标签： Trinidad and Tobago

Years of delays and unforeseen disruptions are drawing to a close for one of Trinidad and Tobago’s most high-profile public infrastructure projects, with the long-awaited Central Block expansion of Port of Spain General Hospital now entering its final construction phase. Officials confirmed this week that the $1.3 billion, 540-bed facility is 97% complete as of June 23, 2026, and is on track to reach substantial completion by the new target date of July 14.

The update came in an official response from Trinidad and Tobago’s Ministry of Works and Infrastructure to local outlet *Express*, which had requested confirmation on whether the project had met its earlier revised completion deadline of June 30.

Project management lead, the Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago, has set the July 14 milestone for the completion of all core structural and utility work, including mechanical systems, electrical wiring, plumbing, and information and communications technology infrastructure — all required pre-requisites before the facility can be formally handed over to health authorities for operational setup.

In a statement, the ministry highlighted that the project has made meaningful progress in transforming what was long a half-finished, underutilised construction site into a functional healthcare space nearing active service. Preparations for handover are already well underway, with the entire new wing having undergone a full deep cleaning to prepare for the arrival of clinical teams and patients. Once substantial completion is certified, the Central Block will be transferred officially to the Ministry of Health to launch full clinical operations.

First approved for construction by the previous Trinidad and Tobago government back in 2017, the project has faced a cascade of setbacks that pushed its completion far beyond initial timelines. Two of the most impactful disruptions were a 6.9 magnitude earthquake that struck the region in 2018, which caused construction delays and required structural reassessments, and the global Covid-19 pandemic that disrupted supply chains, slowed worker availability, and paused work on site for extended periods. The project’s progression towards completion marks a major win for public healthcare access in the region, addressing years of unmet demand for expanded hospital capacity.

Migration and human rights activists in Trinidad and Tobago are pushing back against the government’s official justification for widespread delays in processing migration and residency applications, arguing that the policy punishes law-abiding migrants who have followed all regulatory requirements to gain legal status. The criticism comes in direct response to recent remarks from Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander, who blamed the backlog on undocumented migrants crossing the country’s porous borders to sneak into the ongoing registration exercise, falsely claiming long-term residency in the nation.

Speaking via telephone with the Express on Thursday, leading migrant rights advocate Sofia Figueroa-Leon rejected Alexander’s explanation as logically inconsistent and fundamentally unfair. She emphasized that there is no connection between the alleged illegal entry of new arrivals and the thousands of migrants who already completed all pre-requisite steps for registration, including submitting online applications and attending mandatory in-person appointments.

Figueroa-Leon argued that if the government is facing operational challenges in securing its borders or managing the registration process, those issues should be addressed directly rather than shifting the burden onto compliant applicants. “If they lack sufficient staffing or the capacity to manage the process, that is an administrative failure on the government’s part, not a problem that migrants should have to bear,” she noted. “Migrants came forward voluntarily to complete the registration process because they want to live legally in this country. They fulfilled their end of the agreement, so it is the government’s responsibility to hold up its end. Putting all applications on hold because of border control failures is unprofessional and not a serious policy response. The ball is now firmly in the government’s court to move forward with processing.”

Her criticism was echoed by other migrant support leaders and registered applicants, who echoed the call for the government to separate border enforcement from the processing of lawfully completed applications. Angie Ramnarine, coordinator of the Romaine Migrant Support Group, noted that it was predictable that registered migrants would encourage family members to join them after the government launched the regularization exercise, adding that securing national borders has always been the government’s core responsibility. “Rather than punishing people who already followed all the rules, the government should focus on doing its job to stop unauthorized new arrivals,” Ramnarine said.

Gabriela Alvarado, a 40-year-old migrant who completed her registration years ago and has lived in the country with her family for more than a decade, also called Alexander’s comments unfair. “I stood in long lines, filled out all the required paperwork, paid my $700 fee, and did everything by the book, and we are still waiting for approval,” Alvarado said. “It’s unjust that we have to pay for the government’s failures.”

