Trin | Surviving life in Trinidad and Tobago

‘Soldier’ tells of kidnapping for ransom

Balo Maharaj was kidnapped on April 6th, 2005. His dismembered body was later found in two containers in the Santa Cruz forest. Trin wants to know when we're going to start demanding the death penalty as punishment for scum like the criminals who abducted and murdered this innocent man. Below is one article from the Trinidad Guardian's series of articles covering the details of the Balram 'Balo' Maharaj kidnapping and murder.

Jason Percival was nicknamed Soldier. He spent three-and-a-half years in the T&T Regiment before he was dishonourably discharged in 1999. Ten years later, the self-confessed kidnapper, was the star witness for the US government against seven Trinidadians in Washington DC charged with taking US citizen Balram “Balo” Maharaj hostage, resulting in his death.

In fact, Percival admitted playing major roles in the kidnappings. He lived in San Fernando, but moved to Bourg Mulatresse in 2003. Percival, 36, was the main witness before Judge John Bates at the trial which ended on July 31 with guilty verdicts against the seven Trinidadians —Zion Clarke, Ricardo De Four, Kevon Demerieux, Anderson Straker, Wayne Pierre, Christopher Sealey and Kevin Nixon. They will be sentenced on February 12, 2010. The T&T Guardian got hold of the official transcripts of the proceedings of the trial. In his testimony, Percival told the court of his involvement in the kidnapping of Dexter Jagdeo, Robin Ramadar and Maharaj. Percival said he met Wayne Pierre at Bourg Mulatresse in 2003. “We became friends. We would drink together, we would go to strip clubs together.” He used to go to Pierre’s house at Grand Curacaye at least three to four times a week. During this time, he hung out with Demerieux, Clarke, Sealey and Russell “Saucy” Joseph. The following year, he met Winston Gittens. Percival said he met Ricardo De Four when he was in the army.

“I met him during the course of my army career around 1996. I did not hang out with him in the army, but in 2004, 2005, I was introduced to him by Ricardo Stephenson, my cousin, a corporal in the army,” he said. He said he knew that De Four carried a nine- millimetre handgun. He also met Sgt Leon Nurse three months before the Balram kidnapping. He also met Straker, whom he described as Gypsy’s son. When asked who Gypsy was, Percival said, “a minister in the UNC Government, UNC party.” The former soldier said he was involved in the plan on December 16, 2004, to kidnap Dexter Jagdeo. He said: “Individuals would present Jagdeo with a warrant, dressed in what appeared to be a police uniform and arrest him. The warrant was supposed to come from a police officer. The uniform came from Ricardo De Four. There was a meeting at Wayne Pierre’s house assembling everyone, which is Russel Joseph, Magga, myself, Zion and Niron. They had a .357 magnum and a 9 mm.

“After conducting surveillance, Magga got dressed in the police uniform, and they left in a white B15, and snatched Jagdeo from his home,” he said. “I dropped off at Mellow Moods bar. I went to the residence where Jagdeo was being held at Upper Santa Cruz.” Percival said ransom calls were made by Gittens, and the ransom was paid in a cemetery. The ransom was taken to Pierre’s house, where Pierre distributed it. Pierre later bought a Mazda 323 car. He said he also knew of the plan to kidnap Robin Ramadar on March 4, 2005. “I came to be involved in it through De Four and Nurse,” he said. They wanted ‘outsiders’, meaning people rolling with Pierre. Gittens was chosen as the getaway driver. The ransom demand was $160,000. He was supposed to be held in the bush in Bourg Mulatresse. I was present for the kidnapping. He was kidnapped from the Curry House Bar, Queen Street, (Aranquez). “I saw Mr Ramadar being dragged out of the bar. I saw them bundle him in the back of vehicle. I was present with Winston Gittens when the ransom calls were being made. His wife wanted to talk to him. Winston went and collect the individual from where he was being held. And while carrying him to the location where they had stashed him, they allowed her to talk to him on the phone.

