The name Clifford Learmond has been a household name over decades and is synonymous with T&T theatre, comedy, advertisements and outright laughter. 

However, for the past month, this has been reversed, as Learmond fell seriously ill on completing a performance in Tobago, sending the country into a state of shock and panic. 

As a result and because of his situation, the theatre fraternity has launched into a spirited and purposeful fund-raising drive, in order to change his current status of ill health and inevitable death back to what it had been before. 

The veteran actor, who has been in the business for over 30 years and has worked with some of the industry’s best—such as Raymond Choo-Kong, Richard Ragoobarsingh, Debra Boucaud-Mason, Errol Fabien, Nicki Crosby, Penelope Spencer, Christine Johnson, Randy Glasgow Productions, and Spektakula Promotions to name a few, suffered a heart attack late February. 

Upon checks to his vital health, it was realised that along with his heart attack, Learmond was suffering from high blood pressure and clogged arteries. 

After doing several tests including an Angiogram (an X-ray of the heart’s blood vessels), Learmond was advised that an immediate bypass surgical procedure, at a cost of $110,000, was needed in order for him to live. 

In the meantime several drugs are being administered to him that can/may only last up until his surgery which is due within the next month or two. 

“The surgery has to be done soon, else I won’t live for too long,” explained Learmond. “One doctor explained to me that the medication I am taking now, coupled with a special diet, is what is keeping me alive until the surgery.

“In the meantime I still have bills and responsibilities and I haven’t worked since it happened,” he added. 

Even though Learmond is unsure of where this funding will come from, he is hopeful that this hurdle is God’s plan and everything will work out. 

However, in the interim and in order to have a full, 360 degree turnaround of this situation, the theatre fraternity along with other members of the country are in the process of putting together different events in order to raise funds for his surgery. 

Already, Funny Farm Factory Productions and Ha Ha Ha Productions have devoted one night’s part proceeds of their play Ridiculous 6 1/2 to this cause. 

Also in the making, there are a series of upcoming fund-raisers by Necessary Arts and 3 Canal, just to name a few, all geared towards Learmond having a full recovery. 

At the moment, there is an active discussion between Learmond and the Ministry of Health for part assistance, which also seems positive. 

Nonetheless, more is needed and a request is being made for the public’s assistance in garnering monetary support (the amount doesn’t matter) to assist Learmond in his time of need. It will just be unimaginable to lose one of our country’s valuable comedic icons by not rendering help.

More info

​For more information contact 334-4787, or donate to #2226912 (First Citizens Bank) on behalf of Learmond.

Kevin Baldeosingh

There are hundreds of thousands of business books, so everybody is always looking for a new angle to get their book on the bestseller lists.

Neuroscience is the newest selling point, used not only for business books but every other topic that has even a tangential relationship to psychology. But pretty much every such book is bogus, in the sense that scientists don’t yet know enough about the brain to extrapolate from brain scans to behaviour in the real world.

Jacobs’ book is no exception. Although he claims that “neuroscience also teaches us to be more effective in the world we live and work in”, he also admits that “networks are organised hierarchically” and that “high level networks, such as values and deeply held beliefs, will drive both ideas and behaviour at lower levels”. Translated, this means that behaviour is dependent on social environment.

Despite this false hook, Jacobs’ book is useful for managers because most of his data are based on actual surveys of organisations, with the neuroscience coming as an after-the-fact explanation. His real thesis, which has nothing to do with brain scans, is: “Given the overwhelming evidence that the managerial relationship as it’s usually configured is self-defeating, managers should stop doing most of what they’re doing today.

In this context, he lists standard managerial practices such as rewarding good performance as often as possible; punishing poor performance; giving timely feedback on performance problems and prescribing corrective action; setting measurable objectives; supervising employees closely.

“Each of these strike us as logically the right thing for managers to do, but they all fail in practice,” Jacobs asserts.

He explains that rewards are only effective if valued and well-timed. A manager may see a five percent salary increase as significant, whereas an employee may see it as insulting. “Rather than being a motivating reward, it becomes a demotivating punishment,” Jacobs writes. Punishment itself doesn’t work when it removes intrinsic motivation, meaning the desire to do something for its own sake or for our own reasons.

Employees, he notes, don’t look forward to feedback as a means to improve, but as a criticism. “If the feedback we receive conflicts with the self-image that we have spent a lifetime honing [we will] keep our self-image intact by rationalising away the feedback, and either attributing the cause of the performance failure to external factors out of our control or discounting the source of the feedback,” he writes.

When the manager lays down a mandate to the employee on what corrective action they should take to improve performance and what goals must be met, “the employee does not have to take responsibility and has no motivation to make it work.” Jacobs adds that close supervision often leads to the employee spending a lot of energy devising ways to avoid same, since most people don’t like being monitored—especially managers.

So what are the alternatives? “Turn the tables and put as much responsibility on the employee as possible,” says Jacobs. Employees should set their own objectives, critique their own performance, figure out remedies when they fall short. Employees need to understand the real position of their company and the industry they work in. Managers need to explain strategy and how the employee’s performance contributes to success or failure.

