NEWS
Carapo man shot dead in car
Four years after his brother was shot dead, Christino Perreira met a similarly violent death when a gunman shot him eight times. Perreira, 55, lived at Race Course Road, Carapo, Arima by himself, in the same house where his brother Darren Perreira was killed. Around 9.15 pm on Wednesday residents heard several gunshots and saw Perreira’s car in his yard with the driver’s door open and Perreira in the driver’s seat with gunshot wounds to his head. The district medical officer pronounced him dead and his body was ordered removed to the Forensic Science Centre in St James for a post-mortem. Read more here
T&T records first dengue death
Alarmed by reports of a dengue death and 126 confirmed cases, residents of Woodland and surrounding areas are appealing for Insect Vector Control to spray their communities. The identity of the dengue victim has not been made public and Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh is appealing to citizens to respect the family’s privacy. However, he said spraying isn’t the only answer to eradicating the mosquito-borne disease. “When you overspray any areas the mosquitoes build up resistance and human and animal health are affected because you are exposed to spraying too often,” he said. Read more here
POLITICS
Stuart Young receives silk appointment
President Christine Kangaloo presented the instrument of appointment to Senior Counsel (SC) to Energy and Energy Industries Minister and attorney Stuart Young at a presentation ceremony at President’s House on June 20. Young is the 15th SC to be appointed in 2024. In a release, the Office of the President said Young is a graduate of St Mary’s College and the University of Nottingham, where he studied law and received an LLB (Honours) in 1996. He was admitted to the bar in England and Wales in 1997, Trinidad and Tobago in 1998, the Commonwealth of Dominica in 2010 and Antigua and Barbuda in 2014. He is an utter barrister called to the bar at Gray’s Inn, London, UK. An utter barrister is a lawyer in England or Northern Ireland who is admitted to plead at the bar and argue cases in superior courts. Read more here
PM brushes off JTUM alliance threat
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley is unworried and unsurprised by the Joint Trade Union Movement’s (JTUM) endorsement of the United National Congress (UNC) for the next general election. He made the comment a day after JTUM president general Ancel Roget during Labour Day observances in Fyzabad on Wednesday, said the trade union umbrella body planned to form an alliance with the UNC to get the People’s National Movement out of government. Asked via WhatsApp yesterday if this development concerned him, the Prime Minister replied, “What’s new?” Read more here
BUSINESS
Attzs: Food, cable drive inflation hike
Higher prices for food and more money for cable bills contributed to the increase in the inflation rate from 0.5 per cent in April to 0.9 per cent in May, says economist Dr Marlene Attzs. On Monday, the CSO announced that the May 2024 inflation rate, which measures the percentage change in the all-items index for the month of May 2024 over May 2023, was 0.9 per cent. This represented an increase from 0.5 per cent which was recorded in the previous period (April 2023/April 2024). The inflation rate for the period (May 2023/May 2022) was 5.7 per cent. Read more here
Limited competition in sector
EOG Resources’ chief operating officer Jeffrey Leitzell has told a JP Morgan Energy, Power and Renewables Conference in New York that there are a lot of opportunities to acquire more acreage in the offshore shallow waters of Trinidad and to engage in joint ventures with other companies due to limited competition in the sector. Read more here
REGIONAL
Recent US sanctions… ‘No one is above the law’
President Dr. Irfaan Ali has completely shut down the rumour mills attempting to discredit him, and he made it clear that he has not been compromised. His comment is in response to speculations and questions surrounding his perceived association with the recently US-sanctioned Mohameds. During a press conference at State House on Thursday, the President said that his connection with the family stems from his time spent at St. Stanislaus College, his alma mater. He also highlighted that this is not anything uncommon, as the family is very popular, and they are associated with many persons, even from the Opposition camp. However, this link does not reduce judgment, and as President he stands committed to the Rule of Law. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Putin warns South Korea against arming Ukraine
Vladimir Putin has warned South Korea it would be making "a big mistake" if it arms Ukraine in the war against Russia. His comments come after Seoul said it was considering such a possibility, in response to Russia and North Korea's new pact to help each other in the event of "aggression" against either country. Moscow "will... [make] decisions which are unlikely to please the current leadership of South Korea" if Seoul decides to supply arms to Kyiv, Mr Putin told reporters on Thursday. The Russian leader was speaking in Vietnam, shortly after a lavish visit to Pyongyang where he signed a mutual defence agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Read more here
21st June 2024