The Chaguaramas Development Authority (CDA) is seeking further legal advice on the 22 “illegal” leases issued under the then People’s Partnership government. 

This was confirmed by Planning and Development Minister Camille Robinson-Regis on Wednesday during a Housing Development Corporation sod-turning ceremony at Bon Air South.

Her comments came days after Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley gave the assurance that he was not reneging on his position on so-called approvals given by the previous CDA board which were inconsistent with the development plan approved by Parliament and whose leases are considered illegal on the basis of senior counsel advice provided to the current board.

Rowley made the statement based on a report submitted by former CDA chairman Anthony Pierre that all leases entered into  during the period 2014 to 2015 be “deemed illegal and null and void.” 

Pierre resigned on August 27, after the board said he acted without proper approval in issuing letters of comfort to Fouraime Enterprises Ltd (FEL) and Starburst Parks Ltd.  

Fouraime chairman John Aboud who sunk close to $100 million in developing a water park in Chaguaramas said he had no intention of abandoning the project and viewed his 30-year-lease legal. Another businessman, Raymond Habib, who is setting up a safari park, also said he was not going to give up one square inch of land leased to him.

Stating that any lease given out must be approved by Cabinet, Robinson-Regis said “as far as we understand it and as far as we have seen none of the leases have been approved by Cabinet. In law, the Chaguaramas Development Act indicates that is the procedure for approving a lease.”

Robinson-Regis said certain things have since taken place and “we would have to move forward from there.”

She said that a Cabinet sub-committee headed by Finance Minister Colm Imbert, including Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Stuart Young and herself was established. 

“We have been meeting with the lease holders, in particular Mr Aboud.”

Last week, Robinson-Regis said a report commissioned by the CDA came before Cabinet.

“As a consequence of the contents of that report we (CDA) are moving to seek further legal advice and to bring it again before the Cabinet for a decision to be taken on a way forward.”

How does Robinson-Regis envisage this issue to pan out? She said one issue the CDA had a concern about was to ensure that none of the projects infringed on the beach access or the rights of the people.

“We will ensure that any land that is leased is done properly.” In going forward, Robinson-Regis said CDA would do the right thing.

Habib, whose lease was deemed illegal by the CDA, yesterday admitted that with his business not being in operation he had potential profits in phase one of his project, projected at $690,000 monthly.

“By the CDA withholding our documents, not only do we have an expense every month that we have to maintain over a year, we have also lost profits.”

He also disclosed that no one from the CDA or the committee had spoken to him.

“As a businessman the last thing you want to do is go to court. We are willing to talk to whoever to sort things out.” he said

Mental health disorders cause many to suffer in silence, leaving friends and family members often unaware of the dangers that can arise.

Thoughts that lead to suicide is one of the more severe outcomes of people who suffer in silence and proper education, according to Marsha Bailey, founder of Care Parenting, is necessary to tackle the stigma attached to mental illnesses.

The public’s interest was piqued to one of these problems when a young mother fell to her death earlier this week.

The woman’s family attributed the incident to Post-Partum Depression, saying they were unaware the situation was so bad and they thought she was grieving the deaths of her grandfather-in-law and grandfather.

PPD is experienced in one to two of every 1,000 mothers soon after delivering a baby. They experience depression, sadness and feelings of hopelessness among other mood changes that can last from three months to one year.

In severe cases a mother can have serious suicidal thoughts or have thoughts of harming her baby.

Bailey told the T&T Guardian she was outraged when she saw comments on social media that revealed an ignorance by some to this real mental health condition.

She recalls one person saying “What really going on in this place, all of us had children and we coped, we managed,” but Bailey contended:

“It speaks to how ignorant we are about mental illness. It shows we are not aware that this is a condition. We have more empathy for those who have diabetes, and that is a controllable disease, but none towards those who have genuine hormonal imbalances, conditions with no control.

“Do these people look into what the conditions are? Do they at least google it? Are they trying to figure out what it is?” she asked.

She added: “This PPD case is not a one-off thing. According to CDC, 11 to 20 per cent of women who give birth each year experience PPD. 

“I have not gone through it personally but to not experience joy at a time when most women are experiencing the highest point of womanhood is unimaginable.

“I cannot imagine what it would be like to have everyone around you going like ‘Oh my goodness, congratulations’ and feeling overwhelmed and depressed. And to know 

that someone could commit suicide over it…” 

The founder and author of a children’s book, Bailey said the incident prompted her to organise a public gathering today to raise awareness of PPD and other mental problems that lead people to “suffer in silence” daily.

She said as they recognise World Suicide Prevention Day (today), members of Care Parenting were hosting the gathering for all those affected or who knew someone affected by mental illnesses.

They are asking people to come out from 5 pm to 5.30 pm at the Queen’s Park Savannah when some mothers will share their stories.

Parents who dropped off their children at Newtown Boys’ RC School in Port-of-Spain yesterday continued to express concern that the pupils were sitting on a time bomb due to an electrical problem at the school.

Several parents also urged that the issue be speedily addressed, saying the situation posed a danger to the safety of their children.

One parent who dropped off her Standard One son yesterday said, “I am very concerned about the electrical problem and I really hope this issue be given immediate attention by the authorities.”

Asked if she would continue to send her child to the school, she said there was no need to transfer her child “at this time.”

Another parent, who echoed her sentiments, also called for a speedy resolution to the matter.

He said such problems should have been resolved during the vacation and not when children had to focus on the new school term.

It was reported that a member of the school’s PTA said that during routine servicing of air- conditioning units and replacement of light fixtures over the July/August vacation, burnt out parts and wiring were found, four refrigerators were non-functional, parts of the school lost electrical supply and three of six air conditioning units were damaged, possibly due to an electrical fire. Most of the fans were also not working.