The manager guides this process in a Socratic way—ie asking leading questions. Jacobs recommends a feedback system or process which will be considered objective by the employees, with a similar system used to give rewards and punishment. 

“This is, of course, counter-intuitive, for it turns the relationship upside down. As the prime mover of the organisation, the employee now calls the shots and the manager is in a support role,” he says.

On this basis it is not surprising that, although much of the research in this book was done over 20 years ago, most companies haven’t yet started applying these strategies. 

Since its inception, the Anthony N Sabga Caribbean Awards for Excellence has selected eight Trinidadians as laureates in all areas of endeavour: science, art and public work. These are Yao Ramesar (Arts & Letters, 2008); Kim Johnson, Paul Teelucksingh (Arts & Letters and Science & Technology, 2011); Paula Lucie-Smith, 2012 (Public & Civic work); Prof Dave Chadee and Rhonda Maingot (Science & Technology and Public and Civic work, 2013); Prof Liam Teague (Arts & Letters, 2014); and Prof Patrick Hosein (Science & Technology, 2015).

This is quite a remarkable mix of social science, public work, hard science (from entomology to computer science), and shows definitively that Trinis have talent, and not just in entertainment and sports, a release said. The next ANSA Caribbean Awards is in 2017, and nominations are being sought for people of similar achievement. In addition to these areas a new category, of entrepreneurship, has been added as of 2015. Nominations for the 2017 Awards close today.

The ANSA Awards have been in existence since 2005. The institution is dedicated to finding the best Caribbean scientists, artists, public activists and advocates, and as of 2015, entrepreneurs. Each territory of the region (Barbados, Guyana, OECS, Jamaica and T&T) has a nominating committee, which is mandated to bring forward nominees of merit for consideration. However, individuals may also be nominated by members of the public using the forms and following the instructions from the website www.ansacaribbeanawards.com.

The ANSA Caribbean Awards is the only enterprise in the region which has taken forward the quest for Caribbean unity. In the last decade, the awards have sought and found 27 exceptional Caribbean men and women. The laureates have, for the first time, included recognition of members of the Caribbean Indigenous Peoples of Guyana. The prize includes a medal, citation, and $500,000. 

To commemorate its tenth anniversary, the awards published a book, The Excellent Decade, which was distributed to Nalis, UWI, UTT, and secondary school libraries. The book features autobiographies of the 27 laureates, and historical details of the awards.

Over the past three weeks we have looked at social and economic consequences of the low level of literacy in T&T. We learned that almost a quarter of our adults struggle with reading and writing (Alta National Survey, 1994) and that this contributes to our high unemployment and crime, the low standard of living experienced by many in our country and has the potential to affect more than one generation in each household. 

For the past 24 years, Alta has provided free community classes to adults (16+) in T&T. Today, we have over 50 venues across the country and we have helped countless adults develop their reading and writing skills. This has ensured that they can gain stable incomes through steady employment, enjoy a higher standard of living and teach their children to read and write. Alta has helped our country tackle literacy ̶and so can you, even if you don’t have the time to be a volunteer Alta tutor or reading guide.

Here’s what you can do. Firstly, do your part in reducing the stigma associated with not being able to read and write. Reading is a skill - much like learning to drive or cook. It takes a lot of practice and commitment. Many Trinidadians and Tobagonians were unable to master this skill. It may have been due to unstable family life or undiagnosed learning difficulties such as dyslexia. Start by changing your own thinking to acknowledge that the ability to read does not say anything about a person’s intelligence, character or values. 

When you find out an adult does not read fluently, don’t express surprise as this makes the person feel that they are at fault or something is wrong with them. Maybe note that as with other life skills, some of us need more instruction than others. 

If you know the person, point out a talent or aptitude they have. They may have an aptitude for cooking, whereas others need repeated training to produce something edible! So just as some adults need to have cooking lessons, they need some lessons to improve their reading skills. 

Let them know that it is never too late. Avoid using the word illiterate in talking to or about non-readers as it is widely used as a synonym for unintelligent in local parlance. 

Our responsibility as fellow citizens is to encourage them to learn to read and write now. There are Alta students at many different levels of the literacy spectrum. Some may be able to identify some words and write basic biographical information, but struggle to read articles in the newspapers. 

Others may be able to read but have difficulty with spelling and grammar, while others may have never been able to develop the skill of reading. There is a class at Alta for anyone over the age of 16 who needs to work on this skill. 

If you cannot think of anyone who may need Alta classes, tell someone you know about Alta—they may know someone who can benefit from classes. 

If you have nothing good to say, say nothing at all; words have power. Too many adults stay away from Alta classes out of fear of social scorn. We the readers are the only ones who can change this. 

• Volunteer, Donate, Sponsor-a-student. Call 624-2582 or email altapos.tt@gmail.com for more info. Like us on Facebook or check out our YouTube Channel: Adult Literacy Tutors Association 

The Supernormal Band is carded to perform live along with 19 other local rock bands at the Skyy Rock Festival on April 2 at Skyy View Lounge, San Fernando. This is the second edition of the Festival which featured ten bands last year. 

