Breaking News: Form 2 Student Collapse and Die During Cross Country Event

A form 2 male pupil of the Pentecostal Light and Life foundation collapsed and died during the Cross Country event earlier this morning. 

News reaching the TobagoDaily is that upon reaching the bottom of Sangsters Hill the lad fell to ground and became unconscious. There were no ambulance on standby for the event as emergency units would have written to the School stating their unavailability for the event. He was eventually taken to the Scarborough Hospital.

Even a midst the tragic and damning event of the morning, school children were still seen engaged in the Cross Country event. 

Hilton Sandy still off the Job. Residents affected.

SOME villagers in Roxborough and Delaford say they feel they are being ignored since their area representative, Hilton Sandy, had a stroke in September.

Sandy has been recuperating at his Bacolet home since October 5. Interim measures were announced by Chief Secretary, Orville London, after he admitted that Sandy would not be able to function as Secretary of the Division of Infrastructure and Public Utilities (DIPU) or as area representative for Roxborough and Delaford for an indefinite period.

Since then, the area has been covered by London, Deputy Chief Secretary, Tracy Davidson-Celestine and Secretary for Education, Gary Melville, who have alternately liaised with constituents on a Friday. London has taken over Sandy's role in the DIPU.

+

A resident of Louis D’or, Renson Williams told Tobago News that he has not seen much of the temporary representatives. He says Sandy used to make regular visits to the Roxborough district.

Keeva Bobb from Powder Hill, claims the absence of Sandy means ongoing projects to improve the area are being ignored.

Breaking News: Movie Style Heist in Trinidad: Security guard shot dead

A SECURITY guard was shot and more than a quarter million dollars is suspected to have been stolen by thieves who hijacked an armoured vehicle this morning in Macoya. 

Police have launched a massive search for the killers, locking down the major highways in North and Central Trinidad, and conducting police patrols along the major roadways in south Trinidad. 

Around 4.30 a.m. a van owned by Sentinel Security Limited with two employees was headed east along the Churchill Roosevelt Highway. 

Police said when in the vicinity of Johnson and Johnson Limited, the security van was struck from behind, and the driver stopped. 

The occupants in the vehicle behind opened fire, hitting the security officer in the passenger seat several times. He died at the scene. The officer in the driver's seat ran out of the van and hid in the bushes, while the thieves raided the van and stole the loot. A portion of the highway was closed, causing traffic gridlock, as police steered vehicles onto secondary roads.

Police are currently at the scene. 

Source: trindadexpress

Tobago Named among the Best places to elope in the Caribbean

In USATODAY, Tobago has been named among others as one of the top places to get married within the Caribbean islands. Tobago was among some ten other Caribbean countries that included Nassau Bahamas, US Virgin Islands, North Jamaica and St. Lucia.

Tobago was described as followers: 

Tobago is almost as far south as you can go in the Caribbean; only its sister island Trinidad is closer to South America. Although English-speaking, it's also one of the most diverse islands, celebrating marriages for not only Christians and Jews, but also Muslims and Hindus, courtesy of its heritage of immigrants from South Asia. Neighboring Trinidad is highly industrialized – calypso and the steel drum, made from oil drums discarded by the island's numerous refineries, were born there — while Tobago bills itself as "the natural choice," a reference to its rolling hills covered in tropical foliage. There's an annual mid-summer festival devoted to marriage, the Tobago Ole Time Wedding Festival. Men dressed in swallow-tail coats and ladies dressed in satin gowns form a procession that meanders through the village of Moriah. Every year, a few newly married visitors join in.

The Blue Water Inn, located on the island's northeast tip, has both a wedding planner and scenic venues for your vows: a pristine sand beach or poolside overlooking the turquoise water with a backdrop of Batteaux Bay and the mountainous spine of Little Tobago.

Paperwork is minimal; you'll need to be in Tobago for three days, bring notarized copies of any previous divorces plus a photo i.d. (passport) and apply for a license (about $55 USD).

School Girl Allegedly Molested by Male Relative, Gang Raped by Four Men and School Boy

A teenage schoolgirl was allegedly gang-raped in Tobago. The victim was further traumatised earlier this month by a school official, whose reaction has appalled social workers.

The rape took place in October, during a football match, and the suspects are four men and a schoolboy.

Following the incident, the Express was told that on November 3, an official at the school the teenager attends called her out during the morning assembly and warned the girl about her sexual behaviour.

This did not sit well with fellow-students, who felt the situation could have been dealt with differently.

The teenager has returned to school and her parents have declined to comment on the matter.

