NEWS
Zoological Society pleads: No fireworks near zoo
Emperor Valley Zoo welfare officer and Zoological Society member Kimberly Howai made a public appeal on Sunday for no fireworks displays to be held close to the Emperor Valley Zoo in Port of Spain during any of the upcoming public holidays. She made this appeal in a statement on behalf of the society and its position on the draft Summary Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2022 (or Fireworks Bill). At a virtual consultation on the bill last Friday, Minister in the Office of the Attorney General and Legal Affairs Renuka Sagramsingh-Sooklal said the bill is not law as yet. Read more here
China announces new drills as US delegation visits Taiwan
China announced more military drills around Taiwan as the self-governing island’s president met with members of a new U.S. congressional delegation on Monday, threatening to renew tensions between Beijing and Washington just days after a similar visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi angered China. Pelosi was the highest-level member of the U.S. government to visit Taiwan in 25 years, and her trip prompted nearly two weeks of threatening military exercises by China, which claims the island as its own. In those previous drills, Beijing fired missiles over the island and into the Taiwan Strait and sent warplanes and navy ships across the waterway’s midline, which has long been a buffer between the sides that split amid civil war in 1949. China accuses the U.S. of encouraging the island’s independence through the sale of weapons and engagement between U.S. politicians and the island’s government. Washington says it does not support independence, has no formal diplomatic ties with the island and maintains that the two sides should settle their dispute peacefully — but it is legally bound to ensure the island can defend itself against any attack. Read more here
POLITICS
Imbert calls for accurate reporting on Tobago land-acquisition issue
Finance Minister Colm Imbert is reiterating that the houses and lands in Bon Accord, Tobago, which the State sought to take possession of on Thursday for the airport terminal expansion project, were not the subject of any court matter. He was responding in a media statement on Sunday to an editorial in a daily newspaper (not the Newsday). Imbert questioned why the newspaper published inaccuracies which had been corrected, not only by his ministry but the Judiciary as well. Read more here
PM Rowley takes on Annisette ...slams union attack over his care for women, children
As the tension between the labour movement and the Government over public sector salary negotiations continues to build, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley waded into National Trade Union Centre general secretary Michael Annisette on social media yesterday. In a Facebook post yesterday morning, Rowley rejected Annisette’s criticisms of himself and the Government, asking the president general of the Seamen and Waterfront Workers’ Trade Union what he had done to deserve the disrespect from the unions and the accusations that he doesn’t care about the country’s women and children. The Prime Minister insisted that he always puts the national interest first, unlike others who have a job to provide the best representation of the people they lead.“I notice that in carrying out your advocacy, you have chosen to accuse me of being disrespectful and not caring about women and children. What have I ever done to cause you, of all people, to make such accusations against me?” the PM said. Read more here
BUSINESS
TTNGL profits rise 40.6% for half-year
Trinidad and Tobago NGL Ltd (TTNGL) yesterday reported after-tax profit of $117.5 million for the six months ended June 30, 2022, which represents a 40.6 per cent increase compared to the $83.6 million the producer of cooking gas and natural gasoline recorded for the same period in 2021. Directors of TTNGL said the company continues to post a solid financial performance for 2022. In a news release yesterday, TTNGL said its improved performance is directly related to the share of higher profit from its investment in Phoenix Park Gas Processors Limited (PPGPL). Read more here
REGIONAL
Government in discussion with airlines for direct flights to Canada
The Government of Guyana is engaging a number of airlines to provide direct flights from Guyana to Canada, Public Works Minister, Juan Edghill said.
In February of this year, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali; Tourism, Commerce and Industry Minister, Oneidge Walrond and Minister Edghill had engaged representatives from Air Canada, one of the largest airline providers in the country. “We are talking with many airlines; Air Canada just happens to be one. President Ali has been clear to us that we need to do everything to ensure that we have direct flights to Guyana- Canada, and that is something we are pursuing whether it comes out as Air Canada, West Jet or maybe a local carrier that somebody develops or somebody else comes into the market. We are talking, we are negotiating, we are engaging,” Edghill told a recent media conference. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Ukraine hits Russian Wagner mercenary HQ in east
Ukrainian artillery has struck a headquarters of Russia's shadowy Wagner paramilitary group of mercenaries in eastern Ukraine, reports say. The attack in Popasna was reported by Serhiy Hayday, Ukrainian governor of Luhansk region, and several pro-Kremlin war reporters. The number of casualties is not clear and details remain sketchy. Photos said to show the damage were posted on the Telegram messaging service. Wagner has been linked to war crimes.The group was deployed to Crimea and Ukraine's Donbas region in 2014, when Kremlin-backed forces ousted Ukrainian troops from areas they later declared to be part of Russia. Wagner units have also been sent to Syria, Libya, Mali and the Central African Republic. Read more here
15th August 2022