In the line up for 2016 are Five Miles to Midnight, Orange Sky, Sidekick Envy, Spectral Vibes, Black Rose, Cornerstone, Goodnight Parliament, Absence of I, Tie Dye Kitty, Far Away Fate, Bound to Oblivion, Prime 3, Fly By Night, Devin Harrypaul The Band, Cosmic Rebels, Alter Rootz, and Zynergy. 

A release said the aim of the Festival is to build local talent in T&T, especially in the rock fraternity which is often stereotyped as underground, in an effort to become more recognised and break barriers.

The band was founded in 2008 and have battled on in their evolving journey of music. Fast forwarding to 2015, they copped a number of virtual awards on the local front such as Album of the Year – the Fire Inside, Music Video of the Year – Anchor’s Away and Best Performing Act of 2015. These ground breaking awards were all nominated, voted on and results published via the Facebook community group called Trinidad Local Rock Community, which is described as “a one stop music shop for local rock.”

Not only is The Supernormal Band in touch with their fans through technology, but the band’s brainchild, singer/songwriter singer/songwriter Andy Rambharat stated that “what is unique about us is that we’re just not a regular Rock band, we fuse styles such as soca, dancehall, rapso and chutney — music that is synonymous with T&T. Our band represents a melting pot of cultures, maintaining the rock identity.”

Members of the fusion rock band are lead vocalist Andy Rambharat, rhythm guitarist Johnathon Agostini, lead guitarist, Anthony Borde – Bass / Back Vocals and drummer Mitch Ramberan.

The Supernormal Band emerged from Malick east of Port-of-Spain, which is sometimes referred to as the “ghetto”. 

Rambharat’s musical talent is a prime example of positivity emerging from the ghetto. He has played on the local rock scene of Trinidad for 20 years, rising to iconic status with his previous bands Alexes Machine and D Boomslang then cementing his place in rock n’ roll history on the island with Supernormal’s tenacious hit; Fishnin, the first single from The Supernormal Band that has amassed over 60,000 views on YouTube, a seemingly impossible achievement for a rock band from T&T. 

At the 2016 Skyy Rock Festival, The Supernormal Band intends to rock their fans with hits from their first full album The Fire Inside. Songs from the 2015 album will include Rocktopus, Fishnin’, Swaha (which was recently remixed to feature Chromatics, Yellows and King David) and many others. Following this, the band’s next step is the musical battle WOA Metal Battle Caribbean in Suriname on April 30.

More info:

For further information, please contact band leader, Andy Rambharat at 493-4877 or thesupernoormalbandlive@gmail.com or publicist, Carol Jaggernauth at 389-8988 or caroljaggernauth@gmail.com

Kevin Baldeosingh

First-born children are likely to be smarter than their siblings, a recent study by German researchers from Leipzing University says. But nobody knows why.

The researchers drew on surveys of over 20,000 people from the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany and found that, while birth order had no link with differences in personality, the eldest children usually had higher IQ scores than their younger siblings. 

In an interview with the Telegraph newspaper, researcher Julie Rohrer, who co-authored the research, said: “One theory is that following children ‘dilute’ the resources of their parents. While the firstborn gets full parental attention, at least for some months or years, late-borns will have to share from the beginning. Another possible factor is described by the tutoring hypothesis: A firstborn can ‘tutor’ their younger siblings, explaining to them how the world works and so on...which could provide a boost to intelligence for some firstborns.” 

This latter explanation runs counter to our intuition: most parents, if they think about it at all, assume that later-born children will develop faster because they have their older siblings to model. Were I to rely on personal experience, I would tend toward this viewpoint already, since my 10-month old son Kyle pays close attention to his sister Jinaki, who is two years older, and he is already trying to mouth every one-syllable object word we tell him to a far greater extent than she did at that age. Kyle also insists on walking with help, rather than crawling, which Jinaki didn’t do until she could stand on her own. That might just be a boy thing, though.

In any case, the research doesn’t support the modelling hypothesis. Moreover, it is also possible that IQ differences start in the womb: mothers are generally less healthy and/or more stressed when they are pregnant with their later children, which may impact on the foetus. This is particularly true of later-born boys, because a woman’s body develops an immune response after the first boy child to a male foetus, which is then put under stress within the womb.

While there is little doubt that IQ has a strong genetic component, the factor of parental attention, if true, would also mean that IQ is highly malleable. The research also supports this paradigm. Thus, although the IQ differences between siblings aren’t very big, parents should probably find ways to ensure that later-borns get as much attention as the first-born, if not from them, then from other care-givers. (One caution: too much attention, in the sense of not letting the child do things for themselves and processing what they learn, can hamper their long-term development.) My own observation is that, in large families—ie five or more children—the last-born often outperforms all the older siblings academically. If this were to be confirmed by research, it would strongly suggest that attention is the key factor in raising IQ.

Until then, the existing research shows that the following strategies help children develop mentally:

• Talking to child using a high-level vocabulary.

• Including child in adult conversations

• Reading to child.

• Minimising reprimands

• Encouraging child to explore environment.

•Teaching child to categorise objects and events and make comparisons between them.

My husband is an Intensive Care (ICU) survivor and my family and I owe his survival to the dedicated, committed staff of the ICU at the Scarborough General Hospital, Tobago. Thanks to the brilliant work of the surgeons, doctors and nurses who work at the unit, my husband is alive today.

