Losing a job affects family life, social interactions and physical and mental health with a spiral effect on all parts of life, says secretary of the Psychiatric Association of T&T Varma Deyalsingh.

In an interview with the Sunday Guardian last week, Deyalsingh described losing a job as one of the most stressful life experiences a person could face.

“It rocks the structure of your life and creates a vacuum and your whole sense of purpose leaves. You wake up and feel rudderless. It not only affects you, but also your family and children,” Deyalsingh said.

He said people who were new to unemployment sometimes experienced a loss of identity, self-esteem, self-confidence and an inability to fit in with the social network they have at home.

“They lose their sense of security and experience a fear of poverty and have to change their whole daily routine.”

Deyalsingh, who sees unemployed people go through harsh psychological changes, recommended that unions set up a programme to offer counselling for people who have lost jobs.

“Unions should have some mechanism to track them and provide counselling and form a social network. The union may have to come into play to give support at least up to a year. These people are paying union dues and this is something I think they need.”

He said in some cases, the companies who dismiss the employees could also implement some type of psychological counselling.

“The advantage of the union is that you have the peers. If they need further counselling there are clinics available,” he said.

Deyalsingh said many people did not know there was an outlet for them in terms of mental health clinics and social relief from the state.

The second quarter 2016 report from the Central Statistical Office (CSO) stated that the labour force had decreased by 16,200 people since 2015.

A national retrenchment register, launched by the Ministry of Labour in March 2016, has seen 587 people sign up, mainly from the manufacturing sector and the oil and gas sector.

In the coming weeks, the Sunday Guardian will interview and talk to people who have lost their jobs over the last two years mainly due to the economic downturn.

Some have found new employment, some have opened businesses, while others have learned new skills, but many remain unemployed.

OAS worker’s tribulation

For 33-year-old Hosein Mohammed and the approximately 900 OAS Construtora workers retrenched in April last year, the past 12-months have been fraught with financial frustration.

Mohammed, who was a shop steward at the company, approximates that around 50 per cent of the workers were still unemployed.

He said he himself had only been able to secure a job in February as a heavy equipment operator at a new company.

He recalled the difficulty of taking care of his family of four during the time he was unemployed.

“The lack of income in my personal situation brought me to a stage in my loan where the bank sent it to the collections agency.

“I had to cut the utilities from my home such as electricity and I cut the cable because I wasn’t employed and could not pay my bills,” Mohammed, who did not want to be photographed, said in an interview.

He said sending his two daughters to school everyday became a burden.

“Our priority was to put food on the table and ensure that our girls go to school.”

He recalled times of emotional upheaval when he couldn’t afford to purchase birthday or Christmas gifts for his daughters, aged four and seven.

“How my kids are, once you perform good in school and are obedient, they expect something for birthday and Christmas, so when that time came and we couldn’t give them anything, emotionally it was really difficult.”

He said his children understood, to an extent, that things had changed and he continued to support them when he got one-day or two-day jobs, stretching the pay to provide for his family for as long as possible.

“I got medical issues, with my blood pressure fluctuating a lot. Last year I realised I had kidney stones and that threw us back.”

Now, Mohammed has a job, but he still feels the pain for his colleagues who went through and are still going through financial constraints.

He said his best advice to anyone in the current economic and job climate is to save enough money to make it through a year of unemployment.

“While the finances are running we need to put something to keep us afloat for a year,” he said.

The OAS workers had anticipated that they would get severance and other benefits within six months. But even after discussions with the Government they are still waiting.

He said if the former workers had received their severance money as they should have at the time, they would have been able to put some aside “because we don’t know the current state of the economy.”

“We have not even gotten a hint to know if Government will help with payments,” he said.

The Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU), which represents the workers, currently has a matter in the industrial court with OAS for outstanding salaries for employees, payment for 45 days retrenchment notice, unused vacation, severance benefits and fringe benefits.

In the interim, the workers who laboured to build the Solomon Hochoy Highway extension under the former government continue to wait.

Efforts to contact Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus were unsuccessful, as she did not respond to calls to her cell phone and did not return messages.

OAS FIRED

In June 2016, the Brazilian firm Construtora OAS was fired from the Solomon Hochoy Highway extension project to Point Fortin after the project had stalled.

The company was informed of its termination in a letter from Nidco.

This followed the company’s decision to lay off 860 workers in March that year.

Following the termination, workers, through the OWTU, lobbied for Government to assist in the payment of outstanding monies from the firm.

When we were invited to visit Canari Bay as part of our local tourism series, the Sunday Guardian team did not imagine we would find a modern day recluse living along the coastline.

But that’s exactly what we found when we met Canari’s “landlord”, Sydney Roberts, who has lived alone on the bay for the past 25 years.

He stays in touch with society via a wireless postpaid phone, although to get service he needs to walk about five minutes away from his wooden two-storey house, further up the hillside.

The secluded bay is located along the coastline between Moruga and Guayaguayare and can be reached either by hiking through the forest or by boat. The hike is said to take around two hours, but by boat the journey is just 20 minutes. The boat sets off at the Moruga Fishing Facility, a stone’s throw away from the Moruga Police Station. To get to the facility, you have to drive until the end of the Moruga Road.

Our team was taken by captain Brian Julien and Casiel Hankey and councillor for the area Joseph Lorant accompanied us.

On the way to Canari, Julien pointed out the “Green Grass”, a mountain covered in shockingly bright green grass, which he said fishermen use as a marker while out fishing.

Shouting to be heard over the roar of the boat’s diesel engine, Julien said the grass marks an area where fish are plentiful.

When Hankey anchored the boat at Canari Point around noon, the tide was low, allowing Julien to guide the boat almost onto the shore.

The shoreline is about two miles long, but as we were still a bit shaken from the trip we decided to visit the landlord first.

A short walk up an incline brought us to Roberts’ house, where we were allowed to take in the view of the beach front from his front porch and given tall glasses of cool rain water to drink.

Originally from La Lune, Moruga, Roberts decided to make a life for himself on the bay as he said there was no room for his agriculture to flourish in La Lune. He cultivates over 10 acres of land with coconut, pommecythere, banana, plantain, watermelon and tomato crops.