The member said in 2011 the school was reported to have been in need of electrical upgrade.

Contacted yesterday, Education Minister Anthony Garcia gave the assurance the matter was being addressed and would be completed soon.

He said what was required to fix the problem was a three-phase connection to the school.

“The circuits have been overloaded by additional computers and additional equipment that was used in the science and computer areas. 

“Additional equipment that was installed caused an overload of the circuits and the school was not wired originally to sustain that increased demand and therefore what was needed was a three-phase connection,” Garcia said.

He said officials at the Education Facilities Company Ltd (EFCL) were notified following which the school was inspected. “We had received a bid of $700,000 from the consultants to this upgrade which we found excessive...that is totally out of the question,” Garcia said. 

Regarding concerns of parents and the PTA, the minister said the situation posed no danger to children or teachers.

Appealing to people to stop judging others as no one was without fault, the son of calypsonian Austin "King Austin" Lewis yesterday cried as he recounted his father's last days battling Alzheimer's and substance abuse.

Delivering the eulogy at Lewis's funeral service at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Port-of-Spain, Marvin Lewis remembered the musical icon who was well known throughout T&T as a bird and animal lover, but one who also had a special passion for music.

Assured that Lewis's memory would live on in the hearts and minds of past and future generations, Marvin said his father had fallen victim to some of life's vices and had battled hard to overcome them until his passing on September 3.

Choosing to remember the positive memories of his father, Marvin said, "Life isn't something somebody can teach you."

He said right and wrong had to be learned through experience, and urged the congregation to pray and reflect on their own shortcomings.

Proclaiming his father to be one of the humblest persons around, Marvin said his father's recent memories always took him back to the days of laughter and enjoyment when music was viewed as an opportunity to entertain and educate others.

Marvin paused tearfully as he revealed his personal struggles to play "father" to Lewis during his struggle with Alzheimer's, as he said the father/son role reversal had crippled him—something he would not want to wish upon his worst enemy.

Alzheimer's is a progressive mental deterioration that can occur in middle or old age, due to the generalized degeneration of the brain.

It is the commonest cause of premature senility.

Lewis is most remembered for performing Winsford “Joker” Devine’s hit Progress in 1980.

Capturing the title of Calypso Monarch that same year, Relator yesterday said he remembered Lewis to be "humble and always smiling."

Joking that if Lewis had produced such an award-winning composition as Progress within recent times he would have been catapulted to millionaire status owing to the lack of quality compositions currently being put out, Relator shied away from questions relating to Lewis's drug abuse.

Agreeing that Lewis's death would be a great loss to the calypso and entertainment fraternity, former culture minister Winston "Gypsy" Peters praised his contribution to the country's musical landscape.

On the issue of aging calypsonians who were now seeking hand-outs for medical care, housing and other needs, Peters said, "They are supposed to take cognizance of themselves when they are making whatever they are making, and when they are successful, they are supposed to do things so that when these times come, they will have something to fall back on."

Delivering a sobering eulogy, Monsignor Christian Pereira acknowledged that progress in today's society had come at a much higher price than had previously been anticipated.

Assuring the family that God would take care of Lewis, Pereira urged those present to seek God's forgiveness as they moved forward in life.

A Chaguanas teenager was gunned down as he limed with friends on Thursday night.

Police said Muhammad Ali, 15, was shot seven times by gunmen who came out of a Nissan Wingroad and opened fire on a group of men who were liming at the Village Plaza, Edinburgh 500, around 11 pm.

Reports are that when the gunmen began shooting Ali froze and was cornered. He was shot twice in the back, twice in the head and three times in the chest and arms. 

The Third Form Carapichaima West student lived at Moonstone Crescent, Edinburgh 500, a few minutes walk from the plaza, which houses several small businesses. 

When the T&T Guardian visited the scene yesterday, police were stationed there and said they have routine patrols in the area and usually chased away young men found liming there. The officers said the plaza has security guards who were paid to deter loitering. One officer pointed to a sign near to where the teen fell outlining no loitering in the area.

The boy’s mother, Stacey Standard, told the T&T Guardian he was accustomed to being out late but it was usually nearby with other friends. She said on Thursday night she “had a bad feeling” moments before she was told her first-born son had been killed. 

Standard said her son began acting out after his father, Kameel Ali, was killed last year but he was beginning to return to his normal self. 

“He was eating bread and cheese and he just run out the house and I end up dozing off. I jump up around 10.15 and went to check on him but I only saw his brother. I got a funny feeling and I couldn’t go back to sleep so I went and water some of my plants. 

“When I was going back in the house two cars pulled up and from the way the guys looked I knew something was wrong and one of them told me ‘Moms, Muhammad dead.’”

As she spoke, neighbours poured in to offer condolences for Ali, who everyone described as “quiet.” Standard said her son wanted to become a banker or venture into business and she had plans of taking him out of the secondary school and enrolling him in a private school in Chaguanas and then to Roytrin.

Three of Ali’s friends said his death caused widespread grief not only in the community but in his school. Two boys, who did not want to be identified, said they heard about it while at school. 

Gabriella Alleyne, 16, who said she knew Ali “since he was a fat lil boy,” was catapulted into further mourning, as she was told of her friend’s death while leaving the funeral of another. 

Alleyne began crying as she recalled how she learned of Ali’s death as she sat on a bench just outside her home. She said she was leaving the funeral for suicide victim Faith Gajadhar when she learned Ali had been killed.

“On Thursday night he asked me to come and lime but I tell him I had school. Sunday I was washing my mother car and I was just encouraging him to stay in school,” Alleyne said.

Standard said her son would be buried today at the Nur-E-Islam Masjid on El Socorro Road, San Juan.

In an unrelated incident, a taxi-driver was gunned down in his car along the Belmont Circular Road, near St Dominic’s Children’s Home around 5 pm yesterday.