The Express understands that a report was made to the police, but officers remained mum on the matter.

The girl was also the alleged victim of sexual abuse by a male relative. That relative is currently before the courts charged with the offence.

$.4 Million Paid To Dr. Anslem London by THA

Dr. Anslem London. Photo courtesy Guardian

SOME $425,152 has been paid to former finance secretary Dr Anslem London, for providing services during the period February 1 and September of this year. This revelation comes on the heels of the Tobago House of Assembly deferring the hiring of Dr. London earlier this year, through the Executive Council. The break down for the payment of the funds is as follows:

Milshirv Affidavit Briefs and High Court Appearances — $93,184

Fiscal Management Briefs — $34,944

FCB Credit Facility Briefs — $34,944

Professional Advisory Services to the Secretary of Finance and Enterprise Development — $145,600

The Fiscal 2014 Budget and Statement — $116,480

This information was provided to members of the public, following Tobago Organisation of the People (TOP) member Anslem Richards, requesting the information under the Freedom of Information Act Chapter 22:02. 

Laventille Man Murdered In Tobago

Tobago has recorded another murder within two weeks, this time in the village of Mt St George. It has brought the murder toll on the island to four. 

Dead is Anton Williams, 29, aka “Rocky” of Mentor Alley, Laventille.

Williams was shot multiple times about the body, in what police officers are saying is a drug deal gone sour. 

The track where the incident occurred was covered in blood yesterday while a black and red knapsack lay in some bushes nearby. 

Two Year Old Baby Bitten By Pitbull In Tobago

BITE WOUNDS: Mourise Glod and her son
 Nickoli Blackman, recovering following a
 pitbull attack on Thursday.
Photo: Elizabeth Williams

A two-year-old boy and a 17-year-old teenager were yesterday recovering from their injuries following an attack by a pitbull in the village of Plymouth, Tobago on Thursday night. 

Nickoli Blackman was said to be lucky to be alive following the pitbull attack. Several bite wounds were seen around his buttocks, when the Sunday Express visited the family at their Plymouth home. 

His mother Mourise Glod said she was walking along Commissioner Street, Plymouth when the dog broke away from its owner and attacked her son. The pitbull then went after the teenage boy. 

“And as I was trying to lift him up with one hand, (the dog attacked) and that was it.”

Bus Crashes on Charlotteville Hills

A Public Transport Service Corporation (PTSC) omni bus skidded off the road and hit a concrete railing at Charlotteville Hill, Tobago today.

Bus driver Allister Victor had departed the Bus Terminus for Charlotteville around 4:30 am, PTSC stated in a press release.

Victor told police he was approaching the second ‘hairpin’ corner on the Charlotteville Hill, when the bus began skidding. The front of the bus hit a concrete railing on the right side of the roadway, preventing the vehicle from going over a steep precipice.

PTSC stated that there were four passengers on board the bus at the time of the accident. There were no reported injuries.

Fire Services visited the scene and washed diesel off the roadway. 

"This diesel was reportedly spilled onto the roadway by a dump truck prior to the accident, and was responsible for the bus skidding out of control. The Police also reported that their vehicle experienced skidding on the said Charlotteville Hill while attempting to reach the scene of the accident," PTSC stated.

Source:trinidadexpress

Alien Fish 900 Pounds Caught in Jamaica

Catch of 900-pound sunfish creates stir in Jamaica

'At first I thought it was an alien, and I was somewhat frightened,' Desmond Phillips says of bizarre-looking catch, which lured dozens to the beach

Phillips (left) and boat captain Grant with the sunfish photo courtesy Jamaica Observer

The massive sunfish was so bizarre looking that Desmond Phillips, one of two Jamaican fishermen who caught the estimated 900-pound behemoth on Sunday, thought it was from another world.

“At first I thought it was an alien, and I was somewhat frightened,” Phillips told the Jamaica Gleaner. “It was difficult to bring the fish to the surface, and even more challenging to get the monster into the boat.

“When I realized what it was that we had caught, I said to my partner, Michael Grant, who is the boat captain, maybe we should release it.”

Chief Secretary Commission Calder Hall Multi purpose Centre

Community Development and Culture Secretary
Denise Tsoiafatt-Angus is assisted in unveiling the plaque
 at the opening of the Calder Hall Multi Purpose
Community Centre on Sunday: Photo by THA

Chief Secretary Orville London on Sunday commissioned the Calder Hall Multi Purpose Community Centre on Calder Hall Road, Scarborough which was refurbished at a cost of $1 million to the Tobago House of Assembly (THA).

