NEWS
Private autopsy: Bharatt died from blunt trauma to the head
A Private autopsy on Tuesday has revealed that court clerk Andrea Bharatt died from blunt force trauma injuries to her head. Whether these injuries were caused by a wilful physical attack, by her falling or by her being thrown down a precipice remains a mystery. The autopsy – done a day after an initial examination proved inconclusive – was performed by Prof Hubert Daisley at Boodoo's Funeral Home in Cunupia. Read more here
Girl, 16, fatally shot in Claxton Bay
Homicide detectives are investigating the circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old schoolgirl in Claxton Bay yesterday. Tamika Griffith was found in a pool of blood in the living room of her relatives’ apartment at Sookoo Trace around 2.30 pm. A 16-year-old relative who lived in the upstairs apartment told police that he left her alone and went out. When he returned sometime later, he found her on the floor. She had a gunshot wound to the head. He called his mother who contacted the police. Griffith died about two hours later at the hospital. Police said Griffith lived in Iere Village, Princes Town, but would often stay by her relatives to do online schooling. Read more here
POLITICS
Davidson-Celestine: Fresh election only way to go
The People’s National Movement (PNM) Tobago Council remains adamant that the only way to resolve the deadlock in the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) is for voters to return to the polls. The PNM and the Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP) each won six electoral districts in the January 25 THA election. But the new assemblymen failed on three occasions to elect a presiding officer after rejecting the candidate put forward by either party to oversee the THA’s proceedings. Read more here
AG claims UNC members doctored ‘crocodile tears’ video
“They lied. It is a blatant nasty lie.” Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi yesterday said he was set up by unscrupulous politicians as he accused several people from the United National Congress (UNC) of engaging in cyber-crime. He claimed they fabricated a video to make it appear that he had made insensitive and derogatory comments relating to the public support following the kidnapping and murder of Andrea Bharatt. Read more here
BUSINESS
New postal code takes effect in south central Trinidad
The postal code project has officially been launched in the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo regional corporation, leaving the Diego Martin as the final area to be mapped and coded. It is the 12th regional corporation to move forward with this since its inception in 2012 and was launched at the Couva Community Centre on Tuesday. Read more here
JTUM calls for end to violence against women
Women members of the Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) yesterday joined the calls for an end to violence against their gender, and for the justice system to be more stringent against perpetrators of these kind of crimes. Read more here
REGIONAL
Energy costs could be reduced by 80%
The price paid by Guyana for kilowatt per hour of electricity could be reduced by about 80 per cent when the proposed gas-to-energy project comes on stream.
Preliminary estimates, as outlined by Vice-President, Bharrat Jagdeo, show that Guyana could pay as low as six to seven cents per kilowatt of power depending on the structure of financing and the ownership of this project. Read more here
Leaders lament fallout from 8 pm COVID curfew
The Government’s imposition of tougher curfew restrictions in the wake of record one-day coronavirus infections has been cast by business interests as a crippling blow to an already tanking economy that would make recovery much harder. That reaction comes amid an unprecedented surge in infections over the last seven days, climaxing with 403 cases on February 8. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Covid: EU's von der Leyen admits vaccine rollout shortcomings
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has admitted the EU was late to authorise Covid-19 vaccines and "we're still not where we want to be". She acknowledged shortcomings in the Commission's vaccine response in a speech to the European Parliament. Mrs von der Leyen faced criticism from MEPs over the EU's handling of the rollout. However, she was adamant that the decision to order vaccines collectively was "the right thing to do". The Commission has come under fire for the slow pace of delivery under its vaccine scheme, which was established in June last year and allows it to negotiate the purchase of vaccines on behalf of its member states. The rollout has also been hit by delays from vaccine producers including Oxford-AstraZeneca and Pfizer-BioNTech, amid issues of capacity and supply. Read more here
Horrific mob scenes dominate Trump's impeachment trial
Chilling video evidence on the first day of Donald Trump's second impeachment trial, showing his frenzied supporters smashing their way into the US Capitol, revived a national trauma. Combined with a botched, illogical opening by his defense team, it also raised a perennial question: what exactly would it take for Republican senators to finally hold the ex-President to account? Read more here
10th February 2021