Ricardo Joseph, of Upper Belle Eau Road, Belmont, got into a confrontation with a man he knew, police said. After a short while the man shot him and fled. With Joseph’s death, the murder toll now stands at 315.

Works and Transport Minister Fitzgerald Hinds has slammed the police for their handling of the father of five-year-old Josiah Henry, who drowned after falling into a drain at his Belmont home during heavy rain last Friday. 

Speaking at Henry’s funeral at Guides Funeral Home, Piccadilly Street, Port-of-Spain, yesterday, Hinds described the actions of the police, in arresting his father, Jerome, immediately after the child’s body was recovered as insensitive. 

Jerome Henry was arrested minutes after Josiah’s body was recovered floating off Wrightson Road, almost 24 hours after he went missing. 

While Hinds stated the police had a duty to investigate the incident, he said a softer approach should have been taken with the grieving father, who was eventually charged with willful neglect for leaving Henry and his seven-year-old sister, Christine, unattended as he went to work that morning. 

Hinds said he had visited the Belmont Police Station after Jerome’s arrest and advocated for his release. 

“I spoke with the senior officers and tried to make them understand what this man was going through,because he was now suffering from triple jeopardy.

“As a lawyer and MP I understand the law but the law must be our servant and not our master. 

“He (Jerome) is not here today because somebody decided that the law must be our master,” Hinds said. 

He also criticised police and prisons officers for denying Jerome the opportunity to attend his son’s funeral yesterday. 

The T&T Guardian understands that although Jerome was granted $75,000 bail when he appeared in court to answer the charges on Monday morning, he was unable to access bail up to late yesterday. 

While he was not allowed to attend yesterday’s funeral as he is still on remand, he was taken to the funeral home hours before the service and allowed to view his son’s body. 

“I was told that there was certain procedure because of security and I understand the need for it. A number of officers came to get him so they could have brought him here today,” Hinds said. 

He also called on family and friends to stop blaming the boy’s father for his death and instead support his parents, noting they were deeply traumatised. 

“I know as a father he did not plan it that way because if he knew it would happen like it did it would not have,” Hinds said. 

Henry, a fan of the popular video game Angry Birds, was buried in a miniature sky blue coffin with a sticker of the game affixed. His mother, Jaime Gray, had to be restrained and consoled by relatives as she lunged at the coffin at the start of the brief service. 

During his address, Hinds also praised members of the Belmont community, who he said assisted in searching for Henry. 

“The young men of Belmont, for all their faults and idling, I understand that once the news broke all of them got to searching and did all they can,” Hinds said. 

What law says 

Jerome Henry, the father of five-year-old Josiah, who drowned in a drain near his Belmont home, was charged with negligently causing cruelty to the child and his seven-year-old sister by exposing them to danger after leaving them at home alone.

Section 4 of the Children’s Act, under which he was charged, states that “where a person has responsibility for a child and the person willfully assaults, ill-treats, neglects, abandons or exposes the child or causes or procures the child to be assaulted, ill-treated, neglected, abandoned or exposed in a manner likely to cause that child suffering or injury to his physical, mental or emotional health the person commits the offence of cruelty to a child.”

Henry is liable under summary conviction to a $5,000 fine and six years in prison and if he chooses to have his case heard by a judge and jury, he will face a $50,000 fine and imprisonment for up to ten years.

Under the legislation, a person charged under the legislation has a defence if they can prove they were unable to adequately care for the child because of an infirmity of the mind or body.

On his knees beside her coffin, Dipchand Heeralal admonished his daughter, Terisha, for not heeding his warnings to leave an abusive relationship.

With his hands held out in front of him, Heeralal, 64, stared at Terisha’s body and cried: “Why you didn’t listen?”

His emotional breakdown took place during the funeral service for Terisha, 31, at his Piparo home yesterday. 

Terisha, a mother of two, was chopped to death around 1 am on Wednesday by a close male relative.

Heeralal said the man had a history of being abusive towards his daughter. Terisha’s 13-year-old daughter was also injured in the attack. 

Her mother, Taramatie Bridgelal, sat in a chair next to the coffin, caressing her daughter’s face and repeating: “My dolly, my pretty dolly,” while she wept. 

When Terisha’s body was brought to her parents’ home for the last time yesterday, she was dressed in a flowing white dress with a silver tiara on her head. 

During the service, Reverend Robert Sookermany described Terisha as a pleasant person. He said in a recent conversation with her, she had vowed to settle down and serve God. 

“She was ready to do the right thing, to settle down and do what is right to please God,” he said. 

Telling mourners to do right while they still have the chance, Sookermany said: “One day, we will all be called to account for what we did and didn’t do, even the man who did this to her will have to face God on Judgment Day.” 

He urged the family not to let bitterness take over their lives. “In your grief don’t let the bitterness of what happened take over your lives, don’t let it hang over your lives, let the law take its course and one day you will get justice for your daughter,” he said. 

Terisha’s body was taken to the Shore of Peace cremation site after the service for cremation. 

The T&T Guardian contacted an investigator in Terisha’s case who confirmed yesterday her killer was still at large. The investigator said police are continuing to search the bushy areas in Piparo for him.

Former Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago (Udecott) executive chairman Calder Hart and Noel Garcia, the current chairman of the State-owned company, should both be held “accountable and liable for the losses” incurred with the Las Alturas housing project in Morvant.

The recommendation was made in the report of the Commission of Enquiry into the entire process which led to the construction of the Las Alturas Towers at Lady Young Gardens in Morvant. The report was handed over to President Anthony Carmona by commission chairman Mustapha Ibrahim earlier this week and laid in Parliament yesterday.

