NEWS

Diego Martin gets taste of Science Week

Diego Martin and environs will have the opportunity to experience the world of Science, Technology and Innovation through Community Science Week hosted by the National Institute of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology (Niherst). Community Science Week began yesterday and runs until Saturday at St Anthony’s College, Westmoorings. Speaking yesterday at the official opening of the science fair, Ministry of Education curriculum officer for technology education, Marlon Hart, encouraged students, parents and the community to take hold of the opportunity provide for them. Read more here

Anglican Dean: ‘I tried to stop them’

Dean and Rec­tor at the Holy Trin­i­ty Cathe­dral, Rev­erend Shel­ley Ann Tenia said she was dis­ap­point­ed that the ac­tion of one de­sign­er taint­ed the pub­lic’s view of an event meant to help with the restora­tion of the Port-of-Spain church. The church was dam­aged by a pow­er­ful earth­quake on Au­gust 21, 2018, dur­ing which the steeple of the church was bro­ken. Three fash­ion shows were host­ed by Style­Week Port-of-Spain on Fri­day, Sat­ur­day and Sun­day at the An­gli­can church, to raise funds for the church’s restora­tion. How­ev­er, sev­er­al swim­suit mod­els were cast in the show, which caused an up­roar among many who saw it as a des­e­cra­tion of a holy site. Rev­erend Tenia ex­plained that there were guide­lines that were agreed to by the or­gan­is­er for the event when they ap­proached the church to use the venue. Read more here

POLITICS

Khan: New techniques needed for oil production

With a large number of TT’s oil-producing fields nearing the end of their lifespan, Energy Minister Franklin Khan has said new exploration techniques have to be employed to boost oil production both onshore and in the Gulf of Paria. “Oil and gas exploration is a complex science. These oilfields are old – when I say old, I mean very old. We have been producing oil for over 100 years. Most of these fields – the Palo Seco field, the Fyzabad field, the Forest Reserve field, Point Fortin central, FC, FW – they were all discovered in the 1910s, 20s and 30s. Cumulatively they have produced a billion and half barrels of oil. But they are coming to the end of their lives.” Read more here

AG: Smith report will be preserved

At­tor­ney Gen­er­al Faris Al–Rawi has de­scribed as pre­pos­ter­ous, scur­rilous and scan­dalous, the no­tion that Gov­ern­ment would en­ter­tain the idea of de­stroy­ing the Dar­ryl Smith re­port while it is the sub­ject of court pro­ceed­ings. Al-Rawi was giv­en un­til 4 pm yes­ter­day to re­spond to con­cerns by De­vant Ma­haraj’s at­tor­ney Dr Che Din­di­al that the Dar­ryl Smith re­port could be de­stroyed even while Ma­haraj was try­ing to get its de­tails ex­posed through the court via a free­dom of in­for­ma­tion re­quest. Al-Rawi re­spond­ed af­ter he point­ed out that the ur­gency was not nec­es­sary. “There is no ba­sis for any be­lief that the Gov­ern­ment made a de­ci­sion that the re­port would be de­stroyed,” Al-Rawi said in the let­ter. He added, “It is pre­pos­ter­ous to sug­gest that mere­ly be­cause a third par­ty has called for the re­port to be de­stroyed, the Gov­ern­ment will ac­cede to that re­quest.” Read more here

BUSINESS

T&T farmers win cocoa awards

Co­coa farm­ers Gee­ta and Leroy Pe­ters from Grand Riv­iere, Jacque­line and Mar­tin Matthew from Tamana, re­cent­ly won the In­ter­na­tion­al Co­coa Awards (ICA) at the 25th edi­tion of Sa­lon du Choco­lat in Paris, France. Ac­cord­ing to a state­ment by the Co­coa De­vel­op­ment Com­pa­ny of T&T, the In­ter­na­tion­al Co­coa Awards, held every two years, is co-or­di­nat­ed through the Co­coa of Ex­cel­lence Pro­gramme, spear­head­ed by Biover­si­ty In­ter­na­tion­al. The awards recog­nise qual­i­ty, flavour and di­ver­si­ty of co­coa ac­cord­ing to their ori­gin. The T&T farm­ers placed first out of 223 en­tries from 55 coun­tries. A third sub­mis­sion by Jac­in­ta and Michael Milne of Bethany Es­tate, Tal­paro, was ranked among the world’s top 50. The Pe­ters won the in­au­gur­al Na­tion­al Co­coa Awards, held ear­li­er this year in the South­ern Acad­e­my of Per­form­ing Arts (SAPA). Read more here

REGIONAL

Car Thefts Jump - But Insurance Companies’ Data Suggest Police Numbers Are 49% Lower Than Reality

Despite ongoing states of emergency in six parishes, car thefts have climbed by 32 per cent, raising concerns among insurers that have to pay out hundreds of millions of dollars yearly in compensation. But those statistics are startlingly lower than the data collected by members of the umbrella group, the Insurance Association of Jamaica (IAJ), which show that 251 more vehicles have been stolen than have been published by the police. For the period ending October 26, the Jamaica Constabulary Force reported that 512 motor vehicles, including cars, trucks, buses and bikes, were stolen, compared to 385 for the corresponding period in the previous year. Read more here

CDB President calls for regional coordination in International Business Sector

A Private sector-led, regionally-coordinated approach can help the Caribbean reap the full benefits of the international business and financial services (IBFS) sector, says President of the Caribbean Development Bank, Dr. Warren Smith. Speaking at Barbados’ International Business Week 2019 conference, Dr. Smith noted that the increasing attractiveness of the Region as an offshore centre had brought closer attention to the sector. “According a recent OECD report, since 2010, developing countries have accounted for a larger intake of foreign direct investments than their more established counterparts. But, the growing attractiveness of these economies to multinational corporations has come at a price, bringing them increased visibility and greater scrutiny,” he stated. Read more here

INTERNATIONAL

US Mormon children killed in Mexico attack

At least five US citizens, a mother and four children, have been killed in a violent attack by suspected drug cartel gunmen in northern Mexico. The victims were said to be members of the LeBaron family, linked to a breakaway Mormon community which settled in Mexico several decades ago. Video of the scene shows a burnt-out car. Some victims may have burned alive and several more people are missing. Local media say the attack could have been a case of mistaken identity. LeBaron family members were quoted as saying a group of three mothers and their 14 children had set off in a convoy of cars from Bavispe in Sonora state and were heading to La Mora in the neighbouring state of Chihuahua. Read more here

Impeachment bombshells highlight Trump's power grabs

President Donald Trump seems to sense a chance to leverage expansive, uncheckable power everywhere he looks. A common thread is emerging from the impeachment bombshells, court fights and multiple scandals all coming to head this week inside the one-year mark to the next general election. It's a picture of a President and his men who subscribe to a staggeringly broad interpretation of executive power and have no reservations about using it often for domestic political ends. The trend, which threatens to recast the conception of the presidency shared by America's founders, shone through the first witness testimony released from the impeachment inquiry Monday. Read more here

5th November 2019

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