NEWS
MoH: 45 new covid19 cases, no deaths
The Ministry of Health says no deaths owing to covid19 have been reported in the past 24 hours. However, 45 new covid19 cases have been reported from November 15-17. The ministry's 4 pm update on Wednesday said the total number of deaths is still 113 and the number of active positive cases is 562. The country's total number of covid19 cases is now 6,180 with 5,505 patients recovered. There are 38 patients in hospitals and 24 in step-down facilities. Read more here
Inmates threaten officers after MSP riot quelled
Prison officers’ lives are being threatened on a daily basis as tensions are said to be rising among inmates in the system, especially at the Maximum Security Prison (MSP) where, to date, 86 inmates have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. The tensions boiled over on Tuesday when some inmates currently in the quarantine section at the MSP attempted a riot over the late arrtival of their meals. However, the riot was short-lived thanks to one prison officer who quickly quelled the situation and restored peace and order. Read more here
POLITICS
Vasant supports shared UNC leadership: Party failing with one leader
Former government Minister Vasant Bharath is advocating for a separation of the roles of Opposition Leader in Parliament and political leader in the party, saying there is nothing stopping the UNC from having two people hold these posts. He said having two leaders in the UNC to manage those roles might be the best solution as having Kamla Persad-Bissessar as Opposition and UNC political leader is not working out given recent national elections which the party fought and lost. Read more here
Ministry ready for vaccine
The recent news of promising preliminary results from two COVID-19 vaccine candidates has placed a light at the end of the tunnel and led the Ministry of Health to begin preparations for the delivery of one of them. Over the past two weeks, news has broken that early reports indicate the vaccines being developed by Pfizer and Moderna could offer close to 95 per cent protection from the virus. But according to Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh, Moderna’s candidate is more feasible for T&T. Read more here
BUSINESS
Kernaham farmers reap fruits of BPTT-Miped loans
Meet the enterprising mango farmers of Mayaro whose aim is to plant every variety of the delicious fruit on their sprawling estate nestled on the edge of the Nariva swamp. Kissoondial Nandoo used to plant rice in the lagoons for many years but felt cheated on the price of his produce and eventually gave up and abandoned the parcel of land he had been farming at Cascadoux Road, Kernaham Village. But a bright spark from his daughter, Lonella, 28, who took up a part time job at a St Helena grocery to help pay for her studies has now birthed his passion for planting and one day realising his dream of owning his own orchard. Read more here
If you can’t get turkey, satisfy with John Crow
Jamaica is by far my second favourite island in the Caribbean. More than two decades ago when I first visited the country there were four things that stood out for me: its natural beauty, its culture, how much the people reminded me of T&T nationals and how much potential the country had to be a powerhouse economically; if only it was prepared to take the right decisions. Since then PJ Patterson won his third term in office and retired, Jamaica had its first female Prime Minister, Bruce Golding came out of the wilderness and became Prime Minister, only to be felled by the Dudus Coke imbroglio, Sister P came back to power and now Andrew Holness is into his second term, having won by a landslide. Read more here
REGIONAL
Go-Invest anticipates multimillion-dollar investment
OCEAMAR, a leading Mexican offshore service provider has turned its attention to one of the world’s newest petroleum states, Guyana, with the aim of making a multimillion-dollar investment. Guyana, with a Gross Domestic Product (GPD) of around US$4 billion, is pegged to grow tremendously in the coming years because of its new-found oil wealth. And the anticipated growth has already attracted several international companies, many of whom are interested in investing in the nascent oil-and-gas sector. Read more here
Judgment Reversed For Boy With Brain Damage
The Court of Appeal has quashed a 2015 ruling of the Supreme Court that had awarded approximately $40 million to the family of 16-year-old Tahjay Rowe, who sustained brain damage when he was born at the Victoria Jubilee Hospital. The court has labelled some of the conclusions of Supreme Court Justice Audre Lindo as “plain wrong” in the 95-page judgment. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
World braced for more bombshells from furious Donald Trump after election defeat
Both allies and enemies alike of Donald Trump are bracing themselves this week for foreign policy bombshells dropped by a furious US President lashing out over his election defeat. While Trump wages a legal fight at home over what he falsely alleges is election fraud, he announced a precipitous drawdown of US troops in Afghanistan, recklessly fulfilling a campaign promise. The Afghan government fears the move puts their country in danger of being overrun by the Taliban, while even some in the President's own party have questioned his intent. Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger condemned the order as "an attempt to hobble the next administration." Read more here
Australian 'war crimes': Elite troops killed Afghan civilians, report finds
There is "credible evidence" that Australian elite soldiers unlawfully killed 39 people during the Afghan war, a long-awaited report has found. The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has released findings from a four-year inquiry into misconduct by its forces. It said 19 current or ex-special forces soldiers should be investigated by police over killings of "prisoners, farmers or civilians" in 2009-13. The ADF blamed crimes on an unchecked "warrior culture" among some soldiers. Read more here
19th November 2020