The controversy comes as the country’s first-ever Migrant Registration Framework wraps its initial phase, which has already drawn nearly 30,000 applications from people representing more than 60 nationalities. Venezuelan nationals make up the overwhelming majority of applicants, with children accounting for more than half of the total registered population. The regularization program grants approved applicants temporary legal status to live and work in Trinidad and Tobago through September 2026.

Even before the latest delay controversy, the program has faced widespread criticism from civil society groups. After the initial online registration portal closed earlier this year, hundreds of undocumented migrants who missed the deadline due to system glitches or a lack of clear public outreach pleaded with authorities for a final extension to sign up. Civil society organizations have also raised ongoing concerns about a lack of transparency from national security officials, documenting multiple cases where migrants who visited immigration offices to ask for application updates were instead served deportation orders.

Decades of unaddressed infrastructure failures have left both correctional officers and incarcerated people at Trinidad and Tobago’s Port of Spain Prison trapped in unacceptable living and working conditions, leading the national Prison Officers’ Association (POA) to publicly pressure the Ministry of Homeland Security to approve the purchase of critical replacement water pumps.

POA Public Secretary Lester Logie outlined the gravity of the crisis during an address to union members on Wednesday, urging the ministry’s permanent secretary to issue immediate authorization to acquire the three pumps the facility has lacked for an extended period. Without functioning pumping equipment, every section of the prison – from senior leadership offices to correctional officer dormitories and the facility’s Emergency Response Unit quarters – has been cut off from reliable running water.

Logie detailed the grim daily reality for people at the prison: correctional staff are forced to manually carry water to flush toilets and bathe, a burden that even extends to the superintendent’s own office. Incarcerated people face the same dehumanizing conditions, hauling water to their cells for hygiene and toilet use.

What makes the situation even more unacceptable, Logie argued, is that funding for the low-cost pumps already exists through revenue generated by the prison’s on-site commissary. The commissary, where family members purchase personal items for incarcerated people, generates consistent profits that Logie says should be allocated to improving core prison operations. He questioned where these accumulated profits have been diverted, noting that the small cost of three 3-horsepower pumps should not be an insurmountable barrier.

“We cannot have officers continuing to work in these conditions, making requests to the association for these types of basic items when there is an available source of funds that are clearly being used for other things that are not critical for the running of the prison,” Logie said. The union leader is now calling for a full public accounting of all commissary revenue, to ensure funds are directed toward the improvement of the Prison Service as they were intended.

The water crisis is not the only unaddressed hazard at the facility, Logie added. He revealed the prison recently faced a severe rat infestation in its ration storage room, but management took no action until the POA escalated the issue directly to the Minister of Homeland Security. Rather than prioritizing pest control to protect food supplies, Logie said prison leadership focused instead on disciplining officers who reported the problem, launching an investigation to identify which staff member shared information with the union.

Logie urged correctional officers to continue reporting unsafe working conditions to the union regardless of potential pushback from management, emphasizing that exposing these failures is the only path to reform. He has now called for direct intervention from Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander and Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to resolve the crisis.

As of Wednesday, repeated attempts by journalists to reach Minister Alexander and acting Commissioner of Prisons Carlos Corraspe for comment on the allegations went unanswered.

A deliberate act of vandalism targeting an energy infrastructure pipeline in Barrackpore has caused an oil leak, prompting a large-scale emergency response and clean-up operation led by national energy authorities and private industry partners. Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Energy Dr. Roodal Moonilal confirmed the incident occurred along GP Road, where thieves deliberately damaged a joint pipeline operated by a private firm in partnership with state-owned Heritage Petroleum Ltd. The attackers removed a 6-foot section of the pipeline to steal the metal, leaving the line compromised and spilling crude hydrocarbon into the surrounding area.

Minister Moonilal shared details of the incident with reporters on the sidelines of a graduation ceremony for Grant Memorial Presbyterian School, held at Susamachar Presbyterian Church in San Fernando. The case has been formally registered with local law enforcement as an act of sabotage, marking a troubling escalation of criminal targeting of critical national energy assets.

“Individuals unlawfully entered the facility, destroyed the pipeline, and their clear intention was to steal large lengths of this critical infrastructure,” Moonilal explained to the press. “This is an act of vandalism and theft that we unreservedly condemn, and it has reached a point where criminals are directly targeting operational pipeline networks.”

