标签： Trinidad and Tobago

After a seven-year renovation process that spanned the tenures of three successive mayors and three national local government ministers, Arima Town Hall officially reopened its doors to the public on Wednesday — a date that would have marked the 50th birthday of Lisa Morris-Julian, the former D’Abadie/O’Meara MP and Arima mayor who launched the reconstruction project before her tragic death in late 2024.

The iconic municipal building on Sorzano Street had sat stalled for months, wrapped in red caution tape, after its contracted construction team paused work over an unpaid $6 million fee that had put the entire project at an impasse. It took intervention from top leadership of the ruling People’s National Movement (PNM) in early 2024 to break the deadlock: then-PNM chairman and acting Prime Minister Stuart Young convened a high-level meeting at the party’s Port of Spain headquarters, Balisier House, bringing together senior PNM executive members Colm Imbert, Camille Robinson-Regis, Foster Cummings, and current Opposition Leader and Arima MP Pennelope Beckles, alongside representatives from the Arima Borough Corporation to resolve the outstanding funding dispute.

Speaking as the featured guest at Wednesday’s reopening ceremony, Beckles credited the collaborative effort of all three consecutive mayors who oversaw phases of the project, starting with Morris-Julian who initiated the reconstruction in 2019. Following Morris-Julian’s tenure, Cagney Casimire held the mayoral office from 2020 to 2023, and current mayor Balliram Maharaj has overseen the project’s final completion phase. Beckles also acknowledged contributions from three successive local government ministers — Kazim Hosein, Faris Al-Rawi SC, and current minister Khadijah Ameen — as well as former Arima MP Anthony Garcia, who played a key foundational role when reconstruction first launched.

Beckles explained that the multi-year delay stemmed from unforeseen cost overruns and procedural hurdles triggered largely by the COVID-19 pandemic. The original 2017 budget allocated just $1.5 million for the refurbishment, but shifting public health restrictions and unplanned additional scope of work forced the cabinet to scrap the original cost agreement and restart negotiations. “It ended up that the variations cost more than the original request to construct the building, and of course, once that is done, it means you have a whole procedure with procurement and many other things,” Beckles noted, adding that while some tasks could have advanced more quickly, bureaucratic protocols required for public spending extended the timeline. She declined to assign blame for the delay on Wednesday, stating that further details on the hold-up would be released to the public at a later date.

Beyond serving as a formal meeting chamber for the mayor and borough councillors, Beckles emphasized that the renovated town hall will fill a broader community role, acting as a public gathering space for local events and a central hub where residents can connect with their elected representatives.

Malabar/Mausica MP Dominic Romain, who succeeded Morris-Julian in office following her death, paid tribute to his predecessor at the ceremony, noting that regardless of whether the reopening date was intentionally scheduled to align with her birthday, it stands as a fitting legacy to her public service. The restoration project launched when Morris-Julian held the mayor’s office, making the completed building a lasting marker of her work for the Arima community.

Morris-Julian’s life was cut tragically short in December 2024, when a devastating house fire swept through her Arima residence on Farfan Street, killing her and two of her children: 25-year-old Xianne and six-year-old Jesiah. Post-mortem examinations confirmed all three deaths were caused by smoke inhalation.

Starting September 1, the vast majority of magistrates’ courts across Trinidad and Tobago will transition back to full in-person judicial hearings, the Judiciary announced in an official statement. The only exceptions to this rollout are the Port of Spain and Scarborough district courts, which will retain their current operational arrangements through 2027 due to ongoing infrastructure works. The return to in-person proceedings is being implemented on a gradual phased schedule, designed as a core step in the Judiciary’s long-term push to expand public access to the justice system. Alongside the changes to magistrates’ courts, 15 criminal high court venues will also open for in-person hearings on the same date: 11 located in Port of Spain, three at the Princes Town Judicial Centre, and one at the Tobago High Court. Masters’ courts will operate under a temporary hybrid model for the time being, with specific administrative protocols to be determined at the local divisional level.

