Archive for the 'UNC' Category

Greed is killing us not so softly

Published on October 16, 2019 in General T&T, Oil and Gas, PNM, Politics, Recession and UNC. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , .

By Raffique Shah
October 16, 2019

Raffique ShahSome day last week, after I had eaten a very modest lunch, I was snacking on a few locally-manufactured crackers when my wife asked, “You still hungry, nah?” She has noted with unnecessary concern that I eat smaller portions, which I attribute to ageing and my now mostly sedentary lifestyle, the latter imposed on me by my infirmity. I don’t need calories that I won’t burn as I did during my very active pre-Parkinson’s life. That reality notwithstanding, the urge to snack on junk remains undiminished, much to my dismay.
Continue reading ‘Greed is killing us not so softly’

69 ‘rescued’ from Arouca church

Published on October 10, 2019 in General T&T, Health, Law, Media, PNM and UNC. 4 Comments Tags: , , , .

69 rescued from cages at Arouca church
These people both men and women are believed to be victims of “modern day slavery” and “human trafficking” according to Commissioner of Police Gary Griffith who spoke to the Guardian Media Limited’s Lead Investigative desk Mark Bassant earlier on Wednesday just outside the Transformed Life Ministry Rehabilitation Centre.
Continue reading ’69 ‘rescued’ from Arouca church’

Budget biggest ‘bag’ thieves lay their hands on

Published on October 7, 2019 in Crime in T&T, Elections, Oil and Gas, Parliament, PNM, Politics, Recession and UNC. 2 Comments Tags: , , .

By Raffique Shah
October 07, 2019

Raffique ShahIt is a newspaper commentator’s dilemma—having to write on the Finance Minister’s annual budget presentation, as readers expect him to, both before and after the Appropriation Bill is laid in Parliament. This becomes even more challenging when the package covers the year leading to a general election when the Government, and here I mean any government, engages in distributing largesse like the proverbial “parsad” at “pujas”, throwing goodies at the electorate with the expectation that they will yield votes.
Continue reading ‘Budget biggest ‘bag’ thieves lay their hands on’

Shame and scandal in the HDC

Published on September 26, 2019 in General T&T, PNM, Politics and UNC. 4 Comments Tags: , , .

By Raffique Shah
September 26, 2019

Raffique ShahIn the wake of the cancellation of a lopsided, scandalous multi-billion-dollar contract between the Housing Development Corporation and China Gezhouba Group International Engineering Company (CGGC) for the construction of 5,000 housing units, it is alarming that no public official has been called to account for the many concessions the Chinese almost escaped with but for the vigilance of the much maligned mass media.
Continue reading ‘Shame and scandal in the HDC’

Crabs in a barrel

Published on September 16, 2019 in General T&T, PNM, Politics, Racism Watch and UNC. 6 Comments Tags: , , , , .

By Raffique Shah
September 16, 2019

Raffique ShahI had no prior information that the Express had commissioned a poll on Dr Keith Rowley’s performance as Prime Minister after holding office for four years, far less that publication of the results would coincide with my return as a columnist in last week’s Sunday Express.

So you can imagine my shock, having written on the propensity of politicians to use race as a weapon in the war for power, on reading responses to key questions in the Nigel Henry poll, based largely on race. In fact, the race-lines were so sharp, they startled many people who thought we had long overcome that primal instinct, that we were well on the road to electing politicians based on their policies and performance, or potential to perform, rather than their colour of skin or texture of hair.
Continue reading ‘Crabs in a barrel’

A word to the wise…

Published on September 3, 2019 in Crime in T&T, Elections, General T&T, PNM, Politics and UNC. 3 Comments Tags: , , .

By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
September 3, 2019

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeJoy Cushman wrote that Barack Obama revolutionized his campaign “by putting his faith in hundreds of volunteers. ” She continued: “I was a top organizer in his 2008 campaign and trained thousands of campaign staff workers. If Democrats want to win in 2020, they must get back to investing in everyday people again” (New York Times, August 26).
Continue reading ‘A word to the wise…’

Least of the looters

Published on August 20, 2019 in corruption, Court, Crime in T&T, General T&T, PNM, Politics and UNC. 5 Comments Tags: , , , , .

By Raffique Shah
August 20, 2019

Raffique ShahIf the arrest of ex-Minister Marlene McDonald, and her indictment on fraud and misbehaviour in public office charges did anything for the morale of citizens, it was to restore confidence in some investigative units of the Police Service, and underscore the independence of the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Continue reading ‘Least of the looters’

Fools rush in

Published on July 1, 2019 in Elections, General T&T, PNM and UNC. 1 Comment Tags: , , .

By Raffique Shah
July 01, 2019

Raffique ShahI feel a sense of déjà vu, of having been there, seen that, whenever some self-proclaimed leader or obscure group announces the formation of a new political party—which seems to be a frequent occurrence, with three major elections looming large on the horizon. While this is merely democracy at work, citizens exercising their right to run for political office, too many fools are rushing into a maelstrom that wise men avoid like the proverbial plague.
Continue reading ‘Fools rush in’

Look into the mirror, people

Published on June 6, 2019 in corruption, Elections, General T&T, PNM, Politics and UNC. 4 Comments Tags: , , , .

By Raffique Shah
June 06, 2019

Raffique ShahTwo crews, one from the URP and the other from the CEPEP, descended upon the two-by-two street on which I live during the past two weeks in a kind of pincer attack that I am convinced was devised by mid-level officials of the programmes to show citizen Shah how taxpayers’ dollars are wasted, and how we can do nothing about the wastage.

An in-my-face kind of gesture, probably with the finger…
Continue reading ‘Look into the mirror, people’

WASA’s crime against communities

Published on May 8, 2019 in General T&T, PNM, UNC and WASA. 5 Comments Tags: , .

By Raffique Shah
May 08, 2019

Raffique ShahIf we agree with the adage a picture tells a thousand words, then by extrapolation, given the immense advances in information technology, a website, especially one belonging to a public utility like the Water and Sewerage Authority, ought to have billions of megabytes of data that are readily available to the public at the click of a computer mouse.
Continue reading ‘WASA’s crime against communities’