He arrived at the hospital following a massive abdominal haemorrhage caused by a previously undiagnosed complaint. While in casualty he went into shock having lost most of his blood. From there he was rushed to the operating theatre where the surgeons spent four hours looking for the cause of the bleeding and trying to stop the flow of blood. He was later transfused and stabilised.

He was then warded in the ICU on a respirator, in critical condition. 

Twenty-four hours later he began to bleed again; he was returned to the operating theatre where he underwent further surgery. 

His condition remained critical and while all concerned with his wellbeing were at that time dubious that he would pull through, they didn’t give up. Doctors and nurses alike laboured continuously to keep him alive. 

Two nights later I was told he had only a 10 per cent chance of survival and he might not make it to the morning, but to everyone’s amazement he did, only to undergo further surgery and receive more blood. The Tobago blood bank stocks were totally depleted. Blood was airlifted from Trinidad and we made an appeal to everyone we knew to donate blood in his name.

He was constantly monitored and whenever I was on the unit I witnessed the tireless efforts of the doctors and committed care of the nursing team. 

The attention to detail and strict hygiene precautions to prevent infection were first-class.

Throughout the following weeks I was warned of the inevitable yet no one gave up hope. The whole team fought for 30 days to bring him through those dark days. 

In all he spent a record 40 days on the ICU and although he still has a way to go for a complete recovery he is now convalescing at home with me.

Words will never be able to express the gratitude our children, grandchildren, great grandchildren his siblings and extended family feel; neither can we thank the many people, family, friends and strangers who answered our call to donate blood. It was their selfless generosity that enabled all the blood used plus more to restock the blood centre.

That my husband is walking and talking is a miracle. Thanks to the belief in life held by everyone in ICU, the strong vibes, the hugs, support and prayers of people who know us. 

However, he would not be where he is today were it not for the amazing work of those dedicated to saving lives at the Scarborough General Hospital, Tobago. The exemplary care and concern could not have been better abroad or in a private clinic, (this for naysayers who advised me to move him.)

Thank you to everyone involved, the dedicated committed team of surgeons, anesthetists/doctors, nurses, nursing aides, therapists, blood bank and housekeeping staff. Also the security and canteen staff, who, as they got to know us, and the reason we were at the hospital, never failed to ask after him. 

With out you he would not have survived.

Thelma Perkins

One of the housing projects allocated to the Caroni VSEP workers is located on a block of land bounded by the Camden Road opposite to the Heliport and by the Southern Main Road, Couva, opposite the Rienzi Complex. It is a large development comprising between 200 to 300 residential lots.

On passing by recently on the Camden Road, I noticed that one of the roads going into the project was named Siewchan Drive. My impression was that the Regional Corporation had named this after the well-known Wanderers cricketer Richard Siewchan who for over two decades gave great joy and excitement to Caroni workers and residents of Central Trinidad for his exploits on the cricket field both with the bat and the ball. (Older cricket lovers will recall in the late 80s or early 90s in a limited overs match at the Oval against Barbados, Richard Siewchan in his first spell removed Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes and Carlisle Best.) 

I went into the housing project to see who else the Regional Corporation chose to honour by naming streets after them. The names I saw on the street signs were Samai Ave, Nagasar Ave, Zain Ave, Beepan Blvd, Melissa’s Venir, Kiran Circular, Greaves Ave, Shadee Ave, Abrahim Ave. These names were not familiar to me as people who had contributed significantly to community or regional development. On inquiring from the few residents who have started building homes, I was told that the streets were named by people who first built a house on the street.

These streets are on State Lands and the Regional Corporation is the lawful body to name these streets. On privately owned lands, the owners can name roads as they see fit, but only the local authority is authorised to name roads on State lands. I therefore respectfully request the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation to remove these street signs and replace them with names of people who have made meaningful contributions to our development like strong community leaders, former councillors, and other people who should be honoured. 

I can immediately think of some such people and I would be happy to send my suggestions to the Corporation.

There are several other Caroni VSEP developments on which there can be a repeat of what is happening at the Camden development. As a mechanism to resolve this problem, the Regional Corporation can issue an appropriately worded and detailed press release to all media including newspapers, TV and radio stations pointing out that it is the responsibility of the Local Government Authority to name streets on public lands and at the same time inviting the public at large to submit names of people who should be honoured in this way. The recommended names should be supported by a history of the person and the reasons why the person should be honoured.

Lennox Sankersingh

The recent protest by a few Jamaicans because they were denied entry to our country, is simply a regurgitation of a situation where some feel that our Immigration Officers are obliged to allow every foreign national to enter our country at all times.

Nothing is further from the truth, because if that were the case, then it is best that our Immigration simply rubber stamp everyone who lands at our airports. This would just add to the present disaster we have where over 100,000 foreigners have entered our country and refused to leave, and who now remain here illegally. 

Our country has always welcomed all foreign nationals once they adhere to what is required, with less than three per cent of Jamaicans being denied entry. It must be restated that all host nations have their own laws that supersede that Caricom decision, and ours state that people can be denied entry if:

• they are deemed as a threat to national security; or

• they may be liability to the public purse.