This planned transition follows a comprehensive nationwide assessment of judicial infrastructure led by Chief Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh, who personally toured court facilities across Trinidad and Tobago over recent months. During these visits, the Chief Justice met with court personnel, evaluated the condition, functionality and accessibility of each building, and flagged areas in need of upgrades to meet the needs of court users, staff and judicial officers. “As we return to wider in-person hearings, it is important that our court facilities are ready to meet the needs of everyone who uses them,” Boodoosingh said, emphasizing that the shift to increased in-person proceedings must be supported by safe, fully operational and accessible spaces. “We are committed to improving the court environment and ensuring that our facilities support the effective delivery of justice,” he added. The Judiciary noted the phased rollout was developed following extensive consultations with key justice sector stakeholders, and additional details on specific local arrangements will be released in the coming weeks. The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service has already been notified of the changes, and is currently reallocating officers to court locations. On Monday, leadership from all 10 policing divisions was briefed, with regional assistant commissioners and divisional commanders ordered to finalize officer deployment plans ahead of the September 1 deadline.

Legal industry stakeholders have broadly welcomed the announcement, though many have called for a balanced approach that retains virtual and hybrid options for certain proceeding types. The Assembly of Central Legal Practitioners (ACLP) confirmed its support for the Judiciary’s plan, but argued that in-person hearings should be restricted primarily to trials and other matters where a presiding magistrate specifically requires physical attendance. Speaking to local outlet *Trinidad Express*, ACLP executive member and attorney Steven Mawer noted that routine case management conferences, held to update the status of cases moving toward trial, function far more efficiently in virtual or hybrid formats. “The Magistrates’ Court should be open, but in-person hearings should be limited to trial matters, or matters specifically ordered to be in person by the magistrates in charge of their respective courts,” Mawer explained.

Senior judicial figure Justice Frank Seepersad also echoed this balanced perspective, welcoming the expansion of in-person hearings while warning against abandoning the technological advances adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Seepersad stressed that virtual hearings still hold an important place in the modern justice system, particularly for case management, routine procedural applications, and matters where physical attendance adds no meaningful value. However, he cautioned that efficiency cannot be the sole guiding metric for how justice is delivered. “Efficiency, however desirable, cannot be the ultimate measure of justice,” he said. Seepersad placed particular emphasis on criminal trials, where outcomes can result in loss of liberty and permanent reputational harm for accused persons. “A criminal trial is the solemn occasion upon which the coercive authority of the State is brought to bear upon the individual. Liberty, reputation and sometimes the course of an entire life may hang in the balance,” he noted. For such high-stakes proceedings, physical attendance should not be dismissed as an outdated practice, he argued, as it remains a critical safeguard for procedural fairness, human dignity and effective participation by all parties. Seepersad also highlighted the irreplaceable human element of judicial proceedings, noting that technology cannot fully replicate the empathetic dimension of in-person justice. “Justice is, after all, a human undertaking, and there is an empathetic dimension to its administration which no technology can fully replicate,” he said. He further emphasized the core principle of open justice, citing a landmark observation from the Privy Council in *Ambard v Attorney-General of Trinidad and Tobago* that “Justice is not a cloistered virtue.” Judicial authority depends on public scrutiny, Seepersad explained, with transparency fostering accountability and accountability sustaining public confidence in the justice system. “Justice does not derive authority from seclusion, but from its capacity to withstand scrutiny,” he said. Outlining a balanced path forward, Seepersad said the Judiciary should neither reject virtual technology nor cling blindly to traditional practices, but instead use each modality where it is most effective. “Technology must remain the servant of justice, never its master,” he concluded.

This planned transition aligns with priorities Boodoosingh laid out late last year during the Law Association of Trinidad and Tobago’s annual dinner and awards ceremony. At that event, the Chief Justice identified the full reopening and maximum utilization of court buildings as a top personal priority, noting that justice inherently requires in-person human interaction. He pointed out that multiple court buildings, including the Port of Spain Magistrates’ Court, have remained closed for extended periods for renovation works that have stretched to more than four years, with both costs and completion timelines ballooning over that period. Boodoosingh also restated his goal of building a more efficient, higher-performing Judiciary with shorter timelines for both hearings and final rulings, noting that all citizens have a fundamental right to have their cases heard and resolved within a reasonable timeframe, and that clear performance standards must be established to improve justice delivery across the system.

Questions over leadership continuity within the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) have emerged in recent days following the unexplained absence of Commissioner Allister Guevarro, but top government officials are moving quickly to dismiss fears of a power vacuum at the head of the national law enforcement agency.

Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander addressed growing public and political speculation during a televised interview with TV6 on Wednesday, firmly stating that the TTPS remains fully functional despite Guevarro’s unannounced leave, and that no formal crisis exists in the service’s leadership ranks. Per TTPS’s established hierarchical structure, Alexander explained, Deputy Commissioner of Police Junior Benjamin — the most senior active officer on duty at present — has stepped into the role of interim leader to oversee all agency operations.

The controversy ignited after Opposition chairman Marvin Gonzales publicly questioned Guevarro’s whereabouts, and called out the Police Service Commission (PolSC) for failing to confirm whether any formal arrangement for an acting commissioner had been put in place during Guevarro’s absence. An anonymous senior police source confirmed to media outlets that Guevarro had applied for emergency leave, though the source could not verify widespread claims that the commissioner had already left the country.

In comments to the *Express* over the weekend, Benjamin himself acknowledged that while he is currently the highest-ranking serving officer in the TTPS, he has not received a formal official document appointing him to serve as acting commissioner. That revelation amplified opposition calls for clarification from the government on the TTPS’s leadership status.

Alexander pushed back against those calls on Wednesday, arguing that the TTPS’s longstanding chain of command eliminates the need for extra formal procedures during a temporary absence. “Who is next in line holds on in the interim. There’s no need for additional action,” the minister said, noting that the government and senior TTPS leadership have full confidence in Benjamin’s ability to guide the service. Alexander added that Benjamin has previously fulfilled interim leadership duties for the TTPS, and that the deputy commissioner continues to receive full support from both the government and rank-and-file officers under his command.

“As the line minister responsible for this portfolio, I can confirm that there are no issues with the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service,” Alexander emphasized.

The minister also rejected opposition claims that Guevarro’s absence has left the TTPS leaderless, pointing to the agency’s deep bench of senior leadership to back up his argument. “The Trinidad and Tobago Police Service has three deputy commissioners and 11 assistant commissioners of police. This is not a one-man job,” he said. Alexander added that temporary absences for senior officers are a routine occurrence across all public institutions, and the TTPS’s clear hierarchy is designed to allow other qualified leaders to step in seamlessly when needed.

“I don’t know why all this excitement,” Alexander said. “There are a number of persons in the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service who from time to time would go here, there and everywhere. And even in their absence, there are persons who can replace them.”

Alexander also criticized the intense public focus on Guevarro’s personal whereabouts, arguing that even elected and appointed public officials are entitled to a reasonable degree of personal privacy. “It is almost like, when you enter public office, your personal life becomes completely public. Some things that we need to leave alone at times… And when the time comes, we will explain it all,” he said.

The minister went a step further, questioning the priorities of critics who have continued to press for details on Guevarro’s location. “There are persons who continue to ask a certain question that makes no logical sense,” Alexander said. “I often say this… there are some persons right now asking where the Commissioner is, and they don’t even know where their own children are. They’re asking where the Commissioner is, and their own boss at work is looking for them because they haven’t been seen on the job in days.”

“Some of the children are not going to school, the parents are not even asking if they went to school or not. But where is the Commissioner? The Commissioner is where he’s supposed to be,” Alexander added.

Despite Alexander’s assurances, public and political questions persist over whether a formal acting appointment is legally required for the TTPS during Guevarro’s leave. For his part, Alexander has remained firm in his position: the TTPS can continue its core public safety work through its existing command structure, and Benjamin is fully capable of leading the service until Guevarro returns.

Workers at Trinidad and Tobago’s Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) have ended industrial protest action after the country’s Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath issued a formal guarantee that the current government would uphold all pre-election commitments made to employees represented by the Public Services Association (PSA).

The breakthrough came following a face-to-face meeting between Padarath, PSA president Felisha Thomas, and union leadership held at WASA’s St Joseph head office on Tuesday. The meeting was organized specifically to address long-stalled wage negotiation rounds covering the 2014–2016 and 2017–2019 periods, alongside long-running grievances over internal HR processes that had delayed progress on the claims.

Images of the minister walking hand-in-hand with Thomas into the WASA compound signaled a new spirit of cooperation between the government, the union, and the utility provider. Speaking to assembled workers after the meeting concluded, Thomas confirmed that the minister had met all core demands put forward by the union to break the negotiation deadlock. Under the agreement struck, WASA’s HR leadership will review the union’s formal proposals this week, with full documentation of the proposals set to be submitted to the Ministry of Public Utilities by Friday.

