NEWS
Tobago Festivals CEO knocks late start to Carnival shows
Tobago Festivals CEO John Arnold says there are many lessons to learn where event management is concerned, after several shows in Tobago and Trinidad failed to start and end at its stipulated times. Arnold, who Hummingbird medal (gold) recipient for culture and arts, made the remark on Tuesday on the Tobago Updates programme. Arnold boasts 30 years experience in the fields of music, education and eventology, Discussing the Windward Afro Queen and Calypso Monarch show in Roxborough, Arnold lamented that the event finished at almost 3am on Carnival Sunday, despite it scheduled to start at 7pm on Carnival Saturday. Read more here
25 arrested, 9 guns seized over Carnival weekend
Police officers recovered nine firearms, arrested 25 people and issued over 50 fixed penalty notices over the Carnival weekend. A release from the T&T Police Service said, “As revellers enjoyed Carnival Monday, officers conducted various exercises across the nation to ensure their continued safety. This resulted in the seizure of four guns, 25 arrests, and over 50 fixed penalty notices being issued. These additional gun finds bring the total seized to nine since Friday.” Giving details, it said during an anti-crime exercise in Carenage on Monday, members of the Western Division Task Force were alerted by a passing motorist that occupants of a vehicle had thrown an object out of the vehicle’s window. Officers later found a P80 nine-millimetre firearm, loaded with a magazine containing 15 rounds of ammunition. Read more here
POLITICS
American Airlines apologises to PM over VIP snub
American Airlines has apologised to Prime Ministers of Trinidad and Tobago and St Vincent and the Grenadines for an apparent VIP snub that occurred when he was leaving Guyana's Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) last Wednesday. Dr Rowley and St Vincent's Dr Ralph Gonsalves were denied the courtesies for check-in procedures to be conducted on their behalf, according to a media report based on a statement by Guyana's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Rowley and Gonsalves had attended the 2023 International Energy Conference and Expo and were en route to Miami for the 44th Caricom summit in Nassau, Bahamas. Read more here
CoP, Hinds commend officers for Carnival work
Commissioner of Police Erla Harewood-Christopher’s Carnival debut was a successful one, as she proudly announced yesterday that there were no major incidents of crime for during the festive season. Harewood-Christopher also dispelled rumours of industrial action by her officers, saying they turned out in their numbers to pick up duties over the Carnival weekend up to yesterday. “Police officers are out in their numbers. All areas are covered. We have no problems with attendance,” Harewood-Christopher said during her first Carnival walkabout to take in the Carnival revelry in Port-of-Spain yesterday. “I would like to take the opportunity to thank all my officers for their outstanding efforts. Officers who were on vacation were required to come in and they did,” she added. Read more here
BUSINESS
T&T’s External Competitiveness must be fixed, says Prof Hosein
An internal devaluation is not enough for Trinidad and Tobago to increase its external competitiveness and unless the issue of spiralling crime and better use of Venezuelan labour are addressed we will continue to face the foreign exchange challenges, says professor of Economics at The University of the West Indies, Dr Roger Hosein. In responding to the January economic bulletin from the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago (CBTT), Prof Hosein told the Express Business that the internal devaluation did not produce a sharp increase in T&T’s external competitiveness. “The numbers are suggesting that we need to do more than just an internal devaluation to improve the external competitiveness of the economy,” Prof Hosein said. Read more here
REGIONAL
Plans progress for advancement in medicine, science
President, Dr Irfaan Ali on Tuesday met with Nobel Prize winner, Professor James Allison and his wife, Guyana-born Professor Padmanee Sharma, and among the matters discussed was the creation of a Presidential Advisory Council on Medicine and Science. The President also discussed the setting up of a medical school and a PhD programme in Guyana, to supplement the government’s vision for the development of Guyana as a hub for medical care. Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle after the meeting, the two scholars noted how impressed they were by the vision that the President laid out for the improvement of medical education in Guyana. “We were very happy with what we heard because it aligns with our vision and we thought it would be great to serve on this advisory council,” Dr Sharma commented. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Hong Kong’s financial secretary expects city’s economy to grow between 3.5% and 5.5%
Hong Kong’s Covid-hit economy will return to growth this year and expand by between 3.5% and 5.5%, as the city opens up and China’s economic outlook improves, Hong Kong’s financial secretary said on Wednesday. The Asian financial hub suffered a 3.5% contraction last year, as strict Covid restrictions and weakening global demand hurt spending and exports. It was the third contraction in four years for the city of 7 million people. After Hong Kong significantly relaxed its Covid curbs last month, it is looking to revive the economy through a raft of measures, including offering cash handouts to residents and cutting salaries tax to boost spending. It’s also stepping up a drive to attract workers and investments amid rising competition from Singapore. Read more here
22nd February 2023