According to the report, the commission stated, “There is no ground from which we can advise that criminal proceedings ought to be brought against anyone.” However, the commission recommended that civil liability action be taken against Hart, Garcia, Udecott and the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) for negligence in how the project was handled.

Garcia, who became the Udecott chairman following the People’s National Movement’s ascension to Government in September last year, was the HDC managing director during the construction of the Las Alturas project.

The commission said the manner in which the land for the project was acquired “indicated gross carelessness and or negligence on the part of Udecott”. 

“Certainly it was not in conformity with the obligations of a prudent purchaser,” the report said.

The board of both Udecott and the HDC “were in breach of the statutory duty imposed upon them as directors to exercise due care and diligence in the performance of their functions as it related to the purchase of the site in 2002 and the continuation of the project by the HDC after 2006, without first undertaking proper geo-technical investigations,” the report added.

Both entities also failed to put in place proper mechanisms which would have ensured timely disclosure and accountability to the State, the report noted.

“Udecott, in purchasing the land for development of low-cost housing units, created a situation where it is clear that the land was generally unsuitable for that purpose. They therefore should be held accountable and liable for the losses sustained thereby,” the report stated.

Hart, who failed to show up to testify before the commission, was described as the “mind and the management” of Udecott with respect to the project.

“He failed to do that which a prudent buyer would have done in the purchase of the land. He was required to do an inspection of the land before the purchase and if he had done that he would have seen all the facts that operate against its suitability for the project,” it stated.

The report said Hart should therefore be held accountable and liable for the losses sustained in the execution of the project. The HDC also built in areas “clearly unsuitable for development.” 

Two of the buildings were constructed on a site that was “unfit for building” and the buildings were therefore “unfit for human habitation” and as a result were recommended to be demolished, it noted.

The report also said Garcia gave a “very pathetic display in the witness box” at the enquiry.

“Several decisions taken by him or in which he participated leave much to be desired. His evidence was very unsatisfactory in many respects and decisions made by him showed lack of proper guidance and leadership which was required to oversee the project. He, too, should be held accountable and liable for the losses sustained by the HDC when he was its managing director,” the report stated.

Project’s history

The Las Alturas project was started under the Patrick Manning-led PNM administration and completed when current Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley was housing minister.

Speaking at the post-Cabinet press conference on Thursday, Rowley said the enquiry had so far cost $24.5 million.

The enquiry was appointed by President Carmona in December 2014, after the former People’s Partnership administration agreed to its establishment in September 2014.

Two high-rise buildings in project “H” and “I” were deemed unsafe for human habitation and ordered demolished.

Hart and the China Jiangsu International Corporation refused to appear before the enquiry.

Ibrahim said the housing project cost almost $80 million.

Government was forced to suspend yesterday’s debate on a bill to approve the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act in T&T until next week.

Failure to pass the legislation by September 30 will result in T&T being unable to trade internationally and will also result in the implementation of a 30 per cent withholding tax on US dollar transactions in the banking system.

After Finance Minister Colm Imbert presented the bill for debate in the House of Representatives, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the bill was over-reaching, adding that the Opposition was “not against the agreement, it is not that we are against T&T, but (our actions today) are in the interest of the country.”

She insisted she was “not going on any guilt trip that I will cripple the country, crash the country, because I am not supporting this bill in its present form.”

Commenting on newspaper reports of the Government holding talks with the Opposition on the matter, Persad-Bissessar insisted as the time was passing the Opposition had no bill to look at. The Opposition received the bill on Monday to prepare for yesterday’s debate.

The Government required the support of the Opposition for the bill to be approved, as it requires a special three-fifths majority, which the Government does not have.

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi and National Security Minister Edmund Dillon were absent from the country during the debate yesterday.

Persad-Bissessar said the Government was seeking to blame the Opposition if the measure fails to get the required support, but said the Government must give the proposed date for proclamation of the bill before it could be approved.

“If you want us to pass it you will put the date in this bill. We are not buying cat in bag anymore. You will put the date in the bill so that we can pass it,” she insisted.

She said the bill was also seeking to validate the sharing of personal information held by the Board of Inland Revenue or by financial institutions, noting the Parliament was also being called on to validate unconstitutional acts done over the past 27 years.

Persad-Bissessar said because of the numerous concerns they have, the bill should be sent to a joint select committee for consideration and be returned in one week for debate.

But the Government did not agree to that proposal. 

Acting Attorney General Stuart Young dismissed the claims made by Persad-Bissessar in his contribution. Minutes later, he told reporters the former PP Cabinet had agreed to pass the said legislation since 2013 but it did not happen. He said it was the Persad-Bissessar government which decided that the competent authority to deal with the measures in the bill should be the Minister of Finance. Persad-Bissessar had criticised the new Government for maintaining that decision. 

Young said the proposal to refer the matter to a joint select committee cannot be accepted because “Parliament prorogues on September 22, so the legislation needs to pass before that date.” He said appointing a JSC will delay the process and he insisted Government was committed to pressing on to fulfil the obligations and to having the bill passed. He said failure to meet the September 30 deadline could have deleterious effects on our financial sector and the citizens of T&T.

The Government has set Monday for a meeting with the Opposition to agree on the way forward, but the venue was not announced. The Parliament will meet again on Wednesday to proceed with the matter.

American banks will halt relations with T&T’s banking sector and that sector and the local economy will crash if the tax information sharing agreement legislation is not passed soon, Finance Minister Colm Imbert has warned.

“Put country first today. This isn’t a time for politicising,” Imbert appealed to the Opposition during yesterday’s Parliament session when he piloted the legislation.

He made an impassioned plea for Opposition support, necessary to pass the bill, to the point of saying he was prepared to suspend the sitting and immediately hold talks with the Opposition to get its support before the September 30 deadline.