Padarath also committed to convening a follow-up meeting between the PSA, himself, and Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo to move toward a final settlement. Addressing the gathered workers, Padarath emphasized the current administration has not broken any pre-election agreements made with public sector workers, noting that stalled negotiations stemmed from procedural bottlenecks rather than a lack of commitment.

“A breakdown in communication is always a recipe for industrial disaster,” Padarath told the crowd, explaining his intervention to speed up the process. To cut through internal red tape, the minister appointed WASA’s acting chief executive Dain Maharaj to serve as a dedicated intermediary between the union and the utility’s HR department, ordering Maharaj to ensure all required paperwork reaches the ministry by the end of the week.

Padarath acknowledged the validity of Thomas’ concerns over inefficient internal HR management at WASA, and committed to reviewing those systemic issues with the utility’s board chair and executive leadership. He clarified that as a cabinet minister he cannot directly intervene in HR operational matters, but pledged that the ministry would provide regular updates to the PSA executive as the review and negotiation processes move forward.

In his remarks, Padarath also struck a note of caution, acknowledging that the current government has inherited significant fiscal and operational challenges from the previous administration. He warned that a failure to resolve outstanding issues through dialogue could put WASA jobs at risk if administrative structures are destabilized. To address the fiscal constraints, he noted the government has pursued strategic local and international partnership investments to strengthen public finances and allow the state to meet its commitments to workers.

Reiterating the administration’s commitment to a collaborative resolution, Padarath called on both the union and WASA management to maintain open lines of communication moving forward to prevent future disruptions to service and industrial relations.

A sharp political conflict has erupted in Trinidad and Tobago over reported United States visa revocations, pitting former Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley against sitting Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar. Rowley has publicly alleged that the U.S. has revoked visas held by both himself and another former Prime Minister, Stuart Young, and he is pressing the current administration to answer for the actions that led to this outcome.

In a public Facebook post published over the weekend, Rowley issued a series of direct questions to Persad-Bissessar. He challenged the prime minister to publicly specify which of the officially listed U.S. visa violation grounds apply to himself and Young, noting that political figures aligned with Persad-Bissessar’s United National Congress (UNC) had previously written to the U.S. government formally requesting the visa cancellations.

Beyond his own case, Rowley raised additional questions about broader visa revocation activity. He called on the prime minister to reveal details about a prior visa cancellation involving a close personal associate of hers, which occurred before Persad-Bissessar’s administration took office. He also demanded transparency around how many additional Trinidad and Tobago citizens the current prime minister and her government have referred to U.S. authorities with recommendations for visa revocation.

Rowley further accused UNC leadership and their affiliated allies of weaponizing visa policy, claiming they have issued repeated threats to ordinary Trinidadian citizens warning that they could lose their U.S. travel privileges for political reasons. In his post, the former prime minister referenced an August 10, 2026 official statement from the U.S. Department of State, thanking U.S. authorities for publicly disclosing the official grounds for visa revocation to what he described as a traumatized local public.

That U.S. State Department release outlines that the U.S. government revokes visas for foreign nationals found to have violated visa terms, committed criminal acts, incited violence against U.S. citizens, defrauded U.S. residents, abused the U.S. immigration system, or threatened U.S. national security. It noted that during the Trump administration, the State Department revoked more than 175,000 visas of foreign nationals matching these criteria. Most revocations stemmed from confirmed criminal activity, with offenses including assault, drunk driving, theft, and drug offenses topping the list, followed by reckless driving, sexual assault, child abuse, fraud, embezzlement, and other serious crimes. The release emphasizes that U.S. visa access is a privilege, not an inherent right, and that ongoing continuous vetting is conducted to protect U.S. communities from individuals who may pose a risk.

When reached for comment by local outlet the Express immediately after Rowley’s post, Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar dismissed his allegations, simply stating that the U.S. State Department’s public release is self-explanatory. As of press time, repeated attempts to contact both Rowley and Young for additional comment have been unsuccessful.

This controversy builds on earlier disclosures from current Attorney General John Jeremie, who told Parliament in June that the U.S. government had revoked visas held by a number of members of what he described as the “1%” elite group in Trinidad and Tobago. Jeremie explained that he initially ignored a journalist’s question about the revoked visas, but later was approached in his parliamentary office by multiple local figures who confirmed their U.S. travel documents had been canceled. He noted that U.S. authorities maintain advanced intelligence gathering capabilities to support these decisions, and stressed that the Trinidad and Tobago government has no involvement in the U.S. government’s independent visa decisions.