NEWS
CoP concerned over spike in murders: Disputes now main cause of killings
With about 20 murders being recorded over the long Easter weekend, acting Commissioner of Police Mc Donald Jacob has admitted he is very concerned but insists gang-related murders were on the down-low. During an interview on the CNC3 news on Wednesday night, Jacob said domestic and altercation-related murders were now on the rise. “All these murders were in different circumstances but what we have identified though, is that some of these murders were domestic and altercation-related matters between close friends, relatives and that is one of our major concerns,” Jacob said following a bloody Easter weekend where police were kept busy with murders, which continued up to yesterday with another three homicides - pushing the overall murder tally to 161. Read more here
POLITICS
Morris-Julian: Education Ministry developing school infraction rubric
Minister in the Ministry of Education Lisa Morris-Julian said the ministry is in the process of creating a national school infraction rubric aimed at targeting violence in schools. Speaking in Parliament on Wednesday in response to a question from Couva South MP Rudranath Indarsingh on steps taken to address school violence, Morris-Julian said the ministry began the process by collecting and analysing data on school indiscipline and violence. Read more here
PM wants greater collaboration between US, Caribbean banks
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley called for greater cooperation between American and Caribbean Banks during a meeting with Caribbean leaders and US officials in Barbados yesterday. Dr Rowley made the call while speaking at the opening of the Roundtable Discussion on De-Risking and Correspondent Banking at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre in Bridgetown, Barbados. “We believe that there is great progress to be made from doing business with us and the facts will support that, not the fiction, not the discrimination, not the disrespect. It is possible that Caribbean banks can become and we must become an integral part of the American banking system and, by extension, the world global banking system,” Rowley said. Read more here
BUSINESS
16 Venezuelan women team up to promote their businesses
A group of 16 Venezuelan women in TT have come together to strengthen their small businesses by sharing ideas and supporting each others' ventures. Venezuelan Business Woman is the name of the social media platform they use to attract Latino and TT customers. The 16 include hair stylists, decorators, kids party entertainment, artists and pastry chefs. Deilyn Bracho, a decorator and balloon artist from San Fernando, came up with the idea. Read more here
T&T's Heritage and Stabilisation fund plummets by TT $1.82 B
The value of the country’s Heritage and Stabilisation Fund (HSF) has fallen by close to US$268 million or TT $1.821 billion at the end of financial year 2021 when compared to its value at the end of 2020. This was revealed by the annual report into the fund’s performance which showed that even though it recorded its best performance in its history, massive drawdowns by the Keith Rowley administration has meant a net fall in its overall value. “As at the end of September 2021, the Fund’s Net Asset Value stood at US$5,463.9 million, down from US$5,731.8 million one year earlier. During the financial year, a total of US$892.7 million was withdrawn from the Fund. Of this amount, US$292.7 million was related to the petroleum revenue shortfall for the fiscal year ended September 2020 (Section 15 of the HSF Act), while the remaining US$600.0 million was withdrawn in accordance with Section 15A (1) (b) of the amended HSF Act, which allows for withdrawals from the fund for a declared dangerous infectious disease declared under the Public Health Ordinance,” the report read. Read more here
REGIONAL
Build Expo to showcase Guyana’s development trajectory
Guyana’s International Building Expo 2022 was, on Wednesday, launched after not being held for some seven years. The event, according to authorities, is expected to bring all stakeholders in the housing and construction sector together. The expo was launched at the Pegasus Hotel under the theme, “A New frontier for Building a One Guyana” and is expected to be held from July 22 to July 24 at the Guyana National Stadium. President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, said that the expo has evolved from when it was first thought of and has been a springboard for many housing developments and businesses in the country. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Afghanistan: More than 20 dead and injured in two blasts
Dozens of people have been killed or injured in two blasts in northern Afghanistan, local officials have said. The first explosion tore through a Shia mosque in the city of Mazar-i-Sharif on Thursday. At least 11 people were killed, and more than 30 injured, a health official told the BBC. The second blast saw a vehicle blown up near a police station in the city of Kunduz, and left four dead and 18 injured, a police spokesman said. Najeebullah Sahel, from the Kunduz provincial health authority, said the wounded had been taken to hospital. Afghan news outlet Tolo News reports that the explosion in Mazar-i-Sharif happened at Seh Dokan, one of the biggest mosques used locally by the Shia minority group. Read more here
21st April 2022