There are many such people from Caricom who come here, not knowing where they are going to live or work, but expect automatic entry. 

The arrogance of some of these people is alarming, as this is not the first time that they have used this same nonsense threat of boycotting T&T products because our Immigration Officers are doing their job.

It must also be noted that many other territories undertake a similar practice, including the United States, and quite rightly so. However, you hardly hear similar loud protests and calls for trade boycotts when dozens of citizens from certain Caribbean countries are denied entry daily.

In fact, citizens of T&T at times are also denied entry to Jamaica, as is their (Jamaicans) right, and we would be totally put of place to speak about boycotting Jamaica products because their Immigration Officers were doing their job.

Over 10 per cent of our adult population are illegal immigrants, with over 20,000 Jamaicans overstaying their time, and over 8,000 presently being unaccounted for. So they are now illegal immigrants, absorbing our State resources, but not contributing to the State by paying any taxes. And it is because of this very same system of allowing anyone to enter and after the deadline to return they instead refuse to leave. They then slip into the system and become other immigrants who are not paying taxes but the State has to take care of them.

As National Security Minister I amended this and gave the Immigration Officers the full support that they deserved, but some are yet again trying to intimidate our Immigration Department, and this must not be allowed to happen. 

This abuse by those who are allowed to enter and refuse to leave, is costing us over $2 billion a year of lost taxes by these illegal immigrants, many of whom are working but not paying taxes. 

Whereas we should always welcome any visitor to our country, they must adhere to our laws and requirements, and no one should allude to our Immigration Officers having done something wrong and should be investigated. They should in fact be applauded for doing their job because if we do not, then because of the pressure being put on them, it may cause these Immigration Officers to decide not to bother to be stringent and they would start to turn a blind eye and have every regional criminal or unemployable Caricom national be allowed entry and it is our nation that would suffer. 

The Immigration officers need to feel as if they are being supported for doing what needs to be done. In many of these circumstances, the reports indicated many solid reasons why they were denied entry and why they failed to adhere to the requirements as set out in our Immigration Act Chapter 18:01 of the Laws of the Republic of T&T. 

The last time a situation with Jamaican nationals being denied entry took place, some of the justifiable reasons for them being rejected were:

• providing conflicting information on the reasons for their visit, with their stories not being corroborated by their intended hosts;

• being hosted by Jamaican nationals in the country with illegal visitor status;

• having insufficient funds to support the length of their intended stay in the country;

• others ripped up the immigration forms and abused our Immigration Officers; 

• some did not know where they were staying or working.

• another said she came to drop her son for his father, but the father never showed up because he, too, was an illegal immigrant. 

Failure for our Immigration Officers to do their job and allow such people entry, would have simply added to the disaster we now face with illegals.

The rule of law must be applied to all people who have demonstrated a reasonable breach of T&T’s immigration guidelines, and it begs the question as to whether such integration, as many use as their mantra to allow everyone entry, is pegged on member territories conveniently breaching their own internal rules of law to accommodate other member territories.

This must not happen.

Gary Griffith

That someone is “not accountable to anyone” is misleading in any given situation as we as human beings are certainly accountable for any and all of our actions during our stay on this earth.

Especially when one is holding public office and has unlimited access to the funds of the public purse, it makes one doubly accountable to the taxpayers of the nation. So when the Chief Justice flies out every Monday morning it hurts the pockets of the taxpayer since in these times money is hard to come by. 

There are too many social services suffering from the lack of funds and too many ordinary citizens are thrown on the breadline with many hungry mouths to feed especially the nation’s children.

That figure of $30 million dollars spent by the CJ and his entourage is way too exorbitant not only in hard times but any time.

It sounds as though the CJ is on a permanent vacation visiting countries all over the world with all expenses paid and, to add insult to injury, staying overtime on these trips.

Kudos to the Judiciary staff for bringing this to the fore and for public comment. One is left to wonder: Is the CJ a CJ for the world or a CJ for T&T? 

With all these travels to London, Austria, Jamaica, Scotland, Belize, Barbados, USA, Nigeria and some not mentioned, when does the CJ get the time to run things in the judicial system in T&T?

No wonder, the system has failed us. Courts are dilapidated, there is a definite disconnect with the courts and police service, inadequate representation for citizens on legal aid, absent judges and magistrates, police officers not attending to their matters in court and the waiting for years to have matters called up, are all concrete evidence that all is not right with the judicial system in T&T. 

Imagine a simple traffic matter is called up over ten times before it is finally dealt with. People’s time is wasted having to attend the courts.

Someone needs to right this wrong and stop the joyriding at taxpayers expense while citizens and the country suffers.

WKS HOSEIN,

Chaguanas

Why is no one surprised at the fact that the Prison Service executive failed to act on the information that there was an intended jailbreak immediately before the break actually occurred? 

Not only did they not take precautions but they did not even let their junior officers know. 

For those of a sceptical mind the question may well be whether it was just incompetence or intentional.

In fact, there was a video camera in a critical area which captured the action within the jail itself, before the escapees had exited the compound. 

There was either no one monitoring or there was no response mechanism in place. 

Such a failure can only be laid at the door of the Commissioner himself. Even if he was not aware of the plot he should have an action team to deal with eventualities of this type.