The bill requires a three-fifths vote for passage since sections affect constitutional rights. Government needs 26 votes for passage but only has 23 on its side.

It will allow T&T’s Board of Inland Revenue (BIR) to share information with the US’ Internal Revenue Service (IRS). If the IRS seeks information on US citizens doing business in T&T or regarding a bank account, the BIR currently has discretion to refuse to give it. The new legislation will facilitate the BIR’s sharing the information.

Imbert said T&T was now on a grey list since it did not have systems for sharing information in place and stood to be blacklisted resulting in the suspension of relations of US banks with T&T. He said that would cause the banking sector to crash and the economy to be similarly affected.

“All banks would lose the corresponding relations they have in the US if this legislation isn’t passed. We have to co-operate or T&T’s banking systems will crash and the economy will crash,” he added.

A former prisons officer who allegedly tried to deposit a bogus $3.6 million cheque payable to his company was granted $150,000 bail yesterday. 

Nasiff Mohammed, 42, re-appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Nanette Forde-John in the Port-of-Spain Eighth Magistrates’ Court yesterday on four fraud charges. 

He had appeared before the same magistrate on Thursday and was remanded into custody. As part of his bail conditions, Mohammed has to report to the Fraud Squad seven days a week. 

The charges, laid by Cpl Charles Badree of the Fraud Squad, include two offences of uttering a forged document, uttering a forged valuable security and attempting to obtain $3,678,575 by false pretences. 

They alleged that on Monday he and a female relative went to Republic Bank Ltd at Independence Square, Port-of-Spain, where he opened a saving’s account in the name of Nim Security Services Ltd, indicating that both he and the relative were directors. 

It is further alleged that he attempted to deposit into the account a First Citizen’s cheque to the value of $3,678,575 from Methanol Holdings Ltd and payable to his security firm. 

Together with the cheque, it is alleged he produced two letters from Methanol Holdings Ltd. However, the bank officials called the Fraud Squad after they contacted the company to verify whether it had issued the cheque. 

Mohammed was charged following investigations spearheaded by Supt Tootaram Dookie and supervised by ASP Kent Ghisyawan, Sgts Popan and Samuel. The charges were laid indictable so he was not asked to enter a plea. 

Mohammed was represented by attorney Delicia Helwig-Robertson who held for his attorney Taradath Singh. He indicated that he had no previous convictions and no pending matters.

The prosecution, however, asked for the matter to be adjourned to Monday for a fingerprint trace to confirm that information. 

Helwig-Robertson, however, objected on the grounds that the police had sufficient time since her client’s arrest on December 5 to trace him. 

The case was adjourned to October 6.

Former National Security minister Gary Griffith may likely be seeking the post of Commissioner of Police, along with Police Service Social and Welfare Association secretary Anand Ramesar, acting CoP Stephen Williams and several other police “jefes” when the application process gets going.

“I’m giving active consideration to applying for this post, as I’ve been inundated with calls by citizens to do so,” Griffith said, not ruling out an application. He declined to identify those who have urged him to apply.

T&T has been without a substantive police commissioner since 2012 after Canadians Dwayne Gibbs and Jack Ewatski resigned as commissioner and deputy commissioner, respectively, after a two-year stint.

Williams had been acting in the post since Gibbs left and was approved to continue acting six times by the Police Service Commission. Williams is now on three months’ leave, returning in November. ­The T&T Sunday Guardian confirmed Williams will be applying for the CoP post. 

Currently acting as CoP is Commissioner Harold Phillips who is tipped as a contender also.

While the application process is worked out, Griffith confirmed to the Guardian a few weeks ago that he was eyeing the post. A few days ago, he spoke about it:

“Throughout my entire adult life I’ve dedicated my time, energy and efforts toward service to country. Starting with being in the military, to service as National Security advisor, to service as National Security minister. I think this position could be yet another avenue to continue in service to this country. My sole intention is to cause positive change and make this a better country for us all. 

“This sums up the consideration currently being given to the many calls from within the national community for me to actively consider service to country in the capacity of commissioner. Contrary to what may be construed that service in this capacity must come from within the rank and file of the Police Service, the revised requirements are clear in the identification of requirements, which include being a TT citizen and having the qualification and necessary experience to support same.”

Griffith said a current example (not in T&T) of a non-serving police officer appointed to such a job was that of Bill Bratton, who was appointed as New York Police Department commissioner.

“My service in the military, coupled with my academic and management-based undertakings provided the required baseline support for all my previous roles, and certainly provides same should I consider this role. If I do decide to pursue this, it would not be the first in the Caribbean, as a previous member of the Jamaican Defence Force was that nation’s police commissioner until 2009.

“This is not a time for administrators and pen pushers at the helm, but someone with the ability to understand what is needed on the ground and make sound operational and tactical policies that would totally revamp the Police Service, both in terms of image and actual results.”

“The difference in my style as minister of National Security to others was because of just that—my direction of putting focus on what is known as situational crime prevention, which involves stringent policing, operational policies, hard targeting, providing deterrents, ensuring a rapid response to distress calls, high visibility and getting the pubic to start trusting and buying into the fact that by working with the police, it becomes an unbeatable combination against criminal elements.

“At times, it may have even meant that I was acting more like a police commissioner than a security minister, but these actions caused positive results, whereby 2014 saw the lowest number of serious crimes in over 30 years, and the nation experienced the highest visibility and most powerful deterrents seen via police presence all over the country. This was based on systems implemented to ensure that Response Units and patrols were monitored and performance measured and made accountable.”

Griffith said, several of the operational policies that caused this have been shelved.

“As a previous member of the Protective Services/Defence Force, I know the importance of also fighting to support your troops, which I did when as security advisor, recommending the $1,000 monthly allowance for all personnel, including the police, to providing for the first time a special allowance for them whilst on duty on Carnival, which ensured for the first time an almost 100 per cent turnout. 