“I together with Ricardo De Four, was involved in the collection of the ransom. De Four was looking out for any suspicious looking police vehicles that might be following the individual that was coming to drop the ransom off. I was travelling in De Four’s car, a silver Elantra. Pierre and Gittens picked up the ransom. We returned to Gittens’ apartment and separated the money. I received $30,000, De Four got $12,000, Gittens $30,000, Pierre $30,000. Ramadar was then released.” Percival said in January 2005, the plan was devised to kidnap Balram. Percival said he went to Defence Force Headquarters and met with Nurse to discuss the kidnapping. He said Nurse came out from the canteen and approached the vehicle in which he was seated. The plan, he said, was to kidnap Balo’s son. It was decided that De Four would look out for the police. Percival went to Bourg Mulatresse and asked Wayne Pierre if he could handle the kidnapping and Pierre said yes. But later Nurse and De Four changed the plan and decided to kidnap Balram instead.

Percival said, “Sometime later, De Four called me and said they wanted to meet Wayne, so they met at Mellow Moods Bar, days before the kidnapping. We sat under one of the carat sheds—De Four, Pierre, Nurse and myself. “Nurse said they were going to take Balram instead of the child. Nurse said it was easier to take the father. They were trying to convince Wayne Pierre and myself that the man had money and he had shares and other businesses in Trinidad. “Pierre wanted to be sure that the man really had money. De Four said the man have stocks and shares and other businesses. De Four said he got the information from Straker. The next time we had discussions was the day before the kidnapping. It was outside the Mellow Moods bar. Present were Nurse, De Four, Joseph, myself and Straker. They left to go and identify Balo at a bar. After pointing out Balo, they left. “Nurse also pointed out Balo’s house.”

-Francis Joseph
The Trinidad Guardian
16 Sep 2009
(Images #2 and #3 copyright the Trinidad Guardian.)

Patrick Manning's PNM election dealings with terrorist Abu Bakr

Trin wants to know what kind of sick political leader makes deals with a known terrorist organization that tried to destroy democracy in Trinidad and Tobago in order to win an election. Pinochet? Mugabe? Stalin? Read on, see what our own Patrick Manning and the PNM are alleged to have done to thwart the democratic process and hold on to power. The results of the investigation remain to be seen of course, but this news is no surprise to most Trinidadians I am sure. Manning is a dictator and will do whatever it takes to keep our people oppressed, while allowing his criminal supporters free reign over our people. What a sick sick man.

Court orders sale of Bakr properties…
Judge: Probe ‘deal’ with PM
-Francis Joseph
Published: 12 Sep 2009
The Trinidad Guardian

A High Court judge yesterday directed that an affidavit filed by Jamaat al Muslimeen leader, Yasin Abu Bakr, detailing an alleged agreement with Prime Minister Patrick Manning, be sent to the acting Commissioner of Police and the acting Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for their consideration.

Justice Rajendra Narine, presiding in the Port-of-Spain Second Criminal Court, said the matter caused him some measure of concern. He made reference to parts of the affidavit, although he emphasised that he held no view, nor made any finding with respect to the truth of the allegations contained in the document. Narine delivered a 27-page judgment in which he ordered that 11 properties belonging to Bakr and senior Jamaat member, Kala Akii Bua, be put up for public auction to satisfy a $32 million debt owing to the State for the destruction of Police Headquarters during the 1990 attempted coup. Bakr was not in court yesterday as he is in London with his daughter who will start university soon. The Attorney General was represented by Dana Seetahal, SC, Rikki Harnanan and Sean Julien, while Mark Seepersad, Gerald Ramdeen and Lemuel Murphy, appeared for the 114 Muslimeen insurgents.

After making the orders for the sale of the properties, Narine devoted the last seven pages of the judgment to deal with the controversial affidavit. During the hearing of the summons for sale application, Narine admitted the affidavit into evidence. On an application of the AG, the Court of Appeal struck out the document and Bakr went to the Privy Council. The British Law Lords, on May 5, ruled that the affidavit should be struck out for irrelevance but in the course of his judgment Lord Carswell, who delivered the opinion of the Privy Council, referred extensively to its contents. Lord Carswell stated that the essence of the agreement between the Prime Minister and Abu Bakr “was that certain advantages would be given to the Jamaat out of State property, in return for securing voting support for the Prime Minister’s political party. In the opinion of the Board this was corrupt within the meaning and intendment of Section 3 and each party to the agreement was acting incontravention of the section.”

