Tag Archives: Raffique Shah

General T&T, Sports

Glorious Olympic fields of dreams

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By Raffique Shah
Aug 05, 2012

Raffique ShahHALFWAY into the Games and it has been a mixed bag thus far. Oh, the performances all round have ranged from superb to sublime. Really, who could ask for better than what we have seen in the aquatic centre? Just to have witnessed the curtain come down in the career of possibly the greatest swimmer ever, Michael Phelps, was worth it. Bear in mind Phelps started these Games with the threat of Ryan Lochte looming large over his quest to become the most decorated swimmer.
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corruption, General T&T, People's Partnership, Politics

Exoneration or escape?

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By Raffique Shah
July 21, 2012

Raffique ShahFORTY years ago on July 27 I was released from prison a free man. I had spent 27 months in prison, faced a court-martial on mutiny and other charges, and had been committed to stand trial for treason. The treason charge was without substance.

But on the equally serious offence of mutiny, for which the court-martial had found me guilty and sentenced me to 20 years imprisonment, the Court of Appeal later decided there was a miscarriage of justice, hence it overturned the conviction.
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Finance, General T&T, India, People's Partnership, Politics, Racism Watch

When Race Trumps Reason

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By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
July 18, 2012

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeYou work at an institution for ten years; you begin to like that institution. You grow to admire the intellectual caliber of the men and women who work there and you embalm those precious memories. Ultimately, you reverence that institution as a place where standards matter and excellence is the order of the day. You read Terrence Farrell’s Central Banking in a Developing Economy: A Study of Trinidad and Tobago, 1964 to 1989, you appreciate the origin of central banking in the nation, pre and post-independence. You realize the stature of the men who served this nation as governors (sadly there are no women) and you feel a sense of pride in your nation’s achievement. You realize that no matter what its limitations are, it tries to reward excellence signaling to the nation’s young men and women that achievement matters.
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General T&T, Labour

Memories of another era

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By Raffique Shah
July 14, 2012

Raffique ShahLAST week, memories of another day, another time, another Trinidad and Tobago swirled through my mind. It happened over several days as many of us who grew up in the villages that make up what I call “Greater Freeport” gathered to pay our final respects to an elder, Boyd “Baykay” Roberts. Baykay was a contemporary of my long-deceased father Haniff, and a close friend of my deceased uncles, all of them sugar workers, ordinary people, barely literate, but wise in the ways of the world.
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General T&T, Law, People's Partnership, Police, Politics, Security

Cry blood, my beloved country

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By Raffique Shah
July 07, 2012

Raffique ShahRARELY do I address the same topic for two consecutive weeks, but I feel compelled, in highly unusual circumstances, to alert the nation to the misadventures of National Security Minister Jack Warner. Last week, like many of my columnist colleagues, I took Warner to task over the way he handled the demolition of the Highway Re-Route Movement’s shed. In a country that adhered to the rule of law, Warner would have fallen on his own sword on that issue alone.
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Crime in T&T, General T&T, Law, Opposition Party, People's Partnership, Police, Politics, Security

Return of Sheriff Lobo

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By Raffique Shah
July 01, 2012

Raffique ShahWHAT more must Jack Warner do to prove that he is unfit to be this country’s Minister of National Security? Declare war on Tobago or Venezuela or Barbados? Introduce a death squad to go around executing persons he suspects of being criminals or gangsters? Arrest and detain persons perceived to be opponents of the People’s Partnership Government?
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Caribbean, corruption, Law, USA

Conman of the Caribbean

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By Raffique Shah
June 16, 2012

Raffique ShahI SUPPOSE most people digested the news that a US judge jailed conman Allen Stanford for 110 years, yawned, burped and moved on to the next item. Except for victims of the Texan’s multi-billion-dollar swindle, among them a few thousand from the Caribbean who lost their savings chasing a crooked shadow, Stanford’s life sentence for a crime that is commonplace is of little more than academic interest.
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Finance, General T&T, People's Partnership, Politics

Robbing poor pensioners

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By Raffique Shah
June 03, 2012

Raffique ShahI MAKE no pretences to “being young” or “feeling young” at age 66. I never dyed my hair—my moustache turned grey before I was 50—and other than leading a reasonably healthy lifestyle, daily exercising included, I have taken the aging process in stride. I no longer walk as briskly as I did a few years ago, and one or two challenges that go with the age-turf have set in, none life threatening, thankfully. Also, I am still able to work, albeit at a reduced level (my choice), hence take care of my family.
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General T&T, Law, People's Partnership, Politics, Security

Backward ever, forward never

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By Raffique Shah
May 27, 2012

Raffique ShahFOR all our boasts about technological advancements we have achieved—”4G smart phones”, “wifi hotspots”, GPS in vehicles and on phones—it is amazing how we remain mired in backwardness when it comes to dealing with fundamental problems. The classic is carnage on the nation’s roads.

Last Sunday’s horrendous crash that left four people dead and senior Appeal Court Judge Wendell Kangaloo critically injured is a case in point.
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Crime in T&T, General T&T, Law, Politics

Gone to the dogs

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By Raffique Shah
May 20, 2012

Raffique ShahIT’S frustrating enough to have successive governments bark over the Dangerous Dogs Act for more than a decade without proclaiming it law. But it’s exasperating when, just as the woefully inadequate legislation is about to be given a few defective teeth, we have hordes of human-mongrels whining about the rights of these dumb but downright dangerous animals that savage hapless human beings.
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