The centre is located within the Scarborough/Calder Hall electoral district represented by London. It is part of a $5 million development consisting of a Y Zone, Children's Play Park, lighted recreational facilities and the centre, all within a stone's throw of each other.

The refurbished centre includes a spacious auditorium, computer room fitted with ten desktop computers with the latest programs, kitchen, change rooms and wash rooms.

London said the community centre was not for one particular group and urged the groups in the community to make full use of its facilities adding that the return on the investment in this particular centre was the number of lives that were transformed and the number of groups that come together. He said the return on the investment would not be judged by the number of weddings that were held in the centre.

He said a community centre was not known for collaborating among the different age groups but this must change and therefore the people of Calder Hall must embrace change. "If you continue doing the same thing then we would have wasted our investment," he said.

Multi-Million Shaw Park Cultural Complex Fails Fire inspection

Unfinished: Shaw Park Cultural Complex.
Photo Courtesy TobagoNews

THE multi-million dollar Shaw Park Cultural Complex has failed its fire inspection.

Media Groups have learnt that fire officers toured the structure last weekend and found it lacked adequate lighting and storage space and that there were no proper directional signage in the case of an emergency. The complex, which was started in 2005, will seat up to 5,000 people when it is finished.

There will now be a re-inspection by the fire service. NIPDEC, which manages the project, now has three months to address the failures, and to get the facility ready for public use.

The Divisional Fire Officer, David Thomas, says, “We are almost very happy with what was done. There are some areas in which we need to partner with the contractor to have rectified so everyone can be happy.”

Millions of dollars in taxpayers’ money has been already spent on the complex. In September, the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) announced that it would be putting pressure on NIPDEC to complete the complex by early 2014. As of 2008, the project’s estimated cost was $196 million and was to have been completed in 2010 at a cost of $250 million. Last year, the estimated cost of the project stood at $400 million.

Young Motorcyclist Dies In Tobago Accident.

Keron Antonio Arnold. Photo by Express

TWENTY-YEAR-OLD Keron Antonio Arnold, a chef at Coco Reef Resort, died in a road accident Saturday night in Tobago.

The accident occurred shortly before 9 o’clock, along Shirvan Road in the vicinity of Mt Pleasant Local Road, mere metres away from Arnold’s home at Coral Gardens, Buccoo.

According to police reports, Arnold was riding his motorcycle along Shirvan Road when he overtook a car and slammed head-on into a Jeep, which was travelling in the opposite direction.

Arnold was thrown from his bike and suffered massive injuries. He died instantly.

District medical officer Dr Ferguson later visited the scene and ordered the body removed to the Scarborough Mortuary.

The driver of the other vehicle was taken to Scarborough General Hospital in a stable condition.

When contacted yesterday at their Buccoo home, family members were in shock following the incident, They described Arnold as always being happy.

Tobago Prepares For Major Blackout

Tobagonians are urged to prepare for what is going to be a major blackout. The Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission issued the notice on Friday informing citizens that their would be a major interruption in their electricity service. This interruption is schedule to start at 11 pm Saturday 16 November and should last until 8 am on Sunday 17 November. 

The Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission stated that it was necessary to allow them to connect a major gas line running from Cove Industrial Estate as it would allow them to shift operations from diesel to natural gas. This would improve the reliability and quality of electricity supply, and also increase the network’s capacity to meet growing load demands of the citizenry.

The Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission apologizes for any inconvenience caused, if you require further information call  800 TTEC. 

Four School Boys Charged with having Sex with underage School Girl

FOUR teenage boys were yesterday granted a total of $250,000 bail after they appeared in court charged with grievous sexual assault, indecent assault and sex with a girl under the age of 16 but older than 14.

The boys, all 17, are form four pupils of a secondary school in East Trinidad and are alleged to have committed some of the acts against the girl at the school compound.

According to the charges, all four boys allegedly grievously assaulted the girl and indecently assaulted her on May 15 last year.

One of the boys was additionally charged with having sex with the girl, who is not his wife, between the ages of 14 to 16 on a date unknown between February 1 and 9 last year.

Two of the teens were placed on $50,000 bail to be approved by a Clerk of the Peace since they allegedly committed just one act against the girl, while two others were granted $75,000 bail each as they had allegedly committed two sexual acts each against the girl.

