Daily Brief - Thursday 12th October, 2017

NEWS

Beaten and robbed in Rousillac, American couple declares ‘EVIL EVERYWHERE’

In a few minutes of sheer terror, an American Missionary couple and their teenage son were savagely attacked, beaten and robbed by two cutlass-wielding masked bandits at their Rousillac home on Tuesday night. However, although left traumatised Michael and Kathryn Purdom, who are in their 60s, said this incident has not changed their perception of Trinidad and Tobago or cause them to pack up and leave back to America because, “Evil everywhere.” Read more here

People’s lives now at stake

Commissioner of Prisons Williams Alexander will be actively engaging in talks with acting Commissioner Stephen Williams on the issue of arming off-duty prisons officers. He made the comment yesterday following the funeral for slain prison officer Richard Sandy at the St Barnabas Anglican Church, Pleasantville. Read more here

Businessman commits suicide at work

A SAN Fernando businessman committed suicide in his businessplace on Monday. Suresh Ramdial, 57, the owner of Budget Motor Supplies, shot himself with his licensed firearm at Cipero Street. Ramdial was found bleeding from a gunshot wound to his mouth at around 4.20 p.m. His .380 Baretta pistol was found near the body. Read more here

 

POLITICS

Kamla giving casino workers Senate voice

Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar yesterday called on members of various trade unions to let their voices be heard and to speak for themselves as they continued their protest in front Parliament at the International Waterfront, Port-of-Spain. During a break in a sitting of the lower house, Persad-Bissessar spoke to protesters outside and expressed her support. She also assured those gathered she would raise their issues before Parliament and would appoint one of the protesters to go before the Senate to voice their concerns. Read more here

Gopeesingh: PP was intolerant to school violence

Former education minister Dr Tim Gopeesingh yesterday rejected an argument from La Brea MP Nicole Olivierre that a bullying incident at the Siparia West Secondary School was connected to the removal of corporal punishment from secondary schools under a former United National Congress (UNC) administration. Responding to Olivierre during the budget debate in the House of Representatives, Gopeesingh said the removal of corporal punishment was due to TT becoming a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Read more here

 

BUSINESS

Bmobile, Uber join forces

Local telecommunications provider bMobile has joined forces with the taxi service company Uber to offer free wifi during rides. In a statement, the companies said since October 2, Uber passengers have been able to stay connected on rides around town with their personal hotspot powered by bMobile’s 4G LTE technology. Read more here

Tourism Minister: Tobago good enough for Sandals?

Tourism Minister Shamfa Cudjoe yesterday declared that Tobago is “good enough” for Sandals Resorts to build a hotel on the island. Cudjoe made this declaration in her contribution to the budget debate in the House of Representatives. Referring to earlier comments about the project from Barataria/San Juan MP Dr Fuad Khan, Cudjoe asked, “I have experienced Sandals myself, twice.” Read more here

 

REGIONAL

JUTC Overstaffed - 500 More Workers Than Needed At Company

The cash-strapped Jamaica Urban Transit Company Limited (JUTC) is currently implementing a rationalisation exercise to reduce the number of workers at the overstaffed state-owned bus company, which has nearly 500 more personnel than what is needed to run its operations. Managing director of the beleaguered entity Paul Abrahams told members of Parliament's Public Administration and Appropriations Committee yesterday that the company was spending an additional $25 million per month, which translates to $300 million per year, to pay the 500 workers. Read more here

 

INTERNATIONAL

California fires: Searchers seek hundreds of missing

In some areas in Sonoma County, the wildfires that have ravaged tens of thousands of acres died down enough Wednesday for the sheriff's department to check on more than 600 missing persons reports by visiting burned-out neighborhoods. In many other cases, detectives used telephones to track down people who are unaccounted for. Still, 285 people remain missing in just this one county, people who authorities pray are still alive but have no way to contact police or their loved ones. But there is some dread that the death toll -- 23 in the region -- from the Northern California wildfires will rise as more areas cool down and searchers discover what's left. Read more here

Trump threatens broadcaster NBC after nuclear report

US President Donald Trump has raised the prospect of challenging media licences for NBC News and other news networks after unfavourable reports. He took aim at NBC, which made him a star on The Apprentice, after it reported he wanted to boost America's nuclear arsenal almost tenfold. Mr Trump labelled the report "fake news" and "pure fiction". NBC also angered the White House last week when it said the secretary of state had called Mr Trump "a moron". Read more here

12th October 2017

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