In reference to the Privy Council’s judgment, In reference to the Privy Council’s judgment, Justice Narine said: “These are the pronouncements of the highest court in this jurisdiction. Yet, as far as the court is aware, no action has been taken by the appropriate authorities to conduct a thorough investigation of these allegations. “The allegations made by the second defendant (Bakr) are extremely serious. If they are true, they strike at the heart of our democratic system of government.” Justice Narine also said: “If the allegations are true, the Prime Minister made promises of state resources to the leader of an organisation which had made an unsuccessful attempt to overthrow the duly elected government of the country, in return for the Jamaat’s leverage in the marginal constituencies (during the 2002 general election).”

Narine, who will sit in the Court of Appeal next week, added: “The court is confident that the relevant authorities will carry out their constitutional duties without fear or favour. In recent times, there have been investigations and prosecutions of persons in high office. The guiding principle has been that no one is above the law, regardless of his position.” As far as Narine was concerned, this matter should be afforded the urgency and transparency which it deserves. According to Narine, Bakr’s affidavit stated that the Jamaat leader spoke and met with Manning, Larry Achong, Joan Yuille-Williams and Martin Joseph, before the 2002 general election.

According to Bakr, it was agreed that:
• The remaining lands at Mucurapo would be transferred to the Jamaat.
• The Mucurapo Islamic College would be included in the concordat and would receive funding from the Ministry of Education.
• The State would not enforce the payment of damages against the Jamaat.
In consideration of these promises, Bakr said the Jamaat agreed to, among other things:
• Work within the crime-ridden areas to bring about a reduction in crime.
• Work within the marginal constituencies to mobilise young people to vote.
• The Jamaat would publicly come out in support of the ruling party and would endorse the PNM for re-election.
Bakr said that after the election, Manning failed to honour any of the obligations under the agreement, especially the agreement not to enforce the judgment against the Jamaat.

The issue

The background to the case was the armed occupation by members of the Jamaat in 1990 of the Red House and TTT. The complex subsequent history led to two successful appeals to the Privy Council in relation to criminal prosecutions. The Jamaat sued the Police Commissioner in two actions and obtained an award for damages in each, the amounts being some $2 million and $700,000 or thereabouts respectively. Then in 1994, the Government commenced proceedings against the insurgents and Bakr, claiming damages for trespass and damage to, and/or destruction of property of the State at the time of the insurrection.

On September 6, 1996, the Government obtained judgment in default of defence for damages to be assessed. On January 15, 2001, damages were assessed by Justice Joseph Tam in the sum of $15 million, with interest. The debt stands at $32 million. On February 6, 2006, the Attorney General issued a summons on behalf of the Government, pursuant to the Remedies Against Creditors Act, for the sale of 11 parcels of land. On June 8, 2006, Bakr filed an affidavit in opposition to the summons, raising a major issue by way of defence to the claim.

10-20-Life - A viable Crime Plan for TnT?

What do we need in a crime plan, Trinidad and Tobago? Here's a description of a simple and effective plan that was implemented in 1999 in Florida to deal with violent crime. It's called the 10-20-LIFE Program.

In 1998, criminals in Florida used guns to commit 31,643 violent felonies, including 13,937 armed robberies. That year, the mandatory punishment for using a gun to commit a violent felony was only three years in prison. During his campaign for Governor in 1998, Jeb Bush proposed the toughest gun-crime law in the nation: 10-20-LIFE. Under 10-20-LIFE, a felon who used a gun to commit a crime like armed robbery would face at least 10 years in state prison.

Do you think a plan like this might work for Trinidad? Would you consider asking your family, friends and coworkers to tell their elected representatives about this plan?

10-20-LIFE

* Mandates a minimum 10 year prison term for certain felonies, or attempted felonies in which the offender possesses a firearm or destructive device
* Mandates a minimum 20 year prison term when the firearm is discharged
* Mandates a minimum 25 years to LIFE if someone is injured or killed
* Mandates a minimum 3 year prison term for possession of a firearm by a felon
* Mandates that the minimum prison term is to be served consecutively to any other term of imprisonment imposed

The Department of Corrections provides printed materials, such as: Bumper Stickers; Vinyl Window Clings; Posters in English, and Spanish; and Brochures in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole, to public and private schools, businesses, and other public areas for display.

The results under 10-20-LIFE are impressive. In only six years, from 1998-2004, 10-20-LIFE has helped drive down violent gun crime rates 30 percent statewide (see Firearm Involved Violent Crimes). The state's 2004, "Index Crime" rate wass now the lowest in 34 years, and the violent crime rate is the lowest in a quarter century.

