NEWS
Chaos at Cross Crossing Man shoots ex-wife at mall, kills bystander, takes own life
Amid the mid-morning bustle, Sharaz Ageemoolar walked into an insurance company’s office in San Fernando and shot his ex-wife Anissa Rajgobin-Ageemoolar twice, before killing himself after eluding police having escaped from the scene of his crime. Hours before committing suicide, Sharaz had hijacked a car outside the Cross Crossing Shopping Centre and killed an innocent bystander Rosario Ramdhan, a 24-year-old Springvale, Claxton Bay resident who desired to migrate from T&T with his girlfriend. Last night, Sharaz was found dead at Arjoonsingh Drive, La Romain. He apparently committed suicide in the same car he stole. The couple has two sons together, both in their 20s. Rajbobin-Ageemoolar remains warded in a stable condition at the San Fernando General Hospital. Read more here
POLITICS
Rowley hopes for peaceful solution to Guyana/Venezuela row
The Prime Minister on Monday said Venezuela's claim to Guyana's Essequibo territory is a situation full of risks but he was confident in a peaceful resolution, addressing a news briefing at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann's. Dr Rowley hoped such a resolution would be encouraged by both disputants each having respect for Trinidad and Tobago's having taken principled past positions. His remarks precede the Venezuelan Government's December 3 referendum on the Essequibo claim, which Guyana last Tuesday asked the International Court of Justice at The Hague, Netherlands, to block, but to which Venezuela Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said no. "If there is any country which understands the principled position of TT it is Venezuela. It is on a Venezuelan issue when Venezuela's life blood was at stake that TT took its most principled public position. Not once, but more than once." Read more here
PM makes position clear: TTPS can’t make deals with gangsters
The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) has no authority to operate as a “referee” when it comes to any truce among criminals. This was the word from Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley yesterday, as he gave his position on dealing with gangs in this country. Speaking during a media conference at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann’s, Rowley said the Government has not granted the TTPS any sort of permission to arrange any peace deal with gangs. Rowley said, “When you’re talking about, ‘Oh this gang, and that gang negotiate a peace treaty with the police blowing whistle as a referee’, that is not on.” Rowley was responding to a Trinidad Express article which reported that a peace agreement had been reached between two notorious gangs affiliated with a number of recent killings in Port-of-Spain. The truce was reportedly facilitated by the police. The TTPS has since denied this ever happened. Read more here
BUSINESS
Caricom must remain a zone of peace
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley said yesterday that the Caricom region must remain a zone of peace, even as he acknowledged the possibility that T&T's negotiations to access Venezuela's natural gas in the Dragon field could be jeopardised by that country's territorial claim on the Essequibo region in Guyana. Responding to a question on the Dragon field issue at a news conference at the Diplomatic Centre, Rowley said: "Yes, there are always risks. It is like a nuclear reaction, once it gets started you could lose control of it. "The last thing we want is for us not to be in a period of peace and in a zone of peace." The T&T prime minister said he does not have a crystal ball to predict the outcome of matters, especially diplomatic issue. Read more here
Mega projects coming
Trade Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon has pledged the State’s commitment to several major projects within the Tunapuna/Piarco region, such as the Sheraton Hotel in Piarco, the commissioning of the Solar Project in Orange Grove, and the imminent Macoya Interchange. Gopee-Scoon also urged businesses to operate with a “people-first mindset to producing quality goods and services, innovate to meet the ever-changing needs of the consumer and upskill staff to ensure competitiveness both locally and internationally”. She made these comments while delivering the feature address at the Tunapuna Week 2023 inaugural Business Breakfast at the Mahatma Gandhi Institute for Cultural Co-Operation. Read more here
REGIONAL
Guyana, EU record significant increase in trade
President, Dr Irfaan Ali, on Monday, told European investors that the door for business and investment opportunities in Guyana is open, and collaborations could bring significant benefits for both Guyana and the European Union (EU). The President made those remarks at the opening ceremony for the first EU economic mission to Guyana, at the Guyana Marriott Hotel in Kingston.
According to the Head of State, the presence of this mission here ensures that businesses and investors from the EU have no excuse for being part of the greatest story of growth and development in the world, and having an opportunity to be part of one of the most sustainable and comprehensive stories of development that will evolve further in 2030 and beyond. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
OpenAI staff demand board resign over Sam Altman sacking
Staff at OpenAI have called on the board of the artificial intelligence company to resign after the shock dismissal of former boss Sam Altman. In a letter, they question the board's competence, and accuse it of undermining the firm's work. They also demand Mr Altman's reinstatement. But Mr Altman now has a job at Microsoft and seems to want to stay. He and Microsoft boss Satya Nadella see OpenAI's success as vital, he added. "Satya and my top priority remains to ensure OpenAI continues to thrive," he tweeted. "We are committed to fully providing continuity of operations to our partners and customers. The OpenAI/Microsoft partnership makes this very doable." Read more here
21st November 2023