NEWS
Relatives question Freeport man's death: Hit-and-run or murder?
A frantic family search for a missing Freeport man ended in grief on Monday after Justin Dean's body was found in a bamboo patch along the southbound lane of the Sir Solomon Hochoy highway, Freeport. Dean's older brother, who asked not to be identified, said he and his wife left the family's Nelson Road, Freeport home earlier to search for Dean. Dean, 20, was reported missing on around 2 am on June 17 after he failed to return home from a lime with his friends. He was the youngest of four children and lived with the family at Nelson Street, Freeport. Read more here
WASA chairman: Premature to say if more workers will be let go
Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) chairman Ravindra Nanga, who was yesterday awarded senior counsel title, says the authority is taking steps to ensure jobs are not affected by its transformation plan. After approximately 200 WASA managers were retrenched in 2022, with no word on whether or not more workers will be cut, employees at the utility company remain apprehensive about their job security. However, Nanga yesterday said while changes are currently being made at the top level, it’s still premature to say whether non-managerial employees will have to find other means of employment. Read more here
POLITICS
PNM, UNC share by-election wins
After weeks of campaigning, the PNM and UNC scored a clear victory each in two local government by-elections on June 17, which saw a higher voter turnout in the districts than the 2023 polls. The PNM had a clear victory in Lengua/Indian Walk, with its candidate Autly Granthume defeating the UNC’s candidate Nicole Gopaul 2,083 to 1,336 votes. There was no official information on the number of votes received by Peterson Morales, who contested as an independent candidate. Sources claimed Morales only received one vote. Read more here
BUSINESS
Ghanaian energy delegation visits NGC
The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago (NGC) received a visit from Ghana’s National Petroleum Authority (NPA) a delegation of senior executives from Ghana's unified petroleum pricing fund management committee came to the group’s offices on June 14. A media release from NGC said the committee was hosted at its Orinoco House in Point Lisas, as part of a larger engagement with key energy stakeholders in Trinidad and Tobago. The management committee came for a working visit to gain insight into Trinidad and Tobago's energy industry. The delegation sought to learn from the successes of Trinidad and Tobago’s downstream sector while studying its regulatory framework. Read more here
T&T’s inflation rate rises to 0.9%
The rate of inflation in T&T for May 2024 was 0.9 per cent, according to the Central Statistical Office (CSO), which released its Consumer Price Index for last month yesterday. The inflation rate is the measurement of the percentage change in the all-items index for the current month compared with the same month the previous year. For the period between May 2023 and May 2024, the average cost of communications increased by 8.5 per cent, healthcare was higher by 7.9 per cent and food and non-alcoholic rose by 3.1 per cent. For the period, home ownership was down by 2.1 per cent, while the categories clothing and footwear and housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels both declined by 2.1 per cent. Read more here
REGIONAL
St. Lucia to introduce prepaid electricity project
St. Lucia is joining at least two other Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries in launching a prepaid electricity project in August allowing consumers to “top up” their electricity by telephone. Equity, Social Justice, and Empowerment Minister, Joachim Henry, said that the St. Lucia Electricity Services Limited (LUCELEC) will launch the pilot project and that “persons will be able to receive electricity in a prepaid mode. Read more here
‘Gov’t paving the way for stable, prosperous future’
The Georgetown Councillor for the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), Alfonso De Armas, argues that the present government is not pursuing short-sighted economic policies, but rather ones that aim to expand the nation’s future economic base. During an episode of “Viewpoint,” De Armas provided an extensive explanation regarding the significance of strategic planning and the necessity to dismiss the rhetoric propagated by critics of progress who endorse unregulated expenditures. The PPP/C Councillor said: “Back in 1969, Norway discovered its first oil field and started production two years later, in 1971. However, it took them 19 years to set up their famous sovereign wealth fund. During that time, the Norwegian government faced immense political pressure to use its oil revenues on recurring expenditure.” Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
NK soldiers cross border prompting warning shots
North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the demilitarised zone (DMZ) on Tuesday, South Korea has said, ahead of a rare state visit to Pyongyang by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The soldiers retreated after the South Korean military fired warning shots, but Seoul believes their violation of the border was not intentional. South Korea said it believed the soldiers accidentally crossed as they were fortifying the border, the second such incident in over a week. The border itself is not fenced and the signposts are obscured by heavy growth of vegetation. Read more here
18th June 2024