal activity in the area. He said earlier in 2017 a woman was murdered and her body was dumped 200 feet from his house. Residents claimed that T&TEC came into the community and removed transformers and street lights from the poles and took it to another area, but had not replaced any of the fixtures. The area is also littered with massive pipelines that were for the Beetham Waster Water Project. Stefan Lai said bandits can hide in these pipes and rob residents. Lai said he and his wife are living in fear of being robbed and assaulted.

Mayor backs residents

Chaguanas Mayor Gopaul Boodhan, who was part of the exercise, said he stood in solidarity with the residents. Boodhan wants the relevant authorities to hand over the the development to the Chaguanas Borough Corporation so the necessary work can be done. Boodhan also made an appeal to landowners to clean up their empty lots.

Boodhan said the Chaguanas police also needs additional manpower to police the rapidly expanding borough.

Probe the Sandals initiative. That request has been made to the Integrity Commission by UNC activist Devant Maharaj who wants an investigation into the Rowley administration's procurement practices regarding award of a management contract for the Tobago Sandals Resort.

Maharaj sent a letter on the matter to Commission chairman Justice Zainool Hosein last Friday.

He said he was concerned about the Sandals matter because of the issues which have arisen from the procurement process for the inter-island ferries.

Submitting a list of reports on the issue from the public domain, Maharaj referenced statements quoting Sandals magnate Gordon "Butch" Stewart as saying that Dr Keith Rowley—while in Opposition—had discussed with him the possibility of Sandals being established in Tobago.

Maharaj said this particular conversation was reported in the media and has not been contested.

"Subsequently in 2016, the newly elected Rowley Administration without any tendering process essentially hand-picked Sandals Resorts to be awarded a management contract of a government-built hotel and will be the recipient of a variety of lucrative concessions.

"From all media reports it appears Government is proceeding with the Sandals arrangement and there has been no question or public enquiry as to how Sandals was selected to be the management service provider."

Maharaj said the public has not been advised if the Central Tenders Board has been involved in the award of this management contract.

He noted the plan involves a government-built hotel/resort, tax concessions, and other concessionary arrangements.

"There has been no disclosure of any Cabinet or any State Agency or entity approval of the awarding of same following a transparent competitive tendering process.

"The events in the public domain that transpired following the announcement of Sandals Resorts being offered the management contract presupposes some procurement process employed by the State to employ the services of Sandals. From all information in the public domain this appears not to be the case."

He said the issue has not been conducted under the new Procurement law, either. And the procurement process in this issue "is markedly different from the process being used by the same administration in an identical project in Trinidad".

Maharaj noted that on August 10, 2016, Udecott published a request for Expressions of Interest for the Design, Finance, Construction and Operation of a luxury hotel on the site of the Ministry of Agriculture at St Clair Circle.

"This raises significant queries regarding the Sandals Tobago proposal: why a similar approach of advertising for Expressions of Interest and Requests for Proposals was not taken in relation to Sandals Tobago.

"Why the shift away from the previous pattern in which the large international hotels were designed, built and fitted/furnished at our expense."

Maharaj claimed the award of a management contract “by invitation” by the administration, to the Sandals Group "after what appears to be a private and singular proposal to Government, goes against all international procurement benchmark standards".

Government officials have said negotiations are still on-going with the Sandals group. There was no indication on when this would be concluded or if ground would be broken on the project by year-end.

When Nicole Olivierre, the current parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Energy, was retrenched as an assistant manager from the National Gas Company (NGC) in January 2015, “she presented herself to the office without authorisation, deceptively went past security, entered her department and made use of the computer”, NGC told the Equal Opportunity Commission (EOC).

Olivierre, however, claimed that during the “notice period” of her retrenchment she went to the office to process her fuel reimbursement claims and was met by security guards who asked her to leave the compound.

“During the retrenchment period of 45 days (Olivierre) was of the view that the terms and conditions of employment remained unchanged, inclusive of the reimbursement of fuel purchase for her vehicle,” the EOC’s report on the matter stated.

On April 16, 2015, Olivierre lodged a complaint of victimisation against NGC with the EOC. It was the second complaint she had filed at the EOC about NGC—the first was lodged on December 13, 2012, when she complained about racial discrimination at the company. That complaint was referred to the Equal Opportunities Tribunal on June 7, 2015.

Olivierre was employed with NGC from 2002 until her eventual retrenchment. She claimed that following her initial complaint of racial discrimination she became “the subject of acts of victimisation contrary to Section 6 (1) of the Equal Opportunity Act”.

She said she believes she was victimised because of the previous complaint made against NGC and this culminated in her retrenchment.

She further stated that her position of assistant manager enterprise risk management was the only one “eliminated from the company’s risk management area” and that no other position “was even retrenched from the NGC,” the EOC complaint stated.

Olivierre said three departments—Insurance and Risk Management, Environment, Health and Safety, and Enterprise Risk Management—were merged and all existing positions were maintained except hers.

She said she was never advised of the new positions created, nor was she offered an alternative position, despite a new positions being created within the department.

“Further to this there was no other identified individual that was retrenched within the department, nor any information regarding efforts made to find any suitable alternative position for Olivierre,” the complaint stated.

NGC said the positions of head risk management and risk management assistant were eliminated. However. according to the EOC: “They did not indicate whether there were persons in these positions at the time, and if they were, whether they were accommodated elsewhere.”

NGC said Olivierre applied for a new management position in the organisation’s structure but was unsuccessful.

The company said one of the reasons for creation of the new position and Olivierre’s job becoming redundant was because her risk reports “did not assign accurately the respective level of risk and that further expertise was required”.

“Despite a request from the commission, (NGC) did not indicate in what way her reports were defective,” the EOC said.

As part of her claims of victimisation, Olivierre said when she was acting as senior manager in the Office of Strategy Management she submitted the second-quarter risk report but then NGC president Indar Maharaj did not allow it to go to the audit committee.

NGC said it would make a May 2014 risk report done by Olivierre available to the EOC for viewing but later “changed their position and said that they had decided that the report and its contents do not concern the allegations made by (Olivierre),” the EOC said.

NGC claimed it was being threatened by the EOC.

“At no point did the commission threaten NGC as they have asserted. The commission’s request for information has been in pursuant to Section 33 of the Equal Opportunity Act which empowers it to send a notice to any person requesting that they furnish information as specified therein by a given date,” the EOC said.

The matter has been referred to the Equal Opportunity Tribunal.

“Much of the disputes are questions of fact, the commission is not in the position to engage in cross examination of parties, weigh evidence or make findings of facts, these are matters for the Equal Opportunity Tribunal,” the EOC said, adding that the matter could not be resolved by conciliation as there are “significant variances between the parties”.

“Moreover the parties are already before the court, their swords are drawn and they are currently engaged in battle,” the EOC said.

Olivierre had indicated her desire for the complaints to be brought before the tribunal, the EOC said. The investigation is ongoing.

More info 

Olivierre served as the Minister of Energy from September 11, 2015, to October 30, 2016. She was appointed parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries on June 30, 2017.