NEWS
Teens in court for assault on schoolmate
Weeks after a video of a group of students kicking and stomping on a schoolmate at the Princes Town West Secondary School was shared on social media, four students appeared in court yesterday charged with assault. They were arrested and charged on Tuesday, and taken before a master in the Children’s Court in Fyzabad. The charge read to the three 15-year-olds and one 16-year-old alleged that on September 27 they assaulted the student and wounded him. Read more here
POLITICS
Transport Minister: Sea Lots walkover 95 per cent complete
Minister of Works and Transport Rohan Sinanan Tuesday confirmed that most of the structure of the Sea Lots walkover is complete and while he was unable to give a definite date when it will be open to the public, he was optimistic that it will be soon. Speaking with Newsday during a break in tuesday’s sitting of the Lower House at Parliament, Sinanan said an estimated 95 per cent of the work had been completed and he was generally satisfied with it. Sinanan also said the construction took “a little longer than expected.” He said it cost an estimated $10 million and was 48 metres long, compared to the usual 38 metres. Read more here
Moonilal's A&V Drilling claim
Following is the excerpt from the Hansard in which Oropouche East MP Roodal Moonilal linked Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley to a purported financial transaction involving A&V Drilling. The allegation was made during his contribution to the Budget debate on Tuesday night. But another major matter that emerged is this famous or infamous AV Drilling. AV Drilling and that crisis that we faced there is not delinked from the crisis at Petrotrin. Connect the dots; $100 million, fake oil, suddenly refinery closed—only refinery closing. Then “mind change”, entire Petrotrin closing, all workers must go. “AV Drilling matter” is the subject before a DPP and, we believe, the police. Read more here
BUSINESS
Growth in agro-processing
The country may not have enough land for farming, but Government is doing what it can to boost productivity of what is under cultivation, and expand the agriculture industry. This seemed to be the message from Agriculture Minister Clarence Rambharat at the opening of the headquarters for the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture (IICA) in Brechin Castle, Couva on Tuesday. Read more here
New look for a familiar brand
A new generation of baby products has been launched by Johnson & Johnson that feature 90 per cent natural ingredients and a new design. The reinvented range was unveiled during a presentation hosted by Smith Robertson, local distributors for Johnson & Johnson, in Aranguez on Tuesday. Denise James-Patron, a registered nurse and licensed midwife, explained that the new line is safe for babies and the environment as they are free from all known allergens, as well as formaldehyde, parabens, phthalates and sulfates. Read more here
REGIONAL
Living On Past Glory - PM Says Jamaica Must Invest In Its Infrastructure
Jamaica's Prime Minister Andrew Holness said that the country is living on past glory and that it was important to invest in the country's infrastructure - including a new Parliament building - to show that as a people, we are serious about development. He was speaking at the opening of the Houses of Parliament Design Exhibition at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston yesterday, where five designs were selected for the final stage of the Houses of Parliament Design Competition. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Saudis discussed plan to lure Jamal Khashoggi to Saudi Arabia, US intercepts show
The US has intercepts of Saudi officials discussing a plan to lure journalist Jamal Khashoggi back to Saudi Arabia and detain him, according to a US official familiar with the intelligence. Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi journalist and critic of the regime, has been missing for more than a week after going to the Saudi consulate general in Istanbul to obtain wedding papers. Turkish officials privately believe he was killed at the consulate, an allegation denied by Saudi Arabia. The official said it is unclear if the original plan was to murder Khashoggi or if something went wrong at the consulate and that he might have been killed during an attempt to kidnap him. The official said that getting Khashoggi to the consulate appears to have been a backup plan, because he couldn't be persuaded to fly back to Saudi Arabia. Read more here
Astronauts escape malfunctioning Soyuz rocket
11th October 2018