Dante's 9 circles of Hell

  I've been reading the Inferno, the first of the three parts of Dante's Divine Comedy. I'll admit that reading the descriptions of the nine circles of hell have been giving me some joy. Twisted, you say? But there's even a circle for corrupt politicians and people in public office, along with traitors who actively carry out fraudulent activities! Somedays I feel that the effort to constantly be watching over my shoulder and worrying about the safety of friends and loved ones in this small country of just over 1Million people will wear me out. This week I heard about a series of break-ins in neighbourhoods in North East Trinidad - criminals cutting burglar proofing and families being terrorized. I wonder - if we can't get a handle on the crime now, will we ever get it right? Is the crime problem caused in part because our people have lost their morality and spirituality (along with the abysmal failures on the part of the Government and the police to protect citizens)? Well, when I begin to lose hope, I read my holy books and remind myself that even if the evil hurt innocent people in this lifetime, no amount of theif money will save them when they're dead. Aside from all this, the Divine Comedy is a great read.

 

In the Inferno, the gates of hell bear the inscription:
Through me the way into the suffering city,
Through me the way to the eternal pain,
Through me the way that runs among the lost.
Justice urged on my high artificer;
My maker was divine authority,
The highest wisdom, and the primal love.
Before me nothing but eternal things were made,
And I endure eternally.
Abandon every hope, ye who enter here.

The poem begins on the night before Good Friday in the year 1300. Dante is thirty-five years old, unable to find the "straight way" to salvation, conscious that he is ruining himself and that he is falling into a "deep place" where the sun is silent, Dante is rescued by Virgil and the two begin their journey to the underworld. Virgil is Dante's guide through the nine circles of hell.

The 9 circles of hell are concentric, representing a gradual increase in wickedness, and culminating at the center of the earth, where Satan is held in bondage. The upper parts of hell are reserved for the passive sinners. The lower parts (the sixth circle and below) of hell are contained within the walls of the city of Dis, surrounded by the Stygian marsh.  Punished within Dis are active sinners.
       
 1 First Circle (Limbo)
Here reside the unbaptized and the virtuous pagans, who, though not sinful, did not accept Christ. They are not punished in an active sense, but rather grieve only their separation from God, without hope of reconciliation.

2 Second Circle
Those overcome by lust are punished in this circle. They are the first ones to be truly punished in Hell. These souls are blown about to and fro by a violent storm, without hope of rest. This symbolizes the power of lust to blow one about needlessly and aimlessly.

3 Third Circle
Cerberus guards the gluttons, forced to lie in a vile slush made by freezing rain, black snow, and hail. This symbolizes the garbage that the gluttons made of their lives on earth, slavering over food.

4 Fourth Circle
Those whose attitude toward material goods deviated from the desired mean are punished in this circle. They include the avaricious or miserly, who hoarded possessions, and the prodigal, who squandered them. 

5 Fifth Circle
In the swamp-like water of the river Styx, the wrathful fight each other on the surface, and the sullen or slothful lie gurgling beneath the water. 

6 Sixth Circle
Heretics are trapped in flaming tombs.

7 Seventh Circle
This circle houses the violent. Its entry is guarded by the Minotaur, and it is divided into three rings:
Outer ring, housing the violent against people and property, who are immersed in Phlegethon, a river of boiling blood, to a level commensurate with their sins. The Centaurs, commanded by Chiron, patrol the ring, firing arrows into those trying to escape.
Middle ring: In this ring are the suicides, who are transformed into gnarled thorny bushes and trees. They are torn at by the Harpies. Unique among the dead, the suicides will not be bodily resurrected after the final judgment, having given their bodies away through suicide. Instead they will maintain their bushy form, with their own corpses hanging from the limbs.
Inner ring: The violent against God (blasphemers), the violent against nature (sodomites), and the violent against order (usurers), all reside in a desert of flaming sand with fiery flakes raining from the sky. The blasphemers lie on the sand, the usurers sit, and the sodomites wander about in groups.

The last two circles of Hell punish sins that involve conscious fraud or treachery.
 