There are those who are too ready to blame lower level workers when things go wrong but on examination it must be accepted that the leadership has fallen down on the job and have to accept the blame for the failings of their administration. As if that is likely to happen in T&T.

Karan Mahabirsingh

We wish to say a special thanks to three officers of the Cedros police station who went above and beyond the call of duty to help our Mother Sanmath Maharaj.

She required urgent medical attention but due to a roadblock in effect, she was unable to get through to see her doctor.

We requested assistance from the Cedros Police Station and Corporal Kamody, PC Anil Maharaj, and PC Soogrim responded and ensured that our mother got to the doctor safely and as quickly as possible.

We are happy to say that our 91-year-old mother is doing well now.

Again, we would like to sincerely thank these officers for a job well done, and may god bless them all.

Thank you from the children of Sanmath Maharaj of Granville Cedros

Savitri P Botha

In reference to the letter to the editor headlined, Lots to gain from legalising marijuana, the writer very well expresses the benefits in five points: 1) eliminating gang activity; 2) reducing prison population and costs to citizens/government; 3) reducing court congestion and so allowing courts to deal with real criminals; 4) it will allow police to deal with real criminals and policing; 5) it will considerably increase tax revenue. 

The writer also expressed how other developed countries as well as Jamaica have done it such as through a ticketing system. 

What I really also want to add is that through the regulated use of it, unlike alcohol which causes many road deaths as well as violent domestic abuse situations, marijuana would do the opposite and better, because most of us know it would make most people more relaxed, creative and even cure some cancers.

M Hernandez

Female prisoner Natasha De Leon, who has been behind bars for the last 23 years, yesterday advised the inmates at the Youth Training Centre (YTC) to capitalise on all opportunities afforded them while still incarcerated.

“Make yourself marketable and productive, not just because the courses are being offered, but because you want to make amends to society and be able to be accepted again when you regain your freedom. So that society can see that change in you. And you see that little voice in your head telling you not to do it...Don’t do it!” she admonished.

De Leon, along with Darren Roger Thomas, were tried and convicted on November 9, 1995, for the brutal murder of Princes Town taxi driver Chandranath Maharaj in 1993. The couple, who were sentenced to death, had their convictions commuted to life in prison in 2008.

A composed sounding De Leon and fellow inmate, Shelly-Ann Anganoo, are members of the YTC’s mentoring programme.

The pair spoke yesterday during an event, marking T&T’s participation and inclusion in a global tour by the US-based Youth for Human Rights International organisation.

The event was a collaborative effort of the National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice (NABCJ) and the National Alliance of Faith and Justice’s POP Programme (Pen, as in penitentiary or Pencil representing education), both out of the US.  The tour was co-ordinated by Krishna Bedassie, the officer in charge of training, treatment and programmes at YTC.

In addressing the audience, De Leon also recalled the disregard for basic rights to even water and being treated as a criminal even before being sentenced.

However, she also cautioned the inmates who entered the prisons system with “bad attitudes” and then complained about officers who infringed on their rights.

Adding a little humour to the sombre event, Anganoo stated that indulging in criminal activities means one has given up his or her fundamental rights and replaced it with these:

“You have the right to be silent, you have the right to an attorney...”

Anganoo, who has been in prison for over 13 years, also noted that individuals had the responsibility to ensure they themselves did not infringe on the rights of others. She and three others were convicted of the murder of retired school teacher Ralphy Ramcharan in 2003.

After first being sentenced to 20 years hard labour, in 2011 the Court of Appeal granted Anganoo a five-year reduction in her sentence. De Leon was a minor when she committed the crime.

Don’t give up on country’s youths

Mary Shuttleworth, president of the human rights organisation, presented a video on the history of the inception and evolution of human rights. The audience was encouraged in an interactive and informative session on the 30 rights of a human being handed down through the Universal Declaration of Human Rights created in 1948 by the United Nations. Today, 192 countries are members of the UN.

Trinidad-born Carlyle Holder, who headed one of the largest prisons in the US, spoke on behalf of the NABJ and called on the public not to “give up on the country’s youths”. Vernice Robertson represented the NAFJ.

Elvin Scantlebury, YTC superintendent and incumbent president of the Prisons Youth Club, called on the inmates to take heed of all they had learnt, as well as the many opportunities available to them both in and outside of the prison system.

Entertainment was provided by Santa Rosa inmate/vocalist, Dillion Warwick, as well as flautists, YTC inmate Akeil Mitchell and Dean Joseph of Miracle Ministries International, Chaguanas.

Vernon Trotman offered an original calypso piece, cautioning youths to stay away from a life of crime and the misguided notion that it offered a sense of fame.

The event ended with a performance by the US-based marching band Knowledge Is Power Programme (KIPP) and an invitation for attendees to visit the booths of over 18 youth groups in the country. 

Valdeen Shears-Neptune

Terminated ArcelorMittal workers are up in arms as their pension plan is in jeopardy.

The workers stand to lose their pensions after it was discovered at a meeting on Thursday that the company had been delinquent in its payments to the plan. 