Fishermen and hunters frequent the house and Roberts keeps an extra mattress lying around in case he gets an overnight visitor. He makes his own coconut oil and collects rain water to drink. Anything else he needs can be brought to him by fishermen. He says whenever he reaps any crop he would call a fisherman to take him and his produce to the Moruga Fishing facility. From there, he would usually hire a car to take him to various market places to sell his produce.

He is a quiet, well spoken person and quite generous with the coconuts from his towering trees.

When we had cooled off, we ventured back down to the beach front. If you walk along the coastline for a little over a mile, you will come to a marble statue of the Virgin Mary erected on some rocks by the Moruga “Prince”, Eric Lewis.

Other than the occasional piece of driftwood, the shore is clean. There are few signs of human activity and the only sounds are the waves cr ashing against the shoreline.

Our captain, Julien, said during the holiday weekends residents of Moruga often camp overnight on the coastline, cooking, bathing and relaxing the weekend away.

It is also an ideal place for fishing and the warm, bubbling waters beckon you to take a dip. If you want a beach lime with a difference, then Canari Bay is the place for you.

You can contact Julien at 332- 1253 for safe transport and Roberts will be more than happy to welcome you to the bay.

And if there is a natural site in your community that you would like to see featured here, send an email to sharlene.rampersad@ guardian.co.tt or give me a call at 225-4465 ext 6104.

A Penal couple was left with a burden yesterday after their house was destroyed by fire.

A report stated that around 7 am, Safiyah Gibson-Morel was at her Scott’s Road home with her husband, Jason Morel, when she woke up and smelled smoke. The two quickly left the house and the Siparia Fire Station and Penal police were contacted.

Cpl Harripersad, PC Khallie and PC Ratool visited the scene and interviewed the victims. Preliminary reports suggested that the fire may have started due to an electrical problem. Police are yet to estimate the cost of the damage.

When the T&T Guardian visited yesterday no one was at home and neighbours said they had gone to stay with relatives.

Fire-fighters were in the village yesterday afternoon as there were several bush fires.

As a construction crew continued working to repair a collapsed portion of the Southern Main Road at South Oropouche yesterday a third sinkhole developed, further delaying the reopening of the road.
But Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan visited the site yesterday and said repairs should have been finished by last night.
The affected part of the Southern Main Road, near St Mary’s Junction, is expected to form part of the Solomon Hochoy Highway Extension Project. Because work was halted by the former contractor, Construtora OAS, it meant that the ends of the plastic culvert under the road were left exposed. On Thursday, a bush fire caused damage to the ends of the culverts, causing the structure to weaken and resulting in the As a construction crew continued working to repair a collapsed portion of the Southern Main Road at South Oropouche yesterday a third sinkhole developed, further delaying the reopening of the road.

But Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan visited the site yesterday and said repairs should have been finished by last night.

The affected part of the Southern Main Road, near St Mary’s Junction, is expected to form part of the Solomon Hochoy Highway Extension Project. Because work was halted by the former contractor, Construtora OAS, it meant that the ends of the plastic culvert under the road were left exposed. On Thursday, a bush fire caused damage to the ends of the culverts, causing the structure to weaken and resulting in the collapse of the road. As one culvert was being replaced yesterday, another part of the road collapsed approximately 50 metres away.

Sinanan defended the use of the plastic culverts, saying they were proven to work and what was missing was a concrete casing to protect the ends. However, he said his advice was that the ministry reassess that kind of engineering for future projects.

“Because it is unfinished work, they just left it like that and a bush fire passed, caught the ends and travelled to the centre of the roadway. What they are doing right now is getting the road passable. NIDCO will continue an exercise to finish all the ends moving forward,” Sinanan said.

He said the period for submitting tenders for the completion of that section of the highway project was closed and bids are now being evaluated. He said a contract will be awarded in May and work will restart at the end of that month. The contract will be for the completion of the segment from La Romaine to South Oropouche, which has been partially opened.

Fyzabad MP Dr Lackram Bodoe said the sinkholes were caused by the abandonment of the project. Bodoe said although the collapse was unforeseen, it was also very unfortunate. After meeting with Sinanan on site, he said he got an assurance that the work would be completed speedily, but the biggest concern remained the completion of the highway project.collapse of the road. As one culvert was being replaced yesterday, another part of the road collapsed approximately 50 metres away.
Sinanan defended the use of the plastic culverts, saying they were proven to work and what was missing was a concrete casing to protect the ends. However, he said his advice was that the ministry reassess that kind of engineering for future projects.
“Because it is unfinished work, they just left it like that and a bush fire passed, caught the ends and travelled to the centre of the roadway. What they are doing right now is getting the road passable. NIDCO will continue an exercise to finish all the ends moving forward,” Sinanan said.
He said the period for submitting tenders for the completion of that section of the highway project was closed and bids are now being evaluated. He said a contract will be awarded in May and work will restart at the end of that month. The contract will be for the completion of the segment from La Romaine to South Oropouche, which has been partially opened.
Fyzabad MP Dr Lackram Bodoe said the sinkholes were caused by the abandonment of the project. Bodoe said although the collapse was unforeseen, it was also very unfortunate. After meeting with Sinanan on site, he said he got an assurance that the work would be completed speedily, but the biggest concern remained the completion of the highway project.

President Carmona, in his Easter message yesterday, made an impassioned call for sacrifice, regeneration and renewal in individuals and society, saying: “Easter empowers us to exhibit real, genuine compassion and kindness regardless of what our personal circumstances are.”

He spoke of the lessons from the Christian figure of Jesus Christ: “Jesus Christ stood his ground in the face of an unrelenting adversary in the form of social injustice, religious persecution, jealousy, envy and hate. His spirituality was grounded in affirmative action and faith in the resolute power of mercy and forgiveness.” He said Christ’s endurance of suffering should inspire all people to “seek salvation through prayer, affirmative action and good deeds.”

President Carmona spoke of the sanctity of all life, stating: “The life of the man with riches and the vagrant on the street are equal in the eyes of God. We must therefore not marginalise persons in challenging communities nor trivialise the senseless demise of many in those communities... We must not be flippant about the lives and needs of the downtrodden.”

