NEWS
Archbishop calls for fast from social media during Lent
Archbishop Jason Gordon has urged Catholics to make this Lenten season a time of true reflection, fasting and thanksgiving, challenging them to go beyond tradition and even fast from social media while giving alms to the poor. Delivering his Ash Wednesday homily at Our Lady of Perpetual Help RC Church in San Fernando yesterday, Archbishop Gordon called on worshippers to examine their hearts and renew their relationship with God. “If you have never sinned and always done what is right, you may leave now,” he quipped. “But if you’re like the rest of us — Saint Paul says all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God — then this season is for you.” Read more here
Shutdown ‘cost earnings, placement’
The leader of a mas band that was prevented from crossing the stage on Monday night says the premature end meant his band did not have a chance of placing in the Couva Carnival. He said through the competition, his band would have had the opportunity to earn a profit. But the band was never judged after police stopped the celebrations before the scheduled end on Monday. On Tuesday, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service apologised for what it called a “misunderstanding” that led to night mas competitions being cut short by officers in Central and South Trinidad. Read more here
POLITICS
PM confirms attendance at Caricom summit in St Kitts
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has confirmed that she will travel to Basseterre, St Kitts and Nevis, on Monday evening to attend the 50th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of Caribbean Community (Caricom)—marking her first face-to-face engagement with regional leaders since assuming office for a second term. Persad-Bissessar did not attend the 49th Regular Meeting in Montego Bay, Jamaica, in July last year, when Trinidad and Tobago was instead represented by Foreign and Caricom Affairs Minister Sean Sobers, National Security Minister Roger Alexander, Acting Permanent Secretary Randall Karim, Ambassador to Caricom Ralph Maraj, and Director of Caricom and Caribbean Affairs Ayesha Wharton. While her Government has emphasised strengthening ties beyond the Caribbean, Persad-Bissessar has stressed that Trinidad and Tobago has no plans to withdraw from the regional bloc. Following a January 30 meeting with Caricom Chairman Dr Terrance Drew in Port-of-Spain, she told social media that the country remains committed to the organisation and regional development. Read more here
BUSINESS
Venezuelan energy consultant: Renegotiate Dragon deal
If T&T does negotiate new energy contracts with Venezuela, both countries would have to get rid of the previous contracts that were signed and negotiate new ones that would benefit Venezuela and not only T&T. In an exclusive interview with the Business Guardian, Dr Einstein Millán Arcia—a prominent former PDVSA consultant and Venezuelan energy analyst who has a PhD from Oklahoma University in the US—gave his views on the precarious relations between the two countries. From 2016 to 2017, he was a personal advisor to former Venezuelan Oil Minister Nelson Martínez and he does consultancy work throughout the Middle East and Africa. On October 27, 2025, deposed Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro, suspended all energy cooperation agreements with T&T, including major natural gas projects like the Dragon gas deal. The next day, Venezuela's National Assembly officially declared T&T's Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar persona non grata, which means she is not welcome in the South American nation. Read more here
Govt committed
Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo says Trinidad and Tobago’s removal from the European Union’s list of non-cooperative countries reflects his Government’s sustained commitment to transparency, fairness and adherence to internationally accepted standards”. His statement follows that of former finance minister, Colm Imbert, who wrote on X, “(Tuesday), the European Union removed Trinidad and Tobago from the list of non-cooperative countries for tax transparency (EU blacklist), as a result of the work WE did before the April 2025 General Election. Nothing to do with the UNC but they will try to take credit for OUR work.” Read more here
REGIONAL
Guyana setting new global benchmark in energy development
GUYANA’S energy expansion ranks among the most significant developments worldwide, Dan Ammann, President of ExxonMobil’s Upstream Company and Vice-President of ExxonMobil Corporation, has said. Addressing the opening of the 2026 Guyana Energy Conference and Supply Chain Expo, he described Guyana as “perhaps the most exceptional energy development anywhere in the world.” Ammann highlighted the rapid progress on the Stabroek Block, pointing to multiple projects brought online ahead of schedule and under budget. He said the development was already transforming Guyana through new infrastructure, jobs and local supplier opportunities, and stressed the company’s commitment to responsibly developing both oil and natural gas. “From that vantage point, I can say very confidently that Guyana is perhaps the most exceptional energy development anywhere in the world, not only due to the scale of the resource offshore, but how it’s being developed, how it’s being managed, and importantly, what it is enabling onshore.” Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Detained Briton describes life in Iran jail to BBC hours before sentencing
A British woman who was detained by Iran has told the BBC it was hard to remain positive in prison, hours before she and her husband were sentenced to 10 years for espionage. Lindsay and Craig Foreman were arrested while passing through Iran on a round-the-world motorcycle trip in January 2025. In a rare telephone interview from Tehran's notorious Evin prison, Lindsay likened their detainment to "an endurance test for the mind" and said being in jail had taken a physical toll on her. Read more here
19th February 2026