Tobago Power Plant Commissioned by Central Govt: $5m in savings for Cove plant

UNVEILING PLAQUE: Cove Power Plant manager Wesley Orr, from left,
 Minister in the Ministry of the People and Social Development
Vernella Alleyne-Toppin, Minister of Public Utilities Nizam Baksh,
chairman of the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC)
Sushilla Ramkissoon-Mark, general manager T&TEC Kelvin Ramsook
 and head of T&TEC Tobago Ganesh Narine during the unveiling of
a plaque to commemorate the overhaul and natural gas commissioning
 at the plant in Tobago yesterday.—Photo: Elizabeth Williams

The Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC)  is expected to save $5 million a month in fuel costs, with the changeover of the diesel-fuelled power plant at the Cove facility in Tobago to natural gas. 

Yesterday marked the commemorative ceremony for the overhaul and natural gas commissioning at the Cove Power Plant.  

Minister of Public Utilities Nizam Baksh said the commissioning formed a critical role in the relationship between citizens and T&TEC. “This plant is the first of its kind in the Caribbean, to not only improve the reliability and quality of your electricity supply, but to also increase the network’s capacity to meet growing load demands, while at the same time decreasing the impact of its operations on the environment,” Baksh said.  

The Cove Power Plant has a reciprocating engine, in that it can move back and forth between natural gas and diesel as the need arises. Tobagonians are being given the assurance if the gas supply is interrupted, the electricity supply will be sustained.

Early Warning System for Tobago Coral Reef

Tobago is to be part of an international coral reef early warning system, said Tobago House of Assembly Secretary of Agriculture, Marine Affairs, Marketing and the Environment Godwin Adams. 

Adams said specially-manufactured buoys will be installed at world-famous Buccoo Reef in southwest Tobago and at the reef offshore Speyside in east Tobago this week.

Adams told last Wednesday’s post-Executive Council media briefing that the system known as CREWS (Coral Reef Early Warning System) was in keeping with activities coming out of the Institute of Marine Affairs (IMA) working in collaboration with the Division. 

He explained that the buoys will monitor climate change, coral bleaching, and changes in the reefs, identify any damage done to them and other marine activities around the island at an early stage.

He said the data would be transmitted to a central location at the Buccoo Training Centre, adding that this data would then be transmitted throughout the Caribbean and internationally.

“This in a sense is an internationally operated system to check on reefs around the world,” he said.

Adams said the first buoy will be installed at Buccoo Reef on Wednesday and the other at Speyside on Friday. 

Trinidad Man Freed on charge of Raping His Mother

THE WOMAN who was allegedly raped by her son went to court on Wednesday and asked that the charges be dropped.

The 63-year-old woman told the court  she will get help for her son and that she intends to live in a section of the house apart from him.

Two weeks ago,  the 41-year-old accused was sent for psychiatric evaluation after he appeared in court charged with having sexual intercourse with a woman without her consent and committing grievous sexual assault. 

The alleged incident occurred at the woman’s home on October 13.

Chaguanas Magistrate Gillian Scotland was told on Wednesday that the report from St Ann’s Hospital stated that the accused was of sound mind.

But the court was told that the alleged victim in the case wanted the matter dropped.

Police prosecutor Sgt Shiva Boodoo questioned the woman from the witness stand on her decision, asking if she had anything promised, or if she had  been threatened to discontinue the case.

She said no and also told the court that she will be attempting to get help for her son.

She said her home will be fixed to allow for the man to live in one section of the house.

Without the woman’s testimony, the prosecution would be unable to prove its case.

The matters against the man were discharged.

Source:trinidadexpress

Tobago Woman Stabbed 36 Times By Brother.

FIFTY-TW0-YEAR-OLD Winston Phillips, who committed suicide after killing his sister on Monday in Tobago, had a history of mental illness and was once treated at St Ann’s Hospital in Trinidad.

An autopsy conducted at Scarborough General Hospital  Mortuary on Wednesday revealed  50-year-old Charmaine Phillips was stabbed some 36 times in the kitchen area of her home, at Providence Road near Mount Grace, by her brother, over a land dispute.

The autopsy was conducted by pathologist Dr Valery Alexandrov. And her brother died after ingesting a poisonous substance, the herbicide paraquat.

The murder-suicide occurred shortly after 5 p.m. on Monday in the presence of the 12-year-old son of Charmaine Phillips. 

The mother of one was described by neighbours as being devoted to her son and very efficient in her duties. She was employed as a housekeeper in the Mt Irvine area.

After the police were alerted to a domestic dispute, Charmaine Phillips was found on the kitchen floor with several stab wounds about her body, including the neck and stomach, with her head almost severed.

Winston Phillips was found at  the back of the house, frothing from the mouth.

He was rushed to the Scarborough hospital, where he died. A bottle containing a poisonous substance was removed from the scene.

Investigations are continuing into the tragedy. 

Funeral arrangements are yet to be made.