“I also ensured they acquired proper training via establishment of the National Security Training Academy, and looked after their well-being, via recommending the allocation for families of officers killed in the line of duty.”

Griffith said: “But you must also be bold enough to do what is required to fire the few who embarrass the Force, via having them fired and not the usual song-and-dance of officers just being re-assigned when they embarrass the Force.”

In February 2015, former prime minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar had asked the President to revoke the appointments of Griffith and attorney general Anand Ramlogan and called for the resignation of the Director of the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) David West, for their roles in witness-tampering investigations ordered then by acting CoP Williams. 

West claimed Ramlogan asked him to withdraw his witness statement in a defamation case brought by Ramlogan against then Opposition leader Keith Rowley in exchange for the PCA post. Griffith was named as a volunteer witness in the issue.

Persad-Bissessar said that she had asked for and received Ramlogan’s resignation. However, she had also asked Griffith for his resignation which he declined to tender and she fired him.

Regularly commenting on security issues since, Griffith recently took a stab at the PP for its proposal to meet with the Government for crime talks. In his first task with the PP—as Persad-Bissessar’s National Security adviser—he recommended the PP not take the Offshore Patrol Vessels which the previous Manning PNM government had ordered. The PNM while in Opposition and during elections was highly critical of this.

Noel Garcia, the chairman of the Urban Development Corporation of T&T (Udecott), has signalled his intention to sue the three commissioners in the enquiry into the construction of the Las Alturas Towers. 

Garcia claimed the report recommending that he be held “accountable and liable” for the losses incurred with the housing development is “flawed”.

On December 2, 2014, retired justice Mustapha Ibrahim was appointed chairman of the enquiry with Dr Myron Wing-Sang Chin and Anthony Farrell appointed as members.

On Friday the report on the Commission of Enquiry into the construction of the Las Alturas housing project at Lady Young Gardens, Morvant, was laid in Parliament.

The report filed by the trio stated, “There is no ground from which we can advise that criminal proceedings ought to be brought against anyone”.

However, the commission recommended that civil liability action be taken against Udecott, its former executive chairman Calder Hart, the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) and Garcia.

Garcia, who became the Udecott chairman following the People’s National Movement’s ascension to Government last September, was a former HDC managing director.

The enquiry’s report stated he gave a “very pathetic display in the witness box.”

“It was under his stewardship that Buildings ‘H’ and ‘I’ were built in an area unsuitable for development and were earmarked to be demolished. Several decisions taken by him or in which he participated leave much to be desired. His evidence was very unsatisfactory in many respects and decisions made by him showed lack of proper guidance and leadership which was required to oversee the project,” the report stated.

The report said Garcia should be held accountable and liable for the losses sustained by the HDC when he was its managing director.

Speaking to the Sunday Guardian yesterday, Garcia took the commissioners to task.

“I would start off by saying that I am surprised and amazed that after taxpayers spent $24 million to fund a Commission of Enquiry that they could come up with such a flawed report that at best could be described as mischievous and at worst politically motivated because the report tries to paint me as being responsible for the construction of building H and I while in fact I had long departed the HDC,” Garcia said.

Garcia said the records would show that he left the HDC in June 2008 and that the Las Alturas project started somewhere between December 2008 and January 2009.

“That aspect of the project (buildings H and I) was completed somewhere in mid-2010 and the problems surfaced in 2011. How in heaven’s name could I show lack of leadership on a project that I was not there for. I was nowhere around,” he said.

Garcia said the commission was either being “mischievous or they are politically motivated.”

He said the enquiry was a witchhunt against Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley who was housing minister at the time.

“It appears that they went after Dr Rowley and when they could not get Dr Rowley they came after me believing that I am a soft target and they could lick me up but I have news for them, one I am going to file for judicial review and two I am going to sue the commission for damages,” Garcia said.

“So I am going after them and in some instances in their personal capacities because you cannot abuse office like the commission did. I mean the records are there, I gave evidence and one of the documents that was put into evidence was a letter I signed on June 30 telling China Jiangsu (International Corporation) that we agree with their proposal and they can proceed to design the building and the HDC staff will look at the designs and we will move forward,” he said.

Garcia said he has to defend himself from the commissioners’ attempt to ridicule him publicly. 

“If they are not mischievous they had a motive and it is time that public officials who carry different agendas, I don’t know what agenda they were carrying, I don’t know if they were singing for their supper or if they collected their pieces of silver and I intend to go after them,” Garcia said.

“I intend to make an example of the chairman and the commissioners so I am going after them in their own right because what they are trying to do to me is to damage me professionally, to bring me into public ridicule and really to lick me up because they somehow believe that is their mission and if that is their mission I have a duty to defend myself and I will do it to the best of my ability. So as I say stay tuned for more action to come,” he said.

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley will deliver an address to the nation tonight on matters of national importance. 

Rowley’s address scheduled for 7.30 pm will be broadcast on both radio and television channels, a release from the Office of the Prime Minister announced yesterday.

It comes days after the Rowley-led People’s National Movement (PNM) celebrated its first anniversary in office.

As news of Rowley’s impending address to the nation was announced, people took to social media to speculate about what would be said as fears and concerns about crime, low oil prices and rising food prices were raised.

Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister and Minister in the Ministry of the Attorney General Stuart Young, however, called for calm.

“The Prime Minister after leading the country as the Prime Minister for one year is having an address to the nation. There is nothing surprising about this and we will all await what the honourable Prime Minister has to tell us,” Young said.

Rowley became this country’s Prime Minister last year after leading the PNM to victory in the September 7 general election.

The PNM won 23 seats while the People’s Partnership won 18.