8 Eighth Circle
The fraudulent—those guilty of deliberate, knowing evil—are located in a circle named Malebolge ("Evil Pockets"), divided into ten bolgie, or ditches of stone, with bridges spanning the ditches:
Bolgia 1: Panderers (pimps) and seducers march in separate lines in opposite directions, whipped by demons. Just as they misled others in life, they are driven to march by demons for all eternity.
Bolgia 2: Flatterers are steeped in human excrement. This is because their flatteries on earth were nothing but "a load of excrement"
Bolgia 3: Those who committed simony are placed head-first in holes in the rock, with flames burning on the soles of their feet (resembling an inverted baptism).
Bolgia 4: Sorcerers and false prophets have their heads twisted around on their bodies backward. In addition, they cry so many tears that they cannot see.
Bolgia 5: Corrupt politicians (barrators) are immersed in a lake of boiling pitch, which represents the sticky fingers and dark secrets of their corrupt deals. They are guarded by devils called the Malebranche ("Evil Claws")
Bolgia 6: The bridge over this bolgia is broken: the poets climb down into it and find the Hypocrites listlessly walking along wearing gilded lead cloaks.
Bolgia 7: Thieves, guarded by the centaur (as Dante describes him) Cacus, are pursued and bitten by snakes and lizards. The snake bites make them undergo various transformations, with some resurrected after being turned to ashes, some mutating into new creatures, and still others exchanging natures with the reptiles, becoming lizards themselves that chase the other thieves in turn. Just as the thieves stole other people's substance in life, and because thievery is reptilian in its secrecy, the thieves' substance is eaten away by reptiles and their bodies are constantly stolen by other thieves.
Bolgia 8: Fraudulent advisors are encased in individual flames.
Bolgia 9: A sword-wielding demon hacks at the sowers of discord. As they make their rounds the wounds heal, only to have the demon tear apart their bodies again.
Bolgia 10: Here various sorts of falsifiers (alchemists, counterfeiters, perjurers, and impersonators), who are a disease on society, are themselves afflicted with different types of diseases.

9 Ninth Circle
The Ninth Circle is ringed by classical and Biblical giants. Traitors, distinguished from the "merely" fraudulent in that their acts involve betraying one in a special relationship to the betrayer, are frozen in a lake of ice known as Cocytus. Each group of traitors is encased in ice to a different depth, ranging from only the waist down to complete immersion. The circle is divided into four concentric zones:
Round 1: Caïna, named for Cain, is home to traitors to their kindred. The souls here are immersed in the ice up to their necks. 
Round 2: Traitors to political entities, such as party, city, or country, are located here.The souls here are immersed at almost the same level as those in Caïna (Round 1), except they are unable to bend their necks.
Round 3: Ptolomaea.Traitors to their guests are punished here.The souls here are immersed so much that only half of their faces are visible. As they cry, their tears freeze and seal their eyes shut–they are denied even the comfort of tears.
Round 4: Judecca.is for traitors to their lords and benefactors. All of the sinners punished within are completely encapsulated in ice, distorted to all conceivable positions.

Condemned to the very center of hell for committing the ultimate sin (treachery against God) is Satan, who has three faces, one red, one black, and one a pale yellow, each having a mouth that chews on a prominent traitor.

A Rasta, a Scrawny Indian and a Driver (no, this is not a joke)

A Rasta, a scrawny Indian and a driver who cannot be clearly seen, all in a white pickup truck, pull up to my aunt's house before 9am this morning.

The Indian, with the Rasta trailing behind, get out of the truck, and walking to her front gate the Indian starts calling "Good morning, I here for the air-conditioner maintenance. We have an appointment for today".
My aunt says, "But who send you?" knowing full well she hasn't made any appointment to get any unit checked.
The Indian says, "The boss man"
Aunt replies "I don't have any appointment for today."
Full well boldface the Indian replies, "Can I come inside for a minute to use your phone? I will call the boss to make sure the appointment is for here."

My aunt must have the words DUMB ASS tattooed on her forehead.

Resisting the urge to cuss this man she just says 'Sorry but we didn't make any appointment for today, and I can't let you in the house', closes her front door and watches them walk back to the van and drive away.

Now that Christmas is over and Carnival is coming up, every crook will do whatever it takes to get their fete money, money for their costume and money necessary to keep up with the Joneses. They will become more desperate and I expect to see an increase in petty theft, armed robbery and full out robbing of retail stores, (was it  Excellent Stores in Port of Spain that bandits did a major number on last year just before Carnival? I'm not sure, I'll have to check and get back to you.)

Anyway, be very careful this year, let's try to have a safe season leading up to Carnival. The economy is bad, people are losing their jobs and we know what this leads to... desperation and crime.