Source:trinidadexpress

Seventh Day Adventist Self Taught Young Lady Leads the World in Accounting Exam

La Horquetta resident Alayna Cloake says her home schooling reaped rich dividends as it helped her top the ACCA (Association of Certified Chartered Accountants) June 2013 examinations. 

Twenty-four-year-old Cloake visited Express House in Port of Spain on Tuesday with her father, Public Transport Service Corporation (PTSC) driver Peter Cloake.

She said he was “very proud” of her accomplishment.

Her mother, Delores Winsbarrow, and elder siblings Abigail, 32, and Devon, 34, are also happy at her achievement. 

Cloake, a former pupil of St Joseph’s Convent, St Joseph, showed the Express a letter from ACCA director Alan Hatfield, which read: “I am delighted to inform you your performance in the ACCA June 2013 exams was outstanding and you achieved the highest mark worldwide for Paper 3—with a score of 93.”

Cloake was awarded a sum of money and certificate. 

“I am very elated and excited,” Cloake said. “I feel proud for my country. It was all about hard work and practice. I did it on my own. I did not go to accounting school. I never liked school very much. My time is mine. It is more flexible. I study at my own pace. I just bought the textbooks and paid for the exams. I wrote the exams and top-scored.

“I just went through the books and practised. Practice makes perfect. I did not go to any of the established accounting schools, I stayed home.”  

She said the programme of study consists of 14 papers with  Level 1 consisting  of  three papers, Level Two six and  Level Three five.

“I still have two optional papers to complete it. I will write them in December,” said  Cloake, who works as a full-time accountant at PTSC.  “I have always loved accounting. I have always loved figures, but accounting is not just about figures.” 

Cloake said she intends to establish her own business and assist other small businesses with their accounting, although she hasn’t yet decided on its nature. 

Asked what advice she wished to impart to young people, Cloake said: “Believe in yourself and pray and ask God to help you. He will make a way.”

Cloake, who also attended ASJA Girls’ College, Tunapuna, is gluten intolerant and her diet consists of mainly fruits and vegetables. 

“My ketchup is special. It’s about $70 a bottle. No meat and dairy products. Everything has gluten in it. I can’t go out and buy food like other people,” she said.

But she is not disheartened about her condition. 

“I encourage people to eat healthy. I am a Seventh-day Adventist. They emphasise healthy eating habits. Lots of granola.”

Apart from being selective about her eating habits, Cloake makes her own beauty and skin care products.

 “Gluten can get into my skin. Skin is the largest organ. I make my own shampoos, body powder and cream. 

For a cream, I might use coconut or olive oil and beeswax. I might use tea tree, rosemarie or lavender. I have fun...I’m like a chemist.”

 And now, she is eagerly anticipating a phone call indicating the date and time of the ACCA awards function.

Source: trinidadexpress

Hunting Band by Central Government, Affecting Tobago Farmers

Tobago farmers are clammering for a lift in the band on certain wild animals. They say that wildlife such as the agouti, parakeet and parrot are pests that ravage their crops.

As a result they have met with Chief Secretary Orville London to raise the issue and he is seeking a meeting with the Minister of Water Resources and the Environment Ganga Singh to discuss the two-year ban on the hunting of wildlife.

The Chief Secretary told Wednesday's post Executive Council media briefing that the ban was imposed without consultation with the Tobago interest groups. He said he had met the two hunting organisations and the Wildlife Association whose members rear wild animals and they were very interested in conservation.

He said consensus around the table was that this particular situation was dangerous from the perspective of the way in which it was done and the fact it was done without any consultation and any consideration with respect to Tobago. He said farmers have also voiced their concern.

Age For Sexual Consent Raised to 18 Years.

Under the new Children’s Act 2012, the age of consent has been increased from 16 years to 18 years

for all forms of sexual penetration.

Aspects of the new children’s act were discussed at a high-powered workshop on Tobago’s Response to Sexual Assault, which was organised by the Division of Health and Social Services recently. 

The workshop was attended by stakeholders involved in the battle against all forms of sexual and domestic abuse on the island including doctors, nurses, social workers, the police and the media. 

Leading the discussion was Gaietry Pargass of the Ministry of Gender, Youth Affairs who pointed out that no one under the age of 18 years can give consent for any form of sexual penetration, according to the new law.

“A conviction also carries a stiff jail term of life imprisonment for sex offenders,” she declared. 

According to Pargass, the new children’s act though passed in the year 2000 but only assented to in 2012. All that is needed now is for the new law to be proclaimed for its provisions to be enforced,” she stated.