NEWS
Flood: Mt Lambert residents stranded
IT look less than an hour of rain yesterday afternoon for roads in Santa Cruz, San Juan and Mt Lambert to be submerged by flood waters. The sudden rains brought flooding and caused several landslips across the North Coast Road, on the way to Maracas Bay. The heavy rains, which led to wet roads, was also said to be a contributor to several accidents in these areas, including a collision along the east-bound lane of the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway, near El Socorro, which led to a traffic pile-up. The accident involved a Hyundai Tuscon SUV and a Toyota Hilux pick-up. Injuries were minimal. Read more here
Limers rescued by fire officers
Over 20 people, including an 11-month-old baby, had to be ziplined across Pool 2 by members of the Fire Service at the Caura River, Tunapuna, last night, after they were stranded for over five hours when the river became swollen following heavy rains. The group had been busy cooking and having a good time at the popular spot when the rains came and the river began to rise. Eventually, those gathered realised the water was too rough to cross and it was getting higher and called for help. Read more here
Gov’t Needs Help
Following a three-hour meeting with Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley yesterday, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar has concluded one thing: the government needs help. Reporting to the media at her office on Charles Street in Port of Spain after the meeting, Persad- Bissessar said, “Several matters were raised by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley and it is very clear from our discussion that the Government is in need of advice and help in many areas.” Initially, Persad-Bissessar said there was a good rapport and clear understanding during the meeting which nicely set the tone for future talks. “It has been a fruitful day and well worth the discussions.” But in a subsequent interview, following the press conference, with CNC3 which was aired ‘live’ during that station’s 7 o’clock news broadcast, Persad-Bissessar however expressed some disappointment at the talks. Read more here
POLITICS
PM: I will not advise myself
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley yesterday said Government and the Opposition were unable to reach agreement on how to deal with difficulties in the Judiciary, especially the imbroglio which arose from the appointment of former chief magistrate Marcia Ayers Caesar as a judge and her subsequent resignation from that post. The Prime Minister made this point at a news conference at Tower D of the Port-of-Spain International Waterfront Centre, following three hours of talks on this and other matters with Opposition Leader Kamla Persad- Bissessar at the same venue. Read more here
Stalemate
The Government has returned to the drawing board in search of a solution for the crisis facing the Judiciary, in light of the refusal of Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar to countenance any parliamentary remedy to the judicial impasse over 53 part-heard cases. After a three-hour meeting with Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar yesterday, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley conveyed an optimistic assessment of the meeting, stating that there was broad consensus on many of the issues discussed. Read more here
BUSINESS
Energy Ministry, OWTU meet today on Petrotrin
Officials of the Oilfields Workers Trade Union (OWTU) are warning that they will not stand idly by while Government gives away part of the country’s “patrimony” to friends and family. The warning comes as the country awaits Cabinet’s decision on the future of state owned Petrotrin and ahead of a meeting today between Energy Minister Franklin Khan and the union to discuss the Petrotrin report. That report submitted by a committee chaired by Permanent Secretary in the Energy Ministry Selwyn Lashley was considered by Cabinet at its weekly meeting last Thursday. It recommends splitting the company into three. Read more here
T&T needs its $$ now
The public can only hope that Government’s application to the High Court to have CL Financial wound up over its inability to repay its $23 billion-plus debt is the correct course of action. It has been eight long years since the Patrick Manning administration intervened, using public funds, to bail out the biggest conglomerate in the Caribbean. Read more here
REGIONAL
The Venezuelan people's vote of rebellion
After more than 100 consecutive days of popular protests, Venezuelan opposition and civil society groups organized a ‘plebiscite’, a popular referendum challenging the official Constitutional Assembly that President Nicolás Maduro has convened for July 30, 2017. Read more here
Help Us, Please - Police Call For Full Support Of Citizens In Zones Of Special Operations
As police and military personnel gear up to take over designated communities under the Zones of Special Operations Act, Superintendent of Police in charge of the Corporate Communications Unit, Stephanie Lindsay, is appealing for the public's support, as the ultimate aim of implementing the new law, is to create a safe Jamaica for all. Lindsay was speaking to The Gleaner at Up Park Camp yesterday, during day one of an important three-day series of human-rights training for Jamaica Constabulary Force and the Jamaica Defence Force commanders, as well as rank-and-file members. "When we get out there, we expect full cooperation from the citizens. We want them to know that we are doing this because of them, so support us. If communities can come together with us and share in understanding, that if we fix the social ills, if we fix the disorder and if we do some simple things, going back to basics, we can actually see communities being restored to good and safe communities. We believe with this approach we are taking, we will get it right," stated Lindsay. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Sneak peek at US Navy's new $13B aircraft carrier
Perched 50 feet above the USS Gerald Ford's massive flight deck, Petty Officer 1st Class Jose Triana has a clear view of the horizon from his padded captain's chair in the pilot house of the world's most advanced aircraft carrier. "This ship can basically drive itself," Triana said, pointing to a touch-screen navigation display that has replaced the traditional throttle system used to power and steer the US Navy's older carrier classes. The one-of-a-kind control system is just one of many state-of-the-art upgrades aboard the $13 billion USS Gerald Ford that will be commissioned into active duty on July 22 after eight years of construction, development and testing. Read more here
Trump and Putin had another, undisclosed conversation at G20
19th July 2017