NEWS
Juicy cocaine from TT
Trinidad and Tobago was once again the focus of an international drug bust involving cocaine in juice containers. According to reports out of Canada yesterday, members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) arrested two Greater Toronto Area men for importing approximately 44 litres of liquid cocaine, which could be converted to approximately 24 kilogrammes of powdered cocaine. The liquid cocaine was concealed in over 40 cartons of orange juice found in a container, full of food products destined for Toronto from this country, the RCMP said in a statement yesterday. Read more…
Woman dies from swine flu at Mt Hope
Another person has died after contracting the H1N1 virus, commonly referred to as swine flu. The death occurred sometime between Monday and yesterday afternoon at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mt Hope, and the official report was handed to Medical Chief of Staff Dr Andy Bhagwandass yesterday afternoon. In a brief telephone interview last night, Bhagwandass said he could not divulge much information on the patient, claiming doctor/patient confidentiality as the reason. He added that a report about a mother who recently gave birth and is being treated for the virus, will be given to him today. Read more…
POLITICS
AG Chairs Whistleblower JSC
Two parliamentary joint select committees will hold in camera meetings this week at Tower D in the Portof- Spain International Waterfront Centre. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) meets today in the Arnold Thomasos Room (East) from 10 am. Caroni Central MP Dr Bhoe Tewarie is the chairman of the PAC. Other members of this committee include Housing Minister Marlene McDonald, Public Administration Minister Randall Mitchell and Independent Senator Dr Dhanyshar Mahabir. Read more…
PM: T&T’s quality of life in danger
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley says the quality of life of citizens in T&T is in great danger and the Government will be brutally honest with citizens to save them from what was pending. He also said he would address the nation on the matter soon. Speaking at yesterday’s launch of Women’s Institute for Alternative Development (WINAD) report of its Women’s Conservations Caravan: Making Our Voice Count, at the Rotunda, First Citizens Bank, Queen’s Park East, Rowley said he was disturbed about a pending situation involving the United States with respect to its self-imposed embargo on exporting hydrocarbons. Read more…
BUSINESS
Recession Hits Sales
South business owners yesterday said they are reeling from slow sales as consumers have begun to “band their bellies” and hold on tightly to their wallets and purses. The businessowners, who Newsday spoke with, said they are hoping for a silver lining of last minute shoppers to mitigate the effects of the dark cloud of falling sales. “You know how the average Trini is. Always last minute in their shopping habits. Read more…
T&T skewed toward consumption
Economist Dr Ronald Ramkissoon said when T&T governments are pegging the budget against the price of oil and natural gas they should use an average rather than using the lowest or highest prices. “Prices have been falling and to say where they will stop, I think we are getting to the bottom. It is a bit surprising at the levels to which prices have fallen of both oil and gas. We know the commodities market are very unstable. Read more…
REGIONAL
Corruption trial begins in Turks and Caicos
The corruption trial of the 2003-2009 Progressive National Party (PNP)-led government has begun in Providenciales, the most heavily populated and developed of the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI). The trial, originally expected to have begun in 2012, was delayed when former premier Michael Misick fled the territory before charges were brought. Read more…
Investigation launched as video shows cruise ship damaging Cayman Islands reef
Cayman Islands Tourism Minister Moses Kirkconnell has confirmed that the Department of Environment and Cayman Islands Port Authority had launched an investigation into the destruction of a stretch of coral reef by a cruise ship off the coast of Grand Cayman. While Cayman officials maintain that the Zenith ship anchored in a legal position off George Town, a local diver has posted a video of the ship’s anchor and its chain “scouring across the reef”, breaking off chunks of coral and kicking up dust and silt. Read more…
INTERNATIONAL
CNN Republican debate: Winners and losers
Republican presidential candidates sought to cement -- or improve -- their standings in a debate Tuesday night that comes less than two months before the first votes of the election season are cast. The CNN debate in Las Vegas marked the first time the White House hopefuls shared a stage since terror attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California. They flashed their foreign policy credentials and targeted each others' weaknesses in the debate that lasted more than two hours and focused exclusively on foreign policy and national security. Read more…
Xi Jinping calls for 'cyber sovereignty' at internet conference
16th December 2015