Tag Archives: State of Emergency

Celebrating 149 Years of The Presbyterian Church

By Stephen Kangal
January 15, 2017

Stephen KangalPeaceful and restful, Aramalaya Church where the PCTT founder, Rev John Morton established his second operational base to spread the Presbyterian brand of protestant evangelism/education to North and Central Trinidad was eminently qualified to host the 8th January 2017 Service of Grateful Praise and Thanksgiving to commemorate and launch the 149th Anniversary Celebrations of the Founding of the Presbyterian Church of T&T (PCTT).
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The Gang that Couldn’t Shoot Straight

By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
December 06, 2011

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeWe didn’t have to wait until the Prime Minister declared an official end to the state of emergency to realize that it was ill-advised, ill-timed and disingenuous. Anyone with eyes to see and ears to hear have come to the realization that what began as a farce ended up as a comedy of errors with rotten eggs splattered on the Government’s face and even greater opprobrium cast upon their name. Ah mean, they couldn’t even carry off this jokey maneuver with a modicum of humor.
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Sandy Must Stay!

By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
October 04, 2011

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeI hate to be on Keith Rowley’s case but Rowley (and by extension the PNM) is really missing the pulse of the people and, in the process, failing to take the lead politically in the society. A serious party must be the elevated consciousness of a people. The leadership of the PNM has not shown such leadership in this crisis. We are following rather than leading the masses and that is not good for the party. It speaks volumes about Rowley’s leadership abilities.
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The CJ’s Wisdom

By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
September 20, 2011

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeSooner or later it had to happen. Amidst the chaos and head-in-the-sand posture, a mature voice had to rise up and address the implications of the state of emergency (SOE) that was declared by the government. While so many of my fellow citizens, buoyed by the apparent calm of the society welcomed the suspension of many of our civil liberties, it took a brave voice to remind us that a constitution cannot suspend itself and that the declaration of a SOE does not automatically abrogate all of our right as citizens.
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DPP’s Decision

newsday.co.tt
September 18, 2011

Nelson Street robbery in broad daylight!To our knowledge, none of the actors involved in criminal activity caught on the CCTV footage provided by the state and published this week by this newspaper had active matters before the courts. Quite the contrary. It was our belief that some of the individuals who appeared on the screens may have been men from Nelson Street who were freed of the charge that they were gang members after the DPP advised the Chief Magistrate that the State had insufficient evidence against them. Once there is no matter before the court, we are free to publish the footage, the only risk being that of defamation, a matter for the civil, not criminal courts and thus no concern of the DPP.
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Squandering Emergency Gains

By Raffique Shah
September 18, 2011

Raffique ShahMANY moons ago—I must have been age 15, still attending college—a simple incident exposed me to the abuse of power, authority, uniform, maybe a combination of all these, by certain police officers. We Form Four or Five boys, as we awaited the bus to take us to our home districts, used to lime in a concrete drain (it was clean and offered some shade) that we had christened “Canal Park”.
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Fulfilling Prophecy

By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
September 14, 2011

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeWilliam Hardin Burnley was the biggest slave holder in Trinidad and Tobago. In 1813 Sir Ralph Woodford arrived in the island as the governor. One of his first tasks was to secure sufficient laborers for the island, Trinidad being notorious for not having sufficient laborers to till its soil. One year after he arrived he asked each member of his Board of Council to come up with suggestions to induce laborers to settle in the country.
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21 MEN FREED

By Alexander Bruzual
September 13, 2011 – newsday.co.tt

State of EmergencyIt was an exuberant moment in the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Eighth Court yesterday morning when charges against 21 men accused of being gang members were dismissed by Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar.

The courtroom erupted in loud cheering, clapping, and words of thanks to both God and the Chief Magistrate after it was announced that the 21 men were free to go.
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Emergency Notes

By Raffique Shah
September 11, 2011

Raffique ShahTHE best crime-fighting measures emerging from the Emergency thus far are the medium-term initiatives Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar announced when she wound up the motion that saw Parliament extend the State of Emergency for three months. The Selwyn Ryan committee that will look at curbing criminality, the case-flow-management team of attorneys, the proposed amnesty for minor offences and the possible release from prison of convicts who no longer pose a threat to society, if aggressively pursued, would yield more benefits to the society than the steep drop in crimes during the Emergency.
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Killers do not respect race

Newsday
September 07, 2011

State of EmergencyNewsday today continues an edited version of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s contribution to the debate on the motion to extend the state of emergency for three months in Parliament on Sunday. The motion was passed with 29 Government MPs voting for the extension and with ten votes against by the Opposition MPs.
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