He spoke against hypocrisy, stating: “We must not say that we care when we do not, we must not say that we feel and do not, we must not say we are concerned and show neither mercy, compassion nor forgiveness. Easter is about enforcing genuine humanity in our lives.”

“The Holy Cross is not a ‘Bling’,” he said, speaking of Christianity as not a being a matter of mere surface style that a person adopts, but rather a matter of a lived practice of showing love to people through actions, words and deeds.

President Carmona said T&T needs “service leadership rather than power leadership....listeners that hear and talkers that act and perform.”

He spoke of the unifying, divine spirituality present in T&T’s annual La Divina Pastora observances in Siparia, where the divine shepherdess/divine mother is worshipped by Hindus, Christians and others, in an experience of “the tangible presence of the living God.” Referring to the pain and hurt in the land, he asked whether we could invoke this same unifying, healing energy to heal ourselves beyond Easter.

Referring to the Christian traditions of Lent, prayer, fasting and abstinence preceding Easter, Carmona said Easter calls upon people as Christians and as a nation to “celebrate renewed life, with new positives and great acts of goodness.” He wished all Christians and the republic of T&T a happy, holy and blessed Easter.

In an Easter message in which he compared T&T to Golgotha, the place of Jesus’ crucifixion, former independent senator Rev Daniel Teelucksingh said just as Christ rose from the dead, so should citizens rise and reclaim this country.

In his sermon at the Susamachar Presbyterian Church, San Fernando, Teelucksingh said T&T was just as bloodstained as Golgotha, where cruelty and violence plagued the people.

“Blood stained Golgotha was the place of Jesus’ crucifixion and it represents the cruel side of life. The worst of human wickedness, sin and pain is in the Golgotha story.

“Golgotha and the cross hold messages of distress, disappointment, discouragement, disaster and death. If there is a blood stained Golgotha and you do not know that there is a blood stained Trinidad and Tobago, you are out of touch.

“In blood stained Trinidad and Tobago, it is no different. By Holy Thursday this week we counted 151 murders. In the last 16 months in this country, there were 613 murders. Some of them were so violent and so brutal, some of them were just as barbaric as the Roman crucifixions,” Teelucksingh said.

He further warned that with several T&T national joining ISIS, global extremism was reaching T&T. Since Holy Thursday, he said several churches have been attacked and Christians killed because of their belief. As part of the global community, he said T&T is exposed to influences that are both “good, bad and ugly.” He said in T&T, places of worship are being desecrated and there needs to be respected for other religions.

“Let me tell you this, Trinidadians love to follow fashion. We are copy cats and radicalism is a very real force globally and we in Trinidad and Tobago need to be watchful. So far we have good exemplars of religious harmony and we need to preserve that on this Sunday morning as we identify with our brothers and sisters in the Coptic Church of Egypt,” Teelucksingh said.

Laughter filled the dilapidated home of the Baash family at Height of Guanapo, Arima, on Good Friday as non-profit organisation Foundations 141 delivered a van load of food stuff, clothes, bottled water, pillows, towels, bedsheets and books to the destitute family.

An emotional Nicolette Moses, mother of five-year-old Khadijah Baash said: “Christmas came early for us. It came on Good Friday, a day when Christians commemorate the suffering and death of Jesus Christ.

“Jesus died on this day, but a new beginning has begun in our lives. God has opened up new doors for us. When God can’t come he would send his angels. And that is what he did here today.”

Last Monday, the family’s plight was highlighted in the T&T Guardian. This attracted an outpouring of support on social media.

Although facing an upward struggle, little Khadijah managed to top her pre-school class in Mathematics and reading last term.

She uses a kerosene lamp to do homework in the family’s roofless home which does not have pipe-borne water or other basic furnishings.

Moses, who was herself deprived of an education, wants to ensure that her eldest daughter completes school.

Several charitable organisations and individuals, including Habitat for Humanity and former attorney general Anand Ramlogan, have offered to help the family.

Among those who has already visited the family is Moses was Varma Ramdhan, a member of Foundations 141, a group headed by Stefan Jugmohan.

The group has written to the Agriculture Ministry asking for Moses to be granted a certificate of comfort (CoC) since the agricultural land she has been occupying for the past eight years belongs to the State.

They also wrote to the Ministry of Education asked for Khadijah to be placed in a primary school in September. Once this is done, Ramdhan said, the group will provide her with all her school supplies and books.

“We can’t move forward unless we get the necessary approvals from these two entities,” Ramdhan said .

Four members of Foundations 141 visited the Baash family to hand over boxes and bags of items donated by the public.

The organisation also took the opportunity to assess the family’s living conditions.

Having examined the structure, Foundations 141 realised it was not structurally sound.

“We spoke to a T&TEC official who indicated that if the integrity of the house is weak they would not supply electricity connection. We would have to build a ten by ten home, a concrete structure at least for the family.

“We are willing to do so, but we still need to obtain a CoC before we undertake any work,” Ramdhan said.

He said the group was inspired by Khadijah’s drive to learn and obtain an education despite living in deplorable conditions.

“We will go all out to help her because we know that education is the key to eradicating poverty,” Ramdhan said.

Moses, 24, a mother of four thanked those who offered her family a helping hand.

“Just hearing the laughter and seeing the joy in my children’s faces lifted my spirits. There are still caring and kind people out there. I never expected this overwhelming support,” she said.

Three people arrested last week for alleged possession of electronic card skimming devices will appear in court tomorrow.

Charles were laid against Akeil Sullivan and Jenna John, of Embaccadere, San Fernando, and Melissa Carrington, of Lady Hailes Avenue, by Fraud Squad officers.

Their arrests followed months of investigations into the skimming of bankcards. Two electronic skimmers and a sophisticated card maker were seized. Police said a fourth person is expected to be charged soon.

Fraud Squad officers have in recent times arrested and charged seven people from Bolivia, Bulgaria, Spain, UK and the Dominican Republic. They are believed to be part of an alleged international card skimming racket.   