In the immediate aftermath of the incident being reported, Heritage Petroleum and multiple state agencies mobilized rapidly to contain the spill and mitigate environmental harm. Clean-up crews have already deployed specialized resources to protect nearby residential communities, active agricultural lands, and local livestock populations, while formal criminal investigations are underway.

“We have mobilized all necessary resources for clean-up and have implemented scientific environmental monitoring protocols to protect the environment, private property, crops, livestock and all other at-risk assets,” Moonilal added. The national government is collaborating closely with law enforcement to advance the investigation and identify the perpetrators responsible for the attack.

Looking ahead to prevent future incidents, Moonilal confirmed the government will partner with Heritage Petroleum to boost security protocols across all national oilfield operations, hardening critical infrastructure against criminal tampering and theft.

In an official public statement released yesterday, Heritage Petroleum also joined in condemning the sabotage, echoing the minister’s concerns over public safety and environmental risk. The company confirmed that a preliminary on-site assessment verified the removal of approximately six feet of pipeline by the attackers. Immediately after receiving reports of the leak, Heritage activated its formal Incident Command System, rolling out pre-planned emergency response protocols to manage the incident.

The company has deployed vacuum trucks and heavy industrial equipment to recover spilled oil, and has placed containment booms in nearby waterways to stop the spread of hydrocarbon contamination. Company representatives have been in direct communication with local residents and other stakeholders to provide real-time updates and any necessary support. As a precautionary public health measure, ongoing air quality testing and monitoring is being conducted to confirm that pollutant levels in the surrounding area remain within safe limits.

“Heritage Petroleum unequivocally condemns all acts of sabotage against our infrastructure,” the company’s statement read. “These incidents not only cause loss of containment but also create unacceptable risks to public safety, the natural environment, and the critical national energy infrastructure that supports our country’s economy. In response, we have already expanded proactive precautionary measures to increase monitoring and security across all of our hydrocarbon assets.”

The matter has been formally referred to local law enforcement for full criminal investigation, and all relevant national regulatory bodies including the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries and the Environmental Management Authority have been notified of the incident, with investigations continuing as clean-up operations progress.

A brazen early-morning ambush has left a well-regarded maxi-taxi driver dead outside his home in Brazil Village, leaving law enforcement with no clear leads as to what prompted the deadly attack.

The victim, identified as 56-year-old Ronald Ramgoolie, was gunned down shortly after leaving his residence on Savannah Drive around 6:30 a.m. yesterday. According to initial police reports, Ramgoolie had stepped outside to inspect his 24-seater maxi-taxi, which he nicknamed “General,” when an unidentified attacker opened fire, hitting him multiple times before fleeing the scene on foot.

Neighbors and family members who heard the gunfire rushed outside immediately, discovering Ramgoolie’s body lying on the roadway just meters from his vehicle. First responders from the San Raphael Police Station were the first law enforcement officials to arrive at the crime scene, with investigators from the Region Two Homicide Bureau and the regional Crime Scene Unit arriving shortly after to process evidence and conduct interviews with witnesses.

As of press time, investigators have not been able to establish a potential motive for the killing. Multiple law enforcement sources confirmed that Ramgoolie had no documented connections to illegal activity, and no suspicious behavior linked to the driver had been reported to local police prior to the shooting.

Brenton Knights, president of the Route Two Maxi-Taxi Association, paid tribute to Ramgoolie on Tuesday, describing him as a calm, dedicated professional with a strong drive to build a better life for his family. Knights recalled that when he first met Ramgoolie roughly five years ago, the driver was operating a smaller maxi-taxi, but through hard work and ambition, he had worked his way up to owning and operating the larger 24-seater vehicle.

“Life is a precious thing and any loss of life will never be good, because it is not even our own to take,” Knights said in an interview. “So I find what happened to him was totally unacceptable regardless of what were the circumstances.” Knights added that Ramgoolie was a devoted family man who was well-liked by his peers and the community he served.

The killing brings the national murder toll to 190 as of last night, matching the exact same death toll recorded on the same date last year.