On September 9 Rowley was sworn in as Prime Minister with Faris Al-Rawi and Edmund Dillon sworn in as Attorney General and National Security Minister, respectively.

The rest of Rowley’s Cabinet were sworn in on September 11.

Speculation has been rife about whether Rowley will make changes to his Cabinet tonight.

Rowley has signalled his intention to make adjustments to his Cabinet after the upcoming National Budget.

One move expected to take place when that reshuffle is announced is the return of Marlene McDonald to the Cabinet.

At least four ministers are expected to be affected by the reshuffle as Rowley is said to be unhappy with the performance of some members of his Cabinet.

Leader of the Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) Ancel Roget yesterday called on Rowley to remove three of his ministers in an anticipated Cabinet reshuffle.

Addressing members at JTUM’s Conference of Shop Stewards and Branch Officers at San Fernando yesterday, Roget picked out Finance Minister Colm Imbert, Works and Transport Minister Fitzgerald Hinds and Public Utilities Minister Ancil Antoine to be fired, describing them and other ministers as arrogant and incompetent. 

Roget, however, gave Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus a passing grade for trying to keep peace within the labour movement.

Some questioned whether Rowley would name the date for this year’s annual Budget tonight.

The National Budget must be debated and passed in both houses of the Parliament by October 31.

On October 5 last year Imbert delivered the 2015/2016 National Budget which was the first of the Rowley led-PNM Government.

This year’s Budget is expected to be presented by the end of this month.

In an address yesterday, Opposition Senator Khadijah Ameen said Rowley’s Government has made it clear to citizens that it cannot handle the job of running the country.

“There's a fear within the average citizen that it is going to be some announcement of increased taxes, increased prices or some further hardship.

“That should be a sign to Dr Rowley and the PNM Government as to how they have governed the country. If the citizens have to live in fear of the Government and that sort of anxiety whenever there is an announcement, it says that they're doing several things wrong,” she said.

On a lighter side some citizens pondered if Rowley would announce a holiday for the country due to the athletic prowess of Akeem Stewart in the Paralympic Games.

Stewart won gold in the Men’s F42/43/44 Javelin finals claiming T&T’s first medal of the Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He broke the World Record twice on his way to victory. 

A 23-year-old Jamaican woman was among 11 people were arrested for possession of cocaine and marijuana for the purpose of trafficking during an anti-crime exercise held in the Central Division on Friday.

One Glock 9mm pistol with three magazines and 135 rounds of ammunition were also recovered at Cacandee Road in Felicity.

According to police reports, two women and nine men ranging in age from 23 to 69 were held during the exercise.

The anti-crime exercise was conducted in the Central Division between 11 am and 10 pm on Friday under the supervision of Snr Supt Floris Hodge-Griffith.

When calypsonian Brother Valentino sang “Trinidad is nice, Trinidad is a Paradise,” he described a carefree living enjoyed by citizens. But mourners bidding farewell to murdered businesswoman Denise Martin at her South Oropouche home yesterday were told that Trinidad was now the killing fields.

The anguish felt by friends and family was summed up in a teary goodbye from Martin’s boyfriend, Shamshudeen Mohammed, who leaned over her casket to give her a final kiss. Martin’s six-year-old daughter also said goodbye with a kiss.

On Wednesday, Martin, 28, was with Mohammed at his Fyzabad home when gunmen walked into their yard. Martin was shot in her head while Mohammed was wounded in the leg. They were both taken to the San Fernando General Hospital where Martin died on Thursday.

With this year’s murder toll already at 300, Pastor Winston Mahabir said the population could not keep track of the violence being inflicted by criminals. Mahabir chastised the police, saying their role was not only to arrest criminals, but to prevent crime. 

And while the Government forks out billions of dollars annually for national security strategies, he said the only way to combat crime was to change the people’s thoughts.

“The very twin-island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago that was touted as a paradise has now become the killing fields where the population can’t keep track of the violent crime of murder, much less for ‘petty crimes’...

“We look at crime and we throw our hands up and begin to complain about crime. Our population is fed up about crime. But I want to say that to combat crime, it is not to deal with the actions of crime, but rather to deal with the thought that provokes the actions,” Mahabir said.

Thirty-four per cent of responders to a Sunday Guardian online survey believe the United National Congress (UNC) has been “very effective” as this country’s Opposition.

A total of 28.5 per cent of the responders, however, believe that the UNC has not been effective at all.

When the data is further analysed 36.40 per cent of females surveyed believe that the UNC led by this country’s first ever female prime minister and current Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar has not been effective as the Opposition.

On Friday the Sunday Guardian published a poll to the social media Web site Facebook, inviting users to rate the performance of the UNC as members of the Opposition. 

The poll was created through the Web site Survey Monkey. Restrictions on the questionnaire did not allow users to take the survey multiple times.The poll, which was open for 22 hours on the Web site and published on the Guardian's Facebook page, received 616 responses. 

Respondents were asked to rate the overall effectiveness of the UNC in Opposition. 

The majority of respondents, 54.35 per cent, perceived the UNC as a divided party.

The data was also filtered by age demographics, which showed that of those between 18 and 54 years, 35.15 per cent viewed the party as very effective.

Only 27.85 of those over 55 viewed the party as very effective.

Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal say the results of the Guardian poll are encouraging as the UNC continues the fight against bad governance. 

"The results of your poll is most encouraging and inspiring for us to continue to improve in our performance," Persad-Bissessar told the Guardian last night. 

However, she believes the perception of division within the UNC was a spillover from the party's internal elections last December when she was challenged for the leadership by Moonilal and former Trade, Industry, Investment and Communications minister Vasant Bharath.

"We must note this, that it is a perception and the reality is that the majority of the party is united and unified in the fight against the bad governance of the Keith Rowley administration. We have come a long way with respect to that and the party is united."