A daily-paid worker at the Chaguaramas Development Authority (CDA) who was serving time in jail continued to be recorded as present for work and on the payroll. The situation was identified in July last year. Sources said the man’s colleagues knew he was incarcerated yet they continued to mark him present and a salary was paid.

That is just one example of irregularities affecting the state agency adding to its massive $117 million debt.

Another claim is that funds from the Public Sector Investment Programme were being used to pay salaries, according to a preliminary audit.

In March, Government announced that it would conduct a manpower audit into the CDA starting this month. This comes almost one year after line minister Camille Robinson-Regis received two audits—one internal and one financial—into the CDA’s operations.

The cash-strapped CDA’s debt includes non-payment to hundreds of companies, private citizens, suppliers, restaurants and caterers. The CDA is also owing close to $10 million in lawyer fees, has a $60,000 food bill to clear and a pension liability of more than $50 million.

The T&T Guardian was told that the CDA, “has no money” and its revenue has reportedly been on the decline for the last 18 months. Several projects have been stalled.

“CDA income cannot cover expenses of salaries alone, much less pay suppliers,” an employee said.

A source told the T&T Guardian: “The CDA is operating on a deficit and the current board and management are struggling to meet monthly expenses.”

One of its tenants, Royal Bank, whose rent was close to $36,000, is set to move out of Chaguaramas this month. Earlier this year, the bank announced that it was going to reduce its staff. The changes are in keeping with the bank’s strategic plan, which included merging the operations at its Chaguaramas and Westmoorings branches.

Sources within the CDA said there were employees who were misfits for many positions as they lacked qualifications and “did absolutely nothing all day.”

“People are receiving salaries and there is no documentation. Almost all the monthly positions fall into that category,” the source said.

“The CDA has no work for some of the positions.”

Several weeks ago, CDA chairman Gupte Lutchmedial said the authority’s debt was more $100 million and that the CDA is grappling with mismanagement and misuse of public funds.

Chaguaramas is a 14,500-acre peninsula located on the north-western part of the island. The CDA governs the area and all of its investments.

No approval for restructure

A contention over the past few weeks has been a restructuring exercise which got the attention of president of the Public Services Association (PSA) Watson Duke.

A senior officer in the CDA, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed the process was illegal.

“According to the CDA’s organisational structure as stated in the Draft Estimates, these (positions) no longer exist in the CDA but it is still printed in the Draft Estimates. That is proof that the structure has not changed officially.

“There was no approval to change it, so if you check here, these are the salaries still pegged to ranges. Therein lies that the organisation restructuring is illegal. We did not have the requisite approval. This alone will prove that. If we had gone through the CPO for approval, this would have changed for fiscal 2017.”

Duke said it was unbelievable that employees in the CDA could be paid new salaries for which there was no approval. He said the CDA salaries came from State funds.

Duke said the CDA is run by a board and that no minister could pay the CDA money.

“It has to be done through a particular channel. It must first be approved by the Board of Directors, then they must give the CEO the go ahead and the CEO must instruct the human resource department to go ahead and pay, so if CDA workers are paid money, it must have been money that came through the right channels.”

He said while the CPO did play a role in the inter-ministerial committee, the committee was always headed by the Finance Minister.

CDA chairman responds

Lutchmedial, when contacted did not deny some of the claims but said an audit is being done by Charles Bobb-Semple of Gloria Eastman and Associates.

Asked what was the way forward for the CDA to boost revenue, he said: “We are on a cost-cutting exercise and we are looking at ways of increasing revenue. We have to streamline the organisation and cut off the wastage.”

Trinidad is shrinking and changing as it becomes increasingly vulnerable to storms, flooding and other natural disasters which cause coastal erosion and the retreating of the shoreline.

In Columbus Bay, in West Trinidad, the coastline has retreated by 150 metres since 1994, losing 6.5 hectares of land.

In the western part of Guayaguayare, the shoreline retreats annually by approximately one metre per year.

In Cocoa Bay, north of Manzanilla, the retreat is slightly more accelerated at 1.45 metres annually.

“The country is shrinking in some parts but it might be expanding in others, but the number of areas where it is shrinking is a lot more than the areas where it is expanding,” said Michele Lemay, Integrated Coastal Zone Management Specialist at the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB).

Lemay has spent much of the past two decades in the region, doing research on coastal erosion and providing expertise on the subject.

In an interview at the IDB office in Port-of-Spain, Lemay said at a national level, in the last decade, from 2005 to 2015, there had been a five-fold increase in Trinidad of storm events, erosion and flooding when compared to the decade prior.

She said this also coincided with an increase in coastal erosion.

“T&T is becoming more vulnerable and when you think about the cost of this in terms of getting to work, taking kids to school, damages to property and household, you see the more obvious effects,” she said.

“It happened in Matelot and Grand Riviere, before that it happened in Manzanilla and Mayaro. We found that the frequency of erosion and flooding in the coastal zone has increased considerably, even in Tobago.

“Sea level rise is going to worsen things and speed it up but we do know that up to the year 2100 there is a potential of 1 metre increase for sea level rise but I think in T&T there is more research needed to bring down the global models and come up with local numbers.”

Lemay said the Caribbean was more vulnerable than other places because countries are on the hurricane track or have more frequent storms.

“Caribbean islands are very densely populated so there are a lot of infrastructure along the coast. The more you build your shoreline, the more you create circumstances where you can have coastal erosion.”

She said the IADB had made recommendations for government to focus on priority areas for mitigating measures.

The areas identified were Speyside in Tobago, Mayaro, Guayaguayare area, Cocos Bay and San Souci as they are worse affected in the sense that when events happen, flooding or erosion they affect communities which are isolated.

“The idea is to promote people to stay at least 50 metres away from the shoreline for construction. Sometimes you have private ownership of land right up to the beach. You can tell people, this is your private property but do not build hard structures too close to the ocean.”

Lemay said T&T already had an advantage over other countries in the region in terms of research from the Institute of Marine Affairs (IMA) and installation of a Coastal Protection Unit under the Ministry of Works in 2014.

“What is needed is much closer monitoring of the shoreline. You can measure how it retreats, in some cases it moves forward or becomes more steep which is a clear sign of erosion.

