Tag Archives: Politics

General T&T, People's Partnership, PNM, Politics, Recession

Pay the Devil

20 Comments

By Raffique Shah
September 17, 2016

Raffique ShahAnyone who believes that this Government can continue to spend money to fix the country’s many problems the way successive governments have done, seemingly forever, is either a fool or someone who regards us as a nation of fools.

The harsh reality we face is when the good times rolled, most of us, from politicians and the business elites to plebes and philistines, intoxicated by the flow of petrodollars, felt we could and should spend, spend, spend, and let the Devil take tomorrow.
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Elections, General T&T, Opposition Party, People's Partnership, PNM, Politics, Recession, UNC

Half truths and manifestos

5 Comments

By Raffique Shah
Submitted: August 23, 2016
Posted: August 28, 2016

Raffique ShahI don’t know that the majority of people in the country are influenced in any way by the manifestos presented by various parties—in our case two, one from the UNC/PP and the other from the PNM.

In fact, I believe few people, likely less than ten percent of the electorate, read these voluminous documents. In my case, I sought the synopses of the presenters because I know they will have highlighted what they saw as the fundamentals of what they would implement if elected, and certainly their most marketable offerings.
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General T&T, Media, PNM, Schools

No more take home laptops for students

11 Comments

By Rhondor Dowlat
August 27, 2016 – guardian.co.tt

LaptopPupils who will be entering Form One in secondary schools in the new school term, which opens on September 5, will face disappointment as they will not be receiving free personal laptops from the Government.

Instead, the Government, in revamping the laptop distribution programme, will seek to equip 50 high-quality laptops per school.
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Elections, General T&T, PNM, Politics, Religion

Normalizing Non-sense

3 Comments

By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
August 22, 2016

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeOne of our problems in Trinidad and Tobago is our attempt, sometimes, to normalize non-sense and call it wisdom. Take the non-sense offered by Joan Yuille-Williams that Patrick Manning called the 2010 election to expand our democracy or that by so doing he expanded our democratic possibilities. Not content with such non-sense she threw God into the mix as if to say, “God make him do it.”
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Crime in T&T, General T&T, Health, PNM, Politics

Ode to a Tea Bag

4 Comments

By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
August 14, 2016

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeHeard the one about the tea bag? It only works when it is in hot water? Listening to such wisdom, I couldn’t help but think about my PNM government and my country. The prime minister is in California looking after his health. When a man takes his entire family (the old and the newly acquired) to be around him on such an occasion, then something may be amiss. He has asked the nation to pray for him. I think we should do as he asks.
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General T&T, Health, Politics

Living with Parkinson’s

5 Comments

By Raffique Shah
August 11, 2016

Raffique ShahI had no idea that Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley was seriously ill when I slammed into him last week for failing to take full charge of his responsibilities to the country. Upon reading that Dr Rowley’s ailment required him to have a series of medical tests conducted in the USA, I felt I owed him a sincere apology, which I tender here.

You see, in the years I’ve known him, I considered Keith an exemplar of fitness that those who hold public office should emulate. Because of my training, lifestyle and experience, I’ve often advised holders of high office with whom I’ve interacted that whatever the demands on their time they should set aside at least one hour a day for some form of exercise.
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General T&T, PNM, Politics, Schools

Stop the GATE madness

By Dr. Kwame Nantambu
August 10, 2016

Dr. Kwame NantambuThe recent policy decision by the People’s National Movement Government to revamp the Government Assistance for Tertiary Expenses (GATE) programme is indeed a most welcomed and long overdue move.

The fact of the matter is that adult citizens of this country both under and over 50 years of age have been abusing and dismembering this State funded programme for years.
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Crime in T&T, General T&T, Law, PNM, Police, Politics

Lead, or shut up

2 Comments

By Raffique Shah
August 07, 2016

Raffique ShahI don’t know what plans he has for his vacation, but I strongly recommend to Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley that he spend all of it in solitary self-confinement seeking guidance from whatever deity or deities he believes in regarding his leadership capabilities.

I don’t care whether it’s an ashram, a monastery or Papa Neezer’s shrine, I honestly believe that Keithos can benefit from a mega-dose of divine intervention to help him determine whether he has what it takes to lead this cussed country out of the morass it has been mired in for decades.
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Africa, Culture, General T&T

Self-Identity: The Key to Mental Emancipation

11 Comments

By Ayinde
August 02, 2016

Emancipation“The stories of our past should not condemn us to the turmoil of acrimony; but rather they should show us a path for achieving the positive and prosperous development of our country now and for the generations to come. . . . We are currently writing new pages in our history. . . . We need to ask ourselves, are we facilitating new prejudices and divisions in our society? Are we perpetuating a mindset of entitlement – claiming rights where instead we should accept personal responsibility? . . . Are we committed to working together in the best interest of our country? Can we look past the ‘me’ and ‘my group’ to the bigger picture of nationhood?”
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Culture, General T&T, PNM, Politics

May Their Bread Be Buttered Over

5 Comments

By Dr. Selwyn R. Cudjoe
Submitted: July 31, 2016
Posted: August 02, 2016

Dr. Selwyn R. CudjoeTomorrow (August 1st) is Emancipation Day. It’s a day on which the formerly enslaved commemorate their freedom; a practice they have undertaken since 1848 although there have been interruptions over the years. Generally, two different strata (those whose bread had been better buttered and those whose bread have been larded) have celebrated their emancipation in different ways.
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