Moonilal told the Sunday Guardian the Opposition's first year was challenging but the poll results suggest that they did a good job. 

He said they were "not yet firing on all cylinders" but will grow from strength to strength. He said in politics perceptions are realities that they deal with. He said the party should consider it but they were building a good harmony inside and outside of the Parliament. 

He said the Opposition was now in a position to form a Cabinet if a general election is called in five weeks.

Chaguanas school girl Samiah Devenish’s dream of becoming a doctor ended tragically yesterday when she was shot dead while studying.

Devenish, 16, a student of the ASJA Girls College, Charlieville, died at the Chaguanas District Health Facility as medical staff attempted to stop her heavy bleeding before sending her to the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex, Mount Hope.

According to the girl’s grandmother, Carol, Devenish was at her Mandela Drive home around noon where she was lying on a bed, reading a book. Her father, Herdis Taylor, and three younger siblings were watching television when they were all jolted by an explosion.

When they got up, they realised Devenish was not moving and she began to bleed. Investigators said the bullet seemed to have entered her hip area and exited through her neck. A preliminary assessment of their information suggests that someone may have been playing with a gun in the house that accidentally went off. No gun was found up to yesterday evening. 

Some residents believe she could have been shot by a stray bullet from a shooting in the area caused by an ongoing war between some residents of Mandela Drive and Lyon Drive. However, investigators said the evidence thus far does not support this. While the girl’s death is a homicide, they have not yet classified it as a murder.

Speaking behind the police tape, Carol said Devenish was a brilliant child who loved to read.

“She was not a rude child and she liked books. Once she was home, she would cook her little thing and will sit down with her books...I used to tell her make sure and get a good job and she used to say ‘mammy I want to be a doctor,’” Carol said.

Insp Jackman, PC Kalloo and Chaguanas police were on the scene up to last night trying to gather information from the community. Devenish was the second teen in Chaguanas to be shot dead in the last three days. 

On Thursday, Muhammad Ali, 15, was shot seven times by gunmen while liming at the Village Plaza, Edinburgh 500. 

Avril Harry, RN, BSc Oncology Nursing 
Pink Hibiscus Breast Health Specialist

In last week’s article, Dr Rajen Rampaul started the discussion on breast cancer and bone health management. 

This week, we will examine this subject area a bit further. As previously discussed, one of the common treatment modalities in the effective management of breast cancer for people that are hormone sensitive is the use of endocrine therapy. 

One such agent that is used that has immense implications for bone health are Aromatase inhibitors. Aromatase inhibitors are used most often in postmenopausal women diagnosed with hormone-receptor-positive early breast cancer. Aromatase inhibitors work by preventing the formation of oestrogen. Oestrogen has a protective effect on bone, and reduced levels of the hormone trigger bone loss. 

Anyone can get osteoporosis or have bone loss, but it’s most common in older women. The menopausal woman is already at an increased risk for osteoporosis, they have less oestrogen in their bodies and that can cause bone loss. Similarly, bone loss can also be experienced in the younger breast cancer survivor based on breast cancer treatments which can induce early menopause.

As a result of the rising incidence of breast cancer and the improvement of long-term survival rates, bone health and fracture prevention have become important health issues among breast cancer survivors.

Osteoporosis happens when your bone mass and bone density are below normal. If you have osteoporosis, you have a higher risk of breaking a bone. The most common bones to break are the spine, wrist and hip, but just about any bone can break since osteoporosis affects most of your skeleton.
Several strategies can reduce one’s risk for osteoporosis or lessen the effects of the disease in women who have already been diagnosed.

Nutrition: As far as bone health is concerned, a well-balanced diet rich in calcium and vitamin D is important. Good sources of calcium include low-fat dairy products; dark green, leafy vegetables; and calcium-fortified foods and beverages. Supplements can help ensure that the calcium requirement is met each day, especially in people with a proven milk allergy.

The Institute of Medicine recommends a daily calcium intake of 1,000 mg (milligrams) for men and women up to age 50. Women over age 50 and men over age 70 should increase their intake to 1,200 mg daily. Vitamin D plays an important role in calcium absorption and bone health. Food sources of vitamin D include egg yolks, saltwater fish, and liver. 

Exercise: Like muscle, bone is living tissue that responds to exercise by becoming stronger. The best activity for your bones is weight-bearing exercise that forces you to work against gravity. Some examples include walking, climbing stairs, weight training and dancing. Regular exercise, such as walking, may help prevent bone loss and will provide many other health benefits. Recent research suggests that exercise may also reduce breast cancer risk in younger women.

Healthy lifestyle: Smoking is bad for bones as well as the heart and lungs. Women who smoke tend to go through menopause earlier, resulting in earlier reduction in levels of the bone-preserving hormone oestrogen and triggering earlier bone loss. In addition, smokers may absorb less calcium from their diets.

Some studies have found a slightly higher risk of breast cancer in women who drink alcohol, and evidence suggests that alcohol can have a negative effect on bone health. Those who drink alcohol heavily are more prone to bone loss and fracture, because of both poor nutrition and an increased risk of falling.

Bone density test: A bone mineral density (BMD) test measures bone density in various parts of the body. This safe and painless test can detect osteoporosis before a fracture occurs and can predict one’s chances of fracturing in the future. The BMD test can help determine whether medication should be considered. A woman recovering from breast cancer should ask her breast specialist whether she might be a candidate for a bone density test.

Medication: There is no cure for osteoporosis. However, several medications are available to prevent and treat this condition. Bisphosphonates, a class of osteoporosis treatment medications, have demonstrated some success in bone health.
Other forms of osteoporosis treatment medication are available and people should consult your primary breast specialist or medical oncologist for advice on these. 

• Visit www.pinkhibiscustt.com or call 627-1010 for more information.