One a positive note, a number of us were driving Eastbound near Pasea on the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway around 11pm this weekend gone, and we saw police patrols up and down both sides of the highway! Not only was there a VISIBLE police presence monitoring the roads, the patrol in the Eastbound lane pulled over a speeding car! Is this a one time thing for drunken holiday drivers? I hope not.

All nonsense about the Police aside, if their presence was constantly visible on the roads, speeders, people who run red lights and those drunken holiday drivers would think twice about endangering the rest of us law-abiding people.

Here's to hoping we have a more VISIBLE police patrol on the roads at rush hour, in the day, and at night helping us to have a safer 2009. Here's to hoping those dumb ass criminals call on somebody with a big shotgun next time.

A Safe and Happy 2009 to all!

‘Blatant abuse of power’ -illegal PNM rally

On Friday the Indo-Trinbago Equality Council (ITEC) faxed a written a letter of complaint to the Integrity Commission, claiming there was an abuse of power by acting Commissioner of Police (CoP) James Philbert, during a People’s National Movement (PNM) political rally while a no-confidence motion in Prime Minister Patrick Manning was being debated in Parliament on September 12th, 2008.

The letter stated "It is clear that the present acting Commissioner of Police did not exercise his powers in a fair and impartial manner and demonstrated and afforded preferential treatment to the supporters of the ruling party,"  and that CoP Philbert  "revealed a clear political bias in favour of the ruling party and failed to uphold the rule of law," .

It is public knowledge that no permission was granted by the CoP for this rally.

"The acting Commissioner of Police has thus far not charged anyone for the several violations and criminal offences committed," Maharaj wrote.

 Maharaj said no attempts were made by Philbert to disperse the crowd, in compliance with Section 3 of the Summary Offences Act, which deals with illegal meetings held without the CoP’s permission.

 Maharaj, in his letter, said the inaction and glaring omission on Philbert’s part was conspicuous because there was   much controversy over the manner in which he was appointed to act as Commissioner of Police.

 Contacted yesterday, Maharaj said he hoped that the commission would “unshackle itself from its political master and call a spade a spade.”

 “If the commission claims they are fair then this is one way of testing it. And I ask that my complaint be dealt with expeditiously,” he said.

 Maharaj added that he hoped the commission would launch an investigation to determine if Philbert abused his powers. He also threatened that if the Commission failed to take the necessary action, “we would have no choice but to sue.”

Trinidad Guardian, Sunday 5th October, 2008

Editorial on parliament: "Parliament must enlighten"

"As in the instance of the Woodford Square fiasco over the no-confidence motion, Prime Minister Manning is demonstrating his extreme irritation with criticism and his preparedness to do whatever it takes to get even with his enemies, both real and perceived. "

"It is too often the case that what should be an engaging, enlightening and uplifting debate in the House of Representatives on fundamental issues, such as the national budget, degenerates into personal attacks.
These attacks are sometimes against people not able to defend themselves with such freedom as the parliamentarians enjoy against mauvais langue and partisan party politics. 
The end result is blissful ignorance of the issues involved in the debate by the national community and the continuing slide in the credibility of the Parliament."

It is clear that both sides in the verbal duel between the Prime Minister and his former colleague, Dr Keith Rowley, must share some of the blame for the fact that much of the debate got side-tracked.

On Tuesday night, what Prime Minister Patrick Manning had to “reveal,” using what he described as documentary evidence, amounted in the instance of his contentions against his former colleague of 20 years, no more than weak circumstantial evidence of alleged corruption.

If the Prime Minister really thinks he has evidence of one of his ministers feeding at the public trough, why did he not place the matter in the hands of the investigating authorities to pursue?

Why engage the Parliament in such an unsubstantiated allegation and, more than that, why trade on a privileged position in the chamber to insinuate in such a manner—surely no one was fooled by his pretence of not making an allegation—without presenting the evidence?

Moreover, it stretches credibility for the Prime Minister to come months, perhaps even years, after an event involving, as he claims, $10 million of public funds gone missing, to “discover” it in a document that one has to assume was always available to him. This discovery is also an indictment of the scrutiny by Cabinet before approval is granted for the expenditure of large sums of taxpayers’ dollars.

How could Cabinet have allowed such a simple arithmetical error, as indicated by the Prime Minister, to get by it?

Is it that the Cabinet gives the green light to any document that comes before it without the appropriate scrutiny?

