Tag Archives: Abuse

corruption, General T&T

Mandate to lock up

By Raffique Shah
April 29, 2024

Raffique ShahSo that readers may get an idea of the sheer size of the monster that is corruption, of how easily the high and mighty as well as the poor and powerless are caught in its web, I cite one of the oldest jokes in parliamentary lore.

Lady Astor, the first woman to sit in the British parliament, was once jokingly propositioned by a drunk Winston Churchill when he asked her: will you go to bed with me for 50 pounds? She did not respond curtly; instead she hesitated, but before she could sidestep the trap Churchill was about to spring on her, he asked: will you go to bed with me for eight pounds? To which she angrily responded: what do you think I am? He replied: we already know the answer to that, we are just trying to fix a price.
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General T&T, International, Israel, Palestine, USA

A quagmire of death and despair

By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
November 14, 2023

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeLast Sunday, several local groups — including the Concerned Muslims of T&T, the Joint Trade Union Movement, the Movement for Social Justice, the Emancipation Support Committee and the Non-Governmental Organisations of T&T for the Advancement of Women — called upon the Government to cut diplomatic relations with Israel for its savage attack upon the Palestinian people.
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General T&T, Racism Watch

Splitting Hairs

By Raffique Shah
July 10, 2023

Raffique ShahIt did not surprise me when last week senior officials at the Ministry of Education, in teachers’ and parents’ organisations, as well as the best entertainers we have learnt to accept because they are plentiful, colorful and cheap-man on the street—were chiming away on an issue I had no idea existed, far less worthy of comment. But the controversy that erupted when Trinity College at Moka Invoked their rule on specific hairstyles students, graduating students especially, were not allowed to sport at the graduation ceremony, was the proverbial— storm in a calabash. Lawyers, other professionals, anyone connected with education or, inevitably, politics blew the issue wholly out of proportion.
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General T&T, International, Police, Racism Watch, USA

Living While Black in America

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By Dr Kwame Nantambu
June 08, 2023

Dr. Kwame NantambuThe violent, brutal beating/murder of the 29-year-old black man Tyre Nichols on January 7, 2023 by five black Memphis police officers immediately pushes to the fore the inherent, insecure and dangerous existence of black life in America today.

Indeed, there was a time when blacks were considered “three-fifths of a person”, but it seems that that evaluation has now totally been relegated to zero.
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Complaints, corruption, Crime in T&T, General T&T, Law, Money Laundering, Politics

MASSIVE CORRUPTION

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20 years later: Piarco airport commission of enquiry report finally unwrapped…

By Ria Taitt
May 28, 2023 – trinidadexpress.com

Basdeo PandayIt has remained under wraps for two decades.

The Sunday Express has however obtained a copy of the report of the commission of enquiry into the Piarco Airport Development Project, a subject which has poi­soned the political bloodstream of Trinidad and Tobago with allegations of corruption on a grand scale and counter-­allegations of political witch-hunting.
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corruption, General T&T, Politics

Is What We Go Put

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By Raffique Shah
May 15, 2023

Raffique ShahWhile members of parliament, on both sides of the divide debated, argued, and almost came to blows over a relatively minor issue— in this case, the supplementary appropriation bill— they could not see the herd of elephants in the House, not one in a room, set to stampede demanding an equitable place on Earth. I watched with consternation as MPs got close to blows over the Finance Minister’s proposal to increase expenditure for fiscal 2023, I thought: These people must be mad.
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Crime in T&T, General T&T

Armed for war

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By Raffique Shah
November 07, 2022

Raffique ShahNot surprisingly, the murder rate in this country, as it soars past anything we have ever experienced, is seen as the number one issue impacting the populace, the electorate, based partly on people’s genuine fear of having to face unimaginable violence, maybe death, riding not a pale horse, but actually some stolen Nissan Sunny, its occupants armed with heavy fire power, ready to rob or kill some law-abiding citizen who worked hard for the few dollars he or she has.
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Africa, General T&T, Passed on

Rituals of grief

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By Dr Selwyn R. Cudjoe
September 26, 2022

“The glories of our blood and state, Are shadows, not substantial things; There is no armour against fate, Death lays his icy hands on kings. Sceptre and crown must tumble down, And, in the dust, be equal made with the poor crooked scythe and spade.”

—James Shirley

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeI didn’t expect to spend so much time looking at the funeral of Elizabeth II. I was intrigued by the spectacle made of death (a display put on for its visual effect and impact) and the ritual of grief (a solemn ceremony performed according to a prescribed order) that was enacted before millions of people.

It took 20 years of planning to stage this event. It was the responsibility of Edward Fitzalan-Howard, who inherited the role of Earl Marshal of England when his father died in 2002. He “descended from the same family that has planned royal funerals and coronations since 1672”. He takes his responsibility seriously. He did not earn a cent for the tireless work he did for the Queen’s funeral.
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General T&T, Politics, Schools, Violence

Prime Minister on school violence

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We can’t beat our way out of it

By Jensen La Vende
April 21, 2022 – newsday.co.tt

PM Dr Keith RowleyCORPORAL PUNISHMENT will not be the solution for school violence the Prime Minister said on Thursday as he responded to number of videos of school children fighting.

Speaking with the media at the Piarco International Airport on Thursday, Dr Rowley said a better approach must be used.

“There is no intention to beat our way out of this,” Rowley said when asked if the re-introduction of corporal punishment would be used to curb school violence.
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