According to the 2012 Actuary Report, which Sunday Guardian was privy to, the market value with accrual at March 31, 2013, for 2014 was $815,396,571.22

The executive summary states the company was supposed to have increased its pension plan contribution from six per cent to 12 per cent and by August 2016, increased to 23.7 per cent. 

However, the company failed to do this and continued paying six per cent. 

Sunday Guardian understands that a lump sum payment of $9 million was made in February towards the plan. It is unclear why this sum was paid or whether the sum had covered the total amount they had failed to pay over the years, but questions have been raised about the company’s motives since it closed down in March. Up to the end of March when workers received their final salaries, workers’ deductions had been made. 

With moods starting to change, the union is warning that it can no longer keep calm and is anticipating that there will be unrest in this country. 

The meeting, held between members of the Steel Workers Union of T&T (SWUTT) and the trustees of the pension plan, Republic Bank Ltd, along with the actuaries, raised questions about workers’ pensions, especially those who were encouraged by the company after its closure on March 11, to apply for their pension contribution reimbursement even though they had worked for more than five years. 

However, the union said this was against the Trust Deed and Rules which govern the plan. 

When the company closed its doors in March, 644 workers were sent home—206 had applied for early retirement and within the next 12 months, in excess of 100 would qualify for early retirement. Currently, there are close to 600 pensioners whose pensions range from $7,000 to $9,000.

Calls to ArcelorMittal’s managing director and CEO Robert Bellisle’s mobile went unanswered.

Questions were also emailed to Lisa Ann Joseph to be relayed to ArcelorMittal executives.

Finance Minister Colm Imbert did not answer calls to his mobile. Questions emailed to him were also not answered. 

Trustees in the dark

At Thursday’s meeting, Sunday Guardian was told the trustees and the actuaries said they had not received communication from the company that it was heading into a liquidation and were not informed of the status of employees. They said the only information they received was through the union and media.

Explaining the pension reimbursement arrangement, SWUTT second vice-president Ramkumar Narinesingh said under the plan, workers who have five years or less service and who were terminated or resigned were entitled to get back their contributions. 

He said those with five years or more service, under the age of 50 and who were terminated or resigned, had to wait to get a deferred pension. 

“So you cannot get back your contribution after five years of service. The company has been telling workers that they could write a letter requesting their pension contributions even though they have more than five years service.”

But Narinesingh, who was present at Thursday’s meeting, said the trustees were very concerned, since under the rules, there was not a scenario where a member could simply get back contributions unless that person was migrating. 

“Outside of that, you cannot get it back,” he said. 

He added that failure by the com

pany to send the applications to the trustees in time, especially if a liquidation takes place, would result in workers not receiving any pension at all. 

Also, he said, the company had not officially informed the union of its decisions. 

After months of pressures with their jobs and now weeks of uneasiness over their monetary entitlements, workers were now in a hopeless situation, but Narinesingh said not even the word hopeless could sum up the workers’ feelings. 

The situation had gone to a whole different realm, he said. 

“The pension plan was the last hope for workers,” Narinesingh said. 

His comrade, chief labour relations officer, Timothy Bailey said he was informed by sources that it was made clear that it would be a battle for the workers to get their pensions.

Bailey said the company was selling workers a dream. 

Liquidation looms

Narinesingh said when the union asked the trustees about the status of the applications for the early retirement, “They told us they have had no such applications. Nothing was forwarded.”

With fear of liquidation looming over their heads, Narinesingh said, “What we understand is this—when this company is liquidated on the day that the liquidators announce, it is also the same day that automatically puts the pension plan in winding up status.”

He explained that the penalty for liquidating the investment from the plan prematurely could be around $300 million leaving the plan with about $500 million cash value.

He said after the plan is liquidated, the first step by the trustees would be to buy pension annuities from insurance companies to secure current pensioners. That’s a tender process that can take months. Those who have early retirement requests would be the first ones to be addressed. But without the letters from the company to the trustees, all seems lost, Narinesingh said. 

Narinesingh and Bailey expressed the disappointment and hurt their members were feeling. 

They said workers saw the pension as their last ounce of hope. 

Narinesingh said, “We have an avenue where workers from 50 could take early retirement, minus ten per cent of their pension benefits, which is more or less two per cent per annum. At 55, you are guaranteed a full pension.”

He and Bailey, a ladleman and dispatcher, respectively, said they could not begin to imagine the sheer disappointment that workers over the age of 50 would feel since it is now more difficult for them to seek alternative employment. 

Narinesingh: Govt has hands-off approach

According to an executive report to the Parliament in 1994 on the sale of Iscott to the Caribbean Ispat Ltd (CIL), 40 per cent of the shares of the company was supposed to be placed in the public domain.

It states, “CIL shall within three years after the completion date take all the necessary steps for the sale of 40 per cent of the shares of CIL on the Trinidad And Tobago Stock Exchange with the said issue giving preferential allotment and treatment to CIL’s employees and to the trustees of the ESOP for CIL’s employees.”

Narinesingh said, “This means that the current situation could have been avoided if previous governments had enforced this clause in the sale agreements.” He said for the past 15 years the union has been attempting to rectify this by engaging discussion from Ministers of Finance.

He said the union had numerous letters asking for government’s intervention for enforcement.

