NEWS
Tears for slain Rio Claro schoolgirl, 13
Hugging the coffin carrying the body of his 13-year-old murdered daughter, Eddy Lallan wept openly and repeatedly called for answers for the tragedy. “Why? Why? My one-and-only. Why did they take Mama?” Lallan said between sobs at the funeral of Andrea Lallan on Thursday. Lallan, 51, who survived the shooting, wore a sling on his right hand with bandages around his neck. He was inconsolable at the funeral held on the road at the front of the family’s home at Old Mayaro Road in Libertville, Rio Claro. For his protection, there was a heavy police and soldier presence at the service. Read more here
Police seize $6m in ganja, plus cash and fuel in Los Iros and Siparia
Police arrested three people and seized more than $6 million in high grade marijuana and over $100,000 in TT and US currency during exercises on Los Iros and Siparia on Wednesday. The T&T Police Service Police (TTPS) said the arrests were the result of months of work by an intelligence unit to dismantle a drug trafficking network on the south western peninsula. Officers in the unit received information that the drug network was had been collecting large quantities of diesel from various service stations in south Trinidad to trade at a higher value for narcotics from a South American drug trafficking network. The TTPS gathered key intelligence and conducted rigorous and extensive surveillance, which guided them in a coordinated exercise in Los Iros on Wednesday. They executed a search warrant at Persad Drive where they found 60 barrels of fuel. A man arrived and claimed to be the owner of the fuel but could not produce documentation was arrested. The suspect, along with the seized fuel, was taken to the Marabella Police Station. Read more here
POLITICS
Minister: Improved water supply coming in 2024
Public Utilities Minister Marvin Gonzales says his ministry will be putting several measures in place to to ensure more people are supplied with water in 2024. Speaking during his contribution to the budget debate on Wednesday in Parliament, Gonzales said he understood the pain of protesters who wanted water. “I didn’t have pipeborne water in my community. I grew up having to carry water from a river and I remember when the first standpipe was introduced. So when people burn tyres and protest, it pains me, because I know how they feel. No member of the House can say they reached out to me about water supply and I didn’t respond.” Read more here
Imbert grades Budget package as excellent
Minister of Finance Colm Imbert lambasted the Opposition as he winded up the 2024 Budget debate in Parliament yesterday, saying it was the worst response to a Budget presentation he had witnessed in his 32 years in Parliament. Imbert told the House of Representatives that Government had presented an excellent budget that most of the population accepted. He said he analysed the Opposition’s contributions and found them painful, as all members regurgitated Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s commentary. Imbert said while some labelled his fiscal package an election budget, the country will not head to the voting booths until 2025. He reckoned that United National Congress (UNC) members do not understand financial terms, adding no Opposition member referred to a page in the economic review attached to the Budget because they could not handle it. Read more here
BUSINESS
1ndividual brings Paradise to Brooklyn
Keegan Simon, creator of the popular local casual clothing brand, told the Business Guardian that he is set to showcase his Paradise imprint in the upcoming Brooklyn Fashion Week. That event begins on Friday and will run from October 14 to October 21. “The Brooklyn Fashion Week was an opportunity I got when I went on a trade mission with FashionTT earlier this year in June,” he said. “They loved my stuff and they wanted me to be a part of the show. Sent in my stuff again and I got confirmed. I am very, very grateful for the opportunity because this is the first international opportunity I’m getting. And when this happens, I think this will be a calling card for all the other future prospects I have. I want to go to Japan, Paris and New York Fashion Week (which last took place) in September. So I think this is an amazing opportunity but also I don’t want to say a stepping stone because it is the first of many steps.” Read more here
REGIONAL
Gov’t anticipates publishing draft National Gas Strategy by next week
Moving forward with the target to discover ways to monetize the nation’s gas assets, People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, announced that the draft of the National Gas Strategy (NGS) is expected to be available next week for public consultation. He made these remarks during a press conference, on Thursday, at Freedom House. Dr. Jagdeo stated: “We also have received the gas utilisation strategy and, hopefully, by next week, it will be out in the public domain for consultation… this is something I promised…” Earlier this year, Dr. Jagdeo said that the NGS will be one of several areas where the government was collaborating with the Government of India, as bilateral agreements on the development of Guyana’s remaining offshore resources continue to be considered. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Teacher killed in France school stabbing
A teacher has been killed and two people have been seriously injured in a knife attack at a school in France, officials say. Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said the attack happened at the Gambetta high school in the northern city of Arras at about 11:00 local time. The attacker has been arrested and is now in custody. According to witnesses, he shouted "Allahu Akbar", or "God is greatest", during the attack. The person killed was a French language teacher. Those injured were another teacher and a security guard. The man, described as being in his 20s, is of Chechen origin and known to the security services for his involvement with radical Islam, according to police. Read more here
13th October 2023