“Our shorelines in the Caribbean are very vulnerable to storm events, flooding and erosion and traditionally the solution has been to build emergency structures when houses start losing their land and things like that. An integrated approach combines technically advanced solutions with regulatory measures and science.

“The work of the IMA and coastal protection unit is going in that direction.”

She said other measures needed to take place such as involving residents of affected communities in solutions like planting mangroves across the shore.

Marissa Nelson, who has been warded at the High Dependency Ward at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope for the past five months for weight loss treatment, is now battling health complications and depression. This was revealed by her 68-year-old mother, Sylvia Nelson.

Last September, Marissa, 32, who at her heaviest weighed 600 pounds, was featured in the T&T Guardian when she appealed for help to deal with her morbid obesity. At the time she was in need of specialist medical care, urgent medication and a 24-hour caregiver.

Marissa suffers with lymphoedema, which left her limbs enormously swollen. She packed on the pounds after taking a cocktail of tablets to deal with her medical condition which left her confined to her bed for four years.

Touched by Marissa’s plight, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh offered medical help and provided a team of specialists to help with a weight loss programme.

She was removed from her home last November and taken to the hospital where she began intense treatment.

Last Christmas, Deyalsingh paid a surprise visit to Marissa at hospital. She said then that it was her best Christmas ever as she had lost some weight, was undergoing physiotherapy and had been put on a low carbohydrate, low fat, high protein diet.

However, according to her mother, she has been facing some challenges since undergoing two surgical procedures in recent weeks

Nelson told the T&T Guardian: “One was a gastric bypass surgery and the other was to remove the oversized growths on her legs which were hindering her from walking.”

Nelson said after the gastric bypass, Marissa began vomiting.

“Now doctors saying that they might have to go back in again because she still vomiting. She can’t eat anything solid. She does only drink the gravy from the soup they giving her.”

Nelson said the doctors believe something was wrong.

“They put some dye in her and they see somewhere was blocking but when they went in they say they not seeing the blockage. The doctor say she not supposed to be vomiting so I don’t know what wrong.”

Nelson, who uses a wheelchair, is unable to visit Marissa at hospital but speaks with her daughter by phone every day.

She said Marissa’s condition was further complicated when she fell six days ago.

“They were trying to get her to stand up to give her therapy and she fell on all her weight,” she said.

On Friday, the stitches in Marissa’s leg snapped.

“When I spoke to her this morning she said she was in a lot of pain,” she said.

Nelson said Marissa’s health has been worrying her.

“I glad in a sense they helping she, but when I hear she fall and the stitches burst I get worried. I does be stressed out because I find she suffer so much.

“When she think she going there to feel much better she has to go through all these things,” Nelson said.

“She keep saying that she missing we. It’s over five months she in the hospital. Yes, I think she is depressed. If it was me I would have been depressed too because that is not an easy thing to go through.”

Last Tuesday, members of the T&T Defence Force and Toco/ Sangre Grande MP Glenda Jennings-Smith completed work on a remodelled bedroom for Marissa.

Nelson said she has no idea when Marissa would come home to enjoy her new and spacious room.

“That is one question I can’t answer. The way she lost the weight so fast she has too much flab on the arms which they still have to remove, so she would not be home in a hurry.”

Yesterday, Deyalsingh said he could not give out information on any patient, including Marissa, and advised that we speak to her doctors.

Deyalsingh did not name Marissa’s doctors.

Residents and commuters affected by the temporary traffic disruptions along the South Trunk Road, South Oropouche since Thursday have been assured immediate relief by Works Minister Rohan Sinanan.

Sinanan gave the assurance as he toured the affected area with ministry and Nidco officials.

“What happened is that a bush fire caused some damage to the underground pipes. Because the pipes were plastic it affected the pipes and caused the entire roadway to sink,” he said

Sinanan said as a precautionary measure the entire pipeline infrastructure will be replaced.

The minister and his team also visited the Beetham where major

construction works on the southbound section of the culverts has started. The work is due be completed by tomorrow and lanes re-opened to commuters.

The project, which will run for four weekends, will see the replacement of two aged culverts running across the Beetham Highway, and will assist with alleviating flooding in the long run.

“This will definitely help with the flow of water because if you look at what is coming out you will see that it has been blocked for years.

“Five years ago it was realized that the culvert started to fail and the water wasn’t running in it and I think this could be part of the problem why we have the water on the Bus Route side that backs up. We’re hoping to get a great ease with some of the flooding once this project is finished,” Sinanan said.

In the last stop of his impromptu visits, the minister visited the Port of Port of Spain where he witnessed first-hand a delay with the 4 pm sailing with the Fferry being loaded at minutes past 6 pm.

Teens Shania Ali and Semoy Ramdhanie who were reported missing last week are safely back home with their families.

In connection with the disappearance of Ramdhanie, 13, a 21 year-old man from Barrackporeis currently assisting police with their investigation. He was due to be handed over to the Child Protection Unit yesterday.

On April 9, Ramdhanie left her Freeport home and when she failed to return home hours later, her mother, Indira Ramdhanie, filed a missing persons’ report at the Gran Couva Police Station.

Investigators got a lead and found her at a house in Barrackpore on Thursday. On January 28, Ramdhanie also went missing, but returned home weeks later.

Ali, 16, of San Fernando, left home around 7.25 pm last Wednesday. By 9.45 pm, her aunt Natasha Williams reported her missing to San Fernando police. She returned the following day and told police that she had been with relatives in Sangre Grande. 

Solid Waste Management Company (SWMCOL) workers will soon collect their back pay.

Last week the workers staged protests over unsafe working conditions at the Beetham Landull, as well as ovee non-payment of the balance of their back pay. There were similar protests at the Forres Park and Guanapo Landfills.

President of the Industrial General and Sanita0.*ion Workers Union (IGSWU) Robert Benacia said yesterday he had been told the workers will be paid.

“The ministry called and notified SWMCOL that they have a cheque available for the back pay so they could start to distribute the money to the workers,” he told the T&T Guardian.

Benacia said he will continue to calls for a site visit by Public Utilities Minister Fitzgerald Hinds to see conditions at the landfill.