“Now the Government continues to have a hands-off approach, in that it is still unwilling to facilitate new investors which the union has sourced to ensure the future of the formers workers.”

The union wrote to the current administration but there has been no positive feedback. 

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados—Bitt, the Barbados based financial technology company has closed its Series A investment round with a staggered investment from retail giant Overstock.com of US$16 million, placing the company’s valuation at US$50 million.

“Bitt has a vision for the Caribbean of frictionless mobile cash, beginning with central banks transparently issuing digital fiat which is then exchanged using a block chain mechanism (with proper regulatory oversight).” said Overstock.com CEO Dr Patrick M Byrne. “We respect and endorse that vision, and share a common desire to see online consensual exchange flourish globally.”

“One love,” Byrne added.

The investment was announced at a media conference in Barbados attended by principals from both Bitt.com and Overstock.com, in addition to dignitaries from various Caribbean nations.

For its part, Bitt.com intends to use the proceeds from the investment to further its goal of building a financial ecosystem in the Caribbean that remedies the issues which people in the region experience daily, including high frictional fees from banks and money services operations that make sending money in and out of the region cumbersome and costly.

“Regional small businesses find it financially prohibitive to offer online payment options to consumers and this places a drag on entrepreneurism in the Caribbean,” said Bitt CEO and co-founder, Gabriel Abed. “Our aim is to use cryptography and digital ledger technology to turn our regional citizens into global citizens, giving them the ability to send or receive money directly via their phones, in seconds, from all corners of the globe.”

In February Bitt launched a digitised Barbadian dollar on the bitcoin blockchain. The company intends to digitise all of the fiat currencies found in the Caribbean and place them on the blockchain so they can be easily traded between the islands, bringing modern solutions to a region historically limited by inefficient exchange and settlement systems.

“Bitt’s financial technology revolution will bring to consumers a faster, better, cheaper and more traceable way of banking—and we now have a new, multi-billion dollar backed investor to help make this vision a reality,” said Oliver Gale, Bitt CFO and co-founder. “Bitt is bringing modern financial solutions to a region long denied efficient settlement systems.” 

Bitt will use the newly secured funding to further develop its software suite which includes a digital asset exchange, a mobile money wallet, a remittance platform, and merchant payment processing tools. Additionally, Bitt will rapidly expand, growing its staff to meet the goals of providing a top-quality service that will encompass the entire Caribbean region. Overstock will add to this growth via shared learning and the mobilisation of its existing tech team.

Bitt is the first Caribbean startup of its kind to attract such major funding from international investors. 

“It is a vote of confidence in the entire region,” said Abed, “Too often regional entities are considered to simply be ‘on-par’ with or playing ‘catch-up’ to their international counterparts, Bitt is not part of this imitation game. We are world-leading. The standards we are setting here are being adopted by the wider community. We, and this region, are the focal point of the conversation.”

Also in attendance was the Hon. Christopher Sinckler, Minister of Finance (Barbados) who gave the new partnership his, “and the government’s full support,” referring to the announcement as an historic event of “national advancement” for Barbados. “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the future,” he added.

Principal Bitt investor Peter George, representing T&T investment firm Avatar Capital, hosted the announcement. Pressed for comment he said: “Overstock.com has always been at the forefront of cutting edge technology as it seeks to expand its reach to customers both domestically and globally. Patrick (Byrne) is a deeply principled man who has battled relentlessly to level the playing field, and who has not been afraid to blaze new trails. I could not have envisioned a better fit for Bitt than this.”

The Tobago House of Assembly’s (THA) project implementation personnel are now equipped to identify successful public private partnership (PPP) projects because of the collective efforts of the Division of Finance and Enterprise Development and Canada’s High Commission to T&T. 

Recently, 26 employees from various divisions of the THA participated in a two day workshop facilitated by Canadian consultants from the firms DLA Piper and KPMG.

In his address at the seminar’s opening, Secretary of Finance and Enterprise Development Joel Jack, under whose purview the session was held, spoke of the THA’s commitment to exploring opportunities for financing the island’s development projects in light of the severe cut in expenditure under the development programme. The PPP model, he said, is highly effective in ensuring opportunities are exploited to continue Tobago’s development. 

“PPPs provide a unique opportunity for collaboration between the THA and the private sector by allowing government to capitalise on the strengths of both the public system and the market solution while mitigating many of the risks, be they financial, political, environmental, social or operational,” he said.

The workshop provided participants with tools and skills to support successful PPP projects and tested the group’s ability to comprehensively and objectively evaluate public sector projects for application of the PPP approach. They were challenged to rigorously assess a project’s suitability, screening for efficacy while also becoming familiar with key control mechanisms and procurement related issues.

In his address to the participants Canada’s High Commissioner to T&T Gerard Latulippe shared Canada’s experience in PPP financing which spans more than 20 years. He emphasised that much of the success in the use of the modality was as a result of committed governments, a strong legal framework, an emphasis on value for money, strong financing markets, public sector expertise through dedicated agencies and a competitive, efficient, transparent and fair procurement system.

He said  he believes this can be successfully implemented in Tobago and pledged his support to work with the Division of Finance and Enterprise Development and the THA to assist in successful implementation.