NEWS
Kidnap Call From Prison
The man who is believed to have orchestrated the daring, daylight kidnapping last week of UWI manager Maria Dass-Supersad, at the St Augustine campus, did so from behind prison walls. National Security intelligence sources said this prisoner is suspected of running an illegal operation from his prison cell and has a group of people on the outside carrying out illegal activities on his behalf, in return for cold, hard cash. Investigators used technology to get information about the prisoner’s involvement in last week’s kidnapping and he and four other prisoners are expected to be investigated. Read more here
Missing boy, 13, found dead near home
Homicide and senior Central Division officers were at Cashew Gardens, Longdenville, late last night where the body of missing 13-year-old Joash Pantin was found. Pantin’s body was found in some bushes a few metres away from his home in an area known as “Cashew on the Hill” around 8 pm. Speaking with the T&T Guardian last night a resident, who wished not to be named, said she knew Pantin well. She said the children in the community said they last saw him on Saturday when he went to the community centre to play football, a routine for him. The resident said Pantin came from a humble home. Read more here
POLITICS
Govt waiting for new DCP list early next year
None of the six senior police officers whose names appear in an order of merit list for the post of Deputy Commissioner will be selected for the three vacant positions. Sources said Government is waiting until the list is exhausted in January next year and the post will be advertised and a new selection process held. Well-placed sources said the government is keen on simplifying the selection process to avoid a lengthy timeframe for appointing a commissioner and deputies. Read more here
Senate debates Tax Bill today
The Income Tax (Amendment) Bill is heading for debate in the Senate on Tuesday with Opposition concerns still looming, particularly over the way it was passed in the Lower House last Friday. “The way the Bill was passed shows that Prime Minister Keith Rowley was right last Friday when he told the Opposition Leader that day there was no deadline for the Bill. “But Government knew this all along and their approach on this made us waste a lot of time recently when we could have completed everything and passed the entire Bill,” Opposition Senator Saddam Hosein said yesterday. Read more here
BUSINESS
Heritage CEO surveys start-up from ground
Heritage Petroleum Company CEO Mike Wiley was “on the ground” yesterday visiting Santa Flora locations to ensure the security of installations as the company began work. Trinidad Petroleum Holdings Company (TPHC) chairman Wilfred Espinet confirmed the situation to the T&T Guardian following Wiley’s first official day of operations. On yesterday’s overall start-up of operations of the restructured entity, following the official shutdown of Petrotrin last Friday, Espinet said, “There was no interruption of operations and the transition went off without event. The respective planned activity of all the new companies went off without hitch and we’re now concentrating on ensuring that these operations are at the level of efficiency they were designed for.” Read more here
PM: Hard decisions needed on CSME
Prime Minister Keith Rowley has implored Caricom members to make a firm decision on the Caricom Single Market and Economy (CSME). Read more here
REGIONAL
Social Media Divide - Experts Disagree Over Role Of Online Posts In Job Placement
The jury seems to still be out as to whether social-media postings can affect an individual's prospects for employment. Although experts locally and internationally continue to warn young people to be careful about what they post on their social-media platforms, as this could harm their chances of getting a job, there are opposing views on its actual impact. David Wan, president of the Jamaica Employers' Federation (JEF), is of the view that, based on his interactions with some employers islandwide, an individual's qualifications and experience are still the core deciding factors for employment. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Mueller may be poised to lift the lid of his investigation
America may get its most intimate look yet inside Robert Mueller's secretive Russia investigation in the next four days, with a series of disclosures that have the potential to be greatly damaging for President Donald Trump. Court filings focusing on Trump's first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, on Tuesday and his ex-campaign chairman Paul Manafort on Friday could offer tantalizing new details of Mueller's deep dive into the 2016 campaign. Read more here
France fuel protests: PM Philippe 'to halt fuel tax rise'
4th December 2018