The Prime Minister is therefore demonstrating the shortcomings of his own administration more than supporting the possibility of alleged corruption by a former member of the Cabinet.

How many other instances of discrepancy and possible outright corruption have got past the Cabinet? That is a question that requires an answer from Mr Manning.

In the instance of the Prime Minister’s allegations against UNC MP Kamla Persad-Bissessar and her alleged links to a member of the Integrity Commission, here again is an instance of the potential commission of a crime as it is illegal for a member of the commission to engage in the business of the institution with others outside.

Armed with such information, as he claims he has, why has the Prime Minister not put the information in the hands of the police for further investigation? Why has he kept it to use as political ammunition against his opponents? 

Questions might also be raised about how the Prime Minister came upon the information about the alleged link between Mrs Persad-Bissessar and someone associated with the Integrity Commission. Is it that the country’s intelligence services were instructed to monitor the private activities of an Opposition MP and her association with the Integrity Commission, an institution that is supposed to be free of the taint of partisan politics?

Would it not have been the preferred course of action for the Prime Minister to pass on his suspicions to the chairman of the Integrity Commission for him to order the investigations required?

As in the instance of the Woodford Square fiasco over the no-confidence motion, Prime Minister Manning is demonstrating his extreme irritation with criticism and his preparedness to do whatever it takes to get even with his enemies, both real and perceived.
Editorial, Thur Oct 2nd, 2008

Depressed at crime and lack of change in Trinidad.

An unprincipled Prime Minister, who turns his back on his common people will continue to alienate Trinidad's citizens. These disenchantment of our citizens has already been widely demonstrated by the lack of support for the proposed new constitution and the alarm and outrage at Manning's proposed Caribbean integration.

One reader wrote:

"Do we live in a political void Trinidad and Tobago?  A great writer once referred to the political process in his fragmented country by saying "during elections, it was out of a desire for self-punishment that they voted for the most wretched parties". Has our devastating history as a nation blindsided us to the extent that we no longer have the energy to demand or create change?

When will Patrick Manning feel shame at his ongoing lavish lifestyle of private jets and island tours while we suffer? Which leader has ever been more out of touch with the people than him, especially the poorest black people who repeatedly support him? It appears that the criminal element feels "material envy" only toward the Indian business owners, as demonstrated by the ongoing kidnappings, under the watch of a wasteful leader. How does one explain this contradiction? Is material envy limited to race alone, with the Prime Minister's lifestyle condoned by the poorest slum dweller while the wealthy Indian population is labeled elitist and deserving of hate crimes and kidnapping?

Don't all hard working people, whatever their race, deserve to reap the benefits of their work without fear of victimization or hate crimes? Are we a country of racist hypocrites? Trinidad and Tobago, when will you ever learn to respect one another?"

Central cop on rape charge

Guardian South Bureau

"A policeman from the Central Division has been arrested for allegedly raping a 17-year-old girl from the Freeport area. Reports indicate the officer was held around 3.15 pm on Friday by Snr Supt Rattan Singh, head of the Central Division, after the teenager and her mother reported the incident.

After giving a statement to police, the young woman was taken to Chaguanas Health Centre and was medically examined. The policeman, said to be in his mid-30s, was being detained up to late yesterday, and senior officers said charges were imminent.

The victim’s 39-year-old mother had gone to Ian Alleyne, head of the T&T Crime Watch, for help.
She said Alleyne called ASP Singh and Asst Supt Ramsubagh and arranged an appointment for them.

Alleyne is calling on the new Commissioner of Police to institute a program of thorough screening for all new applicants to the service. Alleyne said: “A lot of policemen in the service have issues and need counselling. They tend to vent their anger on innocent citizens.” - Trinidad Guardian Sunday June 15th, 2008.

What does Alleyne mean by "A lot of policemen have issues"? How many policemen? Who are these policemen?

What does he mean "INSTITUTE a screening program"? Is the criteria for joining the police service a laughable who-yuh-know and not what-are-your-qualifications-and-experience, just like the rest of the Public Service? Well that explains the failed performance we've seen over the last five and more years...the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service Commission badly needs an image makeover.

The problem with the police service is that disciplinary action is NOT BEING ENFORCED for rogue officers, from the top brass right down.

*Here at Trin we advocate the death penalty for ALL persons who commit violent crime, adults who do bad things to little kids and policemen or policewomen involved in any criminal activity.