“There was four days of protest and on Thursday the workers relaxed because nobody was enthusiastic about working,” he said.

“While I am happy for the workers there is continued disrespect to the union and the workers. We not tolerating that, especially for the risk we taking. If we didn’t protest we would not get that money.”

Benacia said health and safety remain a serious concern that needs to be addressed. He said the workers face hazardous conditions with waste material, air pollution and other concerns.

Hinds declined comment on the issues raised by the union when contacted yesterday.

Bloodied as a result of cuts to her body made by the blade of a knife and weakened by repeated strangulation, she could fight no more.

On realising what might be her demise, she mustered the strength in that moment to look at her attacker, who was about to rape her and asked: “If you are going to do this to me, can you at least use a condom?”

This was her point of escape.

Kit Evans-Ford is a victim and survivor of a vicious and violent crime that almost took her life in 2008 while working in the Eastern Caribbean.

The 32-year-old mother of two, author, retreat leader and teacher shared her testimony with the large gathering of families, friends and concerned citizens at the Peace Rally and Concert Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain, yesterday.

The event was held to mark the culmination of 40 hours of prayer followed by 40 days of action, which was led by the Non Violence Begins With Me Movement to restore peace to the land of T&T.

At the event, which was endorsed by Guardian Media Ltd, Evans-Ford, the feature speaker from the US, gave a detailed description of the horrific event that, for some time, left her with a post-traumatic stress disorder.

But more than her emotional recollection, her bigger story is that she overcame and her attacker is now serving a 46-year prison sentence.

Her message yesterday centered on non-violence with compassion being the main ingredient.

In the voice of former US President Barack Obama, Evan-Ford shouted “Yes We Can” in fact lead lives of non-violence individually and as a country.

“Even when bad things happen in our lives, in our country or the world, even after that, hope peace, love and healing is possible,” she said.

Evans-Ford commended the Living Waters Community, who was responsible for her visit, creating the Non-Violence Begins With Me Movement and organising all the activities promoting non-violence that would have passed over the 40 days which began on March 3.

Borrowing the words of American cultural anthropologist Margaret Mead, she said to the crowd: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world.”

She said in hosting such events and supporting such movements, it shows people understood that non-violence began with each person as an individual.

Evans-Ford said while everyone may not have been a victim of crime, they may have been a victim of something else or may have victimised someone.

She said it was through grace of God, counselling and testifying that her healing came.

In a subsequent interview with the T&T Guardian, Evans-Ford shared a few points on how society could live and breathe non-violence on a daily basis.

“There are different ways in which we react when we are violated or see violence in our community. Often times we avoid it, even making accommodation for it because we feel this is how our community is so there is nothing we can do, we will just have to accept it for the way it is. But that is not true because violence has root causes and the root causes are what we need to get at,” Evans-Ford explained.

She said violence could take on many forms and was not only perpetrated using a weapon. There was violence in the form of molestation, verbal and emotional abuse, abandonment etcetera, she said.

Her reasoning,though, was that in most cases perpetrators of crime were usually themselves victims of crimes.

She said this is why the cycle of violence continued.

She said while the act of violence by someone must not be negated and we must stand firm on justice, at the same time a level of compassion must also be met in order for healing to take place.

“My attacker turned out to have been a serial rapist. When we heard of his story, it was found he was a victim of abuse and abandonment. While this gave him no right to harm others, he may have chosen violence to deal with his pain and to really get back at the person who hurt him, but usually if you can’t, you will hurt others.”

She said her organisation, Overcoming the STORM, aimed to inspire and help others understand that healing was possible.

“I do this by teaching nonviolence, through the performing arts, and counseling. Helping you move from hurt to healing,” she said.

Evans-Ford will be in T&T until Friday. She will be attending several institutions to speak and will be interviewed on GML’s Sky 99.5FM later this week.

Also supporting the event were numerous artistes and performers. Among them were The Love Movement choir, calypsonian Karene Asche, Aaron Duncan, 2Cents Movement, Mungal Patasar and Soul Man to name a few.

Greetings in the name of and in support of non-violence were also brought through various institutions heads and activists for peace.

Veteran mas designer Brian Mac Farlane was the event’s stage coordinator and told the T&T Guardian it is the hope of the movement that the event would become an annual one.

Abount the event

The Non Violence Begins With Me Movement is a group of concerned citizens who came together in late 2016 because of genuine concern about what was going on in the nation.

Rosemarie Scott, committee member, told the T&T Guardian the aim of the movement was not to point fingers at those who were commiting crimes, or at the police and the Government, but to promote that non-violence began with ndividuals and that everyone had a role to play in changing the situation in the country by addressing themselves and seeing how they were contributing to violence.

“So we launched 40 hours of prayer to start followed by 40 days of action,” she said.

Scott said the movement toured the country, even going to Tobago, speaking in schools, hosting vigils and encouraging every denomination and religious organisation to get on board. This did happen with an inter-faith service on March 4 at the Living Waters Community headquarters in Port-of-Spain.

Asked if she felt change would come, Scott said not overnight, as a lot of work had to be done, but things had to start somewhere and she believed it was a good start.

​

Soca artiste Rodney “Benjai” La Blanc is recovering at home following a brutal attack outside a night club in Guyana on Sunday morning.

A media release from Le Blanc’s attorneys Gideon Mac-Master, Keith Scotland and Joel Roper, states that the artiste had just wrapped up his performance at Pulse Entertainment’s soca theme party at the Palm Court Night Club, Georgetown.

Le Blanc was standing in a nearby car park in the company of his manager and other people when the driver of a vehicle in the car park reversed into them. When alerted to the presence of the group, the driver came out and pointed a firearm at them. At that time, the other occupant of the vehicle exited the passenger’s side and hurled a glass object at Le Blanc.

“We say nothing more of the incident at this time, other than to give the perpetrators of this heinous and unprovoked assault the assurance that we have ascertained their identities and will invoke the full legal apparatus against them, including vigorous pursuits of criminal and civil litigation to ensure the justice is served,” the release stated.

Le Blanc was the feature act in the Palm Court Night Club’s Easter Phenomenon party.

Guyanese news site Newsourcegy reported that Le Blanc was struck across the face with a bottle following an altercation with club patrons. He was standing outside the club chatting with a group of fans when a car almost reversed into the group.

The report stated that one of the fans allegedly knocked on the car to let the driver know that he was too close. The driver, a regular at the club known as Imran, got out of the car and began shouting at the group. Le Blanc attempted to quell the situation and the driver threatened him with a firearm. Another occupant then got out of the car and struck him with a bottle across his face with a bottle.

He fell to the ground with blood gushing from deep cuts close to his ear and jaw. He was rushed to hospital where he underwent emergency treatment. It was reported that he received over 20 stitches. Le Blanc filed a report with Guyanese police before leaving the country.

Former transport minister, Stephen Cadiz, under whose watch the Super Fast Galicia cargo vessel was contracted to operate between Trinidad and Tobago, wants to know why after 20 months in office the Government is now releasing the vessel on allegations of corruption without putting a proper alternative in place.

“Why are they doing this to Tobago?” he asked.

Cadiz said with the exception of the Government, none of the stakeholders, including the Tobago Chamber of and truckers, had a problem with the Galicia.

“The Galicia was 100 per cent on time while in T&T and it’s departure record was 99.9 per cent with no failure.”

He said investigating corruption has nothing to do with getting a proper vessel to replace the Galicia.

Cadiz said under his watch the Galicia was contracted in 2014 precisely because the Warrior Spirit was functioning on only one engine.

“When it came to our attention in December 2014 the Warrior was operating on one engine and we could not get the agents to respond in a comfortable manner, we felt we could no longer continue with that contract. The Warrior’s contract was supposed to end in August 2016.”

Cadiz said the Galicia arrived for that sole reason. “Can you imagine the mess we would have been in if the Warrior with its one engine, loaded with passengers and cargo, shut down? The safety and security issues we would have had?”

Cadiz said by January 2014, they started to look for a new vessel and by May that year the Galicia sailed into T&T.

He said the Government, if it wanted to, could have taken the decision to release the Galicia in a similar manner without any interruption in the cargo service to Tobago. “They had 20 months to do it.

“But in 2017, you are now looking to lay blame on a government that demitted office in 2015.”

Cadiz declined to comment on allegations of corruption in the procurement of the Galicia, only saying he is waiting on the Attorney General to complete his criminal investigation. “If there’s corruption, find it, deal with it and lock people up.”

The former minister expressed concern for citizens of Tobago who depends heavily on goods coming from Trinidad.

“The real issue is what is going to happen when there is no cargo service to Tobago?”

He charged the whole issue of corruption into the Galicia being touted by the Government is a major distraction and threw back allegations at the Government.

“To just allow the Galicia to sail out of the Bocas without putting something in place smacks of mismanagement, irresponsibility and just, basically, chaos.”

Cadiz questioned the tendering process of a replacement for the Galicia. “I heard the port chairman saying they are receiving offers daily.

“What is the tendering process for the new vessel? Where are these offers coming from? Who’s vetting these people?”

Concerning claims by the Hyatt Regency, located on the waterfront, it was experiencing “earthquakes” because of the movement of the Galicia, Cadiz said, if anything, that point to questions about the structural soundness of the hotel.

“Maybe somebody needs to do a proper structural survey of the Hyatt,” he suggested.

AG: EVIDENCE OF CORRUPTION

​

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi has said there is evidence of corruption regarding how the Super Fast Galicia’s six-month contract turned into a two-year stint.

He said documents relating to the procurement of the Galicia were passed to him by Works Minister Rohan Sinanan upon instruction of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley.

“On the face of it, yes, there is corruption, including by those who were high office holders. The transactions are not on all fours.

“The timing, method and the particulars of the procurement, held side by side with the Cabinet knowledge and approval, are essential features of analysis in the report which I will produce,” al Rawi promised.

Lisa Greenidge’s world changed completely when her daughter, Kizzy (Keziah), was three months old. Greenidge took Kizzy for her first vaccination and a couple hours after she had her first seizure.

“Her body stiffened up, she started drooling and her eyes were just staring,” Greenidge, 41, recalled. “After that she had three to six seizures each week right up until now.”

Greenidge said Kizzy was diagnosed with a seizure disorder with no explanation provided. But the story did not end there. Kizzy was also later unofficially diagnosed with autism. “When she was about three, a friend of mine saw Kizzy on the ground in a store screaming and throwing a tantrum and suggested she might be autistic.

“I took her to the Austism Society of T&T (ASTT) and found she was somewhere around the middle of the austism spectrum, not severely austistic but not highly functional.” And thus began a journey of weeping and joy and learning for Greenidge, one that changed her into a better person, she said.

“Kizzy taught me patience, how to find joy in the smallest things, how to deal with situations. And how to pray and have faith.

“She’s the same little girl I always wanted and loved.” Greenidge spoke to the T&T Guardian as thousands around the world celebrate World Autism Awareness Month.

Recalling some particularly bad times, Greenidge said, “One time she was in the kitchen with me, because I take her with me everywhere I go, and she had a seizure and hit her head on the gang tank.

“When she fell, the area between her eyes and her nose split down to the bone.” Greenidge, who has two elder sons, said she worked as seamstress before Kizzy was born and was always on the go.

She said she and her husband wanted a girl to complete their family and Kizzy was planned. Her baby girl appeared like a normal child, until she got her first vaccination. Greenidge said after Kizzy’s first seizure, she immediately resigned from her job to devote all her time and attention to her. She later began home schooling her child.

Greenidge patiently taught her little girl, who would hug and kiss her but never look her in the eye, how to make eye contact. “Whenever she wanted something, like juice or tea, I used to hold it right up to my face until she looked at my eyes.”

Through her teaching, Kizzy knows her Alphabet, colours and words. She is also a whiz at putting puzzles together. “You can mix up four different puzzles in one box and Kizzy would put it together without even looking at the pictures.”

Kizzy loves flowers and cannot pass one straight, and animals, Greenidge said. Through the ASTT, headed by Teresina Sieunarine who formed the organisation after her own son was diagnosed with austism, Kizzy was taken for therapy with Horses Helping Humans run by Karen Stollmeyer.

“Kizzy loves a white horse called Jo Jo. If she had her way, she would stand next to him all day, patting, feeding and cleaning him.” Greenidge has a word of hope for parents who may feel hopeless about an autistic child. “Don’t be discouraged. There’s help.”

Satisfied with the progress it has managed to achieved through efforts to reduce school violence and indiscipline within recent months, the Ministry of Education says it remains committed to eradicating such adverse behaviours.

In a release proclaiming a reduction in the number of incidents of school violence and indiscipline, ministry officials said it was evident through the records which had confirmed a clear decline in the number of students being suspended within recent times.

The ministry said a total of 5,257 suspensions was recorded among secondary school students in 2015 and this was reduced to 3,940 last year.

Officials said this represented a 25.5 per cent decline at the secondary level and similar developments were taking place at the primary school level as data indicated that 296 students had been suspended in 2015, while in 2016 the total number of primary school students suspended was 254, a reduction of 14.18 per cent.

Meanwhile, a review of the suspension summaries for 2015 and 2016 revealed that less than one per cent of the nation’s school population of 220,000 students were involved in disruptive and harmful behaviour.

The rate of extended suspensions also declined from 132 in 2015, to 48 in 2016—representing a 64 per cent reduction.

The Education Minister is the lone authority with the power to grant extended suspensions.

Happy over the declines which are anticipated to continue throughout this year, Minister Anthony Garcia has on several occasions attributed it to intervention strategies implemented over the last 19 months.

Armed with these statistics, ministry officials last week denied there had been an increase in school violence and indiscipline.

Instead, they said social media had falsely created an impression that violence among students had risen significantly, which was created mainly in part because of the sharing and re-sharing of videos showing students in uniform engaging in violent behaviour.

They claimed this had contributed to the wrong public perception about violence and indiscipline in schools.

Among the strategies being used is a direct approach to equip students with skills in conflict resolution, effective communication, emotional intelligence and problem solving—along with efforts to engage parents and provide them with the information, techniques and tools necessary to support their children.

At schools, the ministry has also improved the supervision of students during the teaching and non-teaching times by deploying school safety officers who, working in tandem with security personnel and deans are tasked to ensure safety of the students both from internal and external threats.

Alongside all these strategies, the National School Code of Conduct is also enforced and with on-going training for principals, deans, heads of departments and teachers in classroom management, conflict resolution and problem solving, it is envisioned that this can be further reduced,

Having already realised success at the level of the Learning Enhancement Centres where students are placed while on suspension, officials said they continue to provide a safe and nurturing environment for students who have committed infractions.

Students on extended suspensions are assessed and a programme developed to address their social and academic needs, as officials work to ensure they leave with the necessary skills to make responsible choices and avoid inappropriate behaviours.

With all of these strategies falling under the framework of the School Based Management Model currently being utilised by the ministry, officials said it encouraged schools to engage with stakeholders on how best to eradicate school violence and indiscipline.

The ministry reaffirmed its commitment to provide an environment which was conducive to the teaching and learning process, as part of government’s National Development Strategy to produce a more disciplined, caring and tolerant society comprised of happy, healthy and educated people.

They came bearing gifts of song, dance, and even the spoken word at the annual Easter Resurrection Stars concert put on by Heaven Touching Earth International Ministries (HTEIM), Montrose Chaguanas.

Quite aptly titled was the concert having taken place on Resurrection Sunday. It was to say the least a talent filled four-hour-long show that kept patrons in the church’s transformed auditorium edging their seats as they awaited the unfolding and unpredicted action that came flowing swiftly and smoothly along from all 18 contestants.

Indeed as the judges indicated toward the end, it was a tough decision in determining who were the best as it seemed all came with their A game, showing just what they were made of.

Carol Fidler led the competition performing in first place with a self written social commentary titled Time to Pray. Her advice in song suggested to make wise choices as choices determines the course of one’s life. And to pray at all times that you may not fall into sin.

She was followed by Ronnie Ragbir who chose to do a cover version of renowned South-African born gospel and jazz singer, Jonathan Butler’s; I stand on Your Word. His rendition was heart tugging and well received by the audience who cheered him on.

A pore raising mime done by Jeremiah Fresco to the song I Never Lost My Praise earned him a standing ovation and subsequently the award for best dressed performer. But it was Beverlyn Selkridge who took it to another level with her distinguished vocal range. Her performance and

delivery of the song I Never Lost My Praise, originally done by gospel singers Sandi Patti and Larnelle Harris, was done with such ease but with much conviction. Many a time during her performance one felt as though one was in the live audience of the once famed and now defunct Scouting for Talent. She too, received a standing ovation.

Impressive original compositions came from Marina Arthur, Michelle Davis, Dominic Hamiliton, Lyndon De Gannes, Sue-Anna Kinsale, Malik Inniss, Roxanne Holder-Heywood and Makinde Hudson. Holder-Heywood and Hudson were also the recipients of awards for best original composition and people’s choice respectively. Both were encored toward the end of their performances. Hudson was encored even a second time upon receiving his award for his offering, Can’t Stop the Praises.

Two special highlights of the evening were Brianna Mitchell and the group titled The Sisters. Mitchell doing a prophetic dance, gave an emotional performance that was even emotional for her as tears were seen streaming down her face at one point. Her performance earned her the award for best performance.

The Sisters, quite reminiscent of the 1990s R&B group SWV, was the lone group performance for the evening. They walked away with the award for most promising and most outstanding performance. Not only was their matching wear something to note, but the delivery of their cover version of He Wants it All, originally done by American gospel family band Forever Jones, was awe-inspiring. Their voices complimented each other as well as their harmonizing was on point, owning them cheers and thunderous applauses throughout their performance.

A special tribute was made to the Apostle of the church, Gillian Selkridge, as she was thanked for her obedience to the vision of God and her many sacrifices over the years to ensure His vision manifested. She was serenaded by Aaliyah Selkridge and Pastor Anthony Moses, director and creator of the event and also the head of the church’s music and arts ministry.