Carib Scope

标签： Trinidad and Tobago

特立尼达和多巴哥

  • BOOK GRANTS BY SEPT 21

    BOOK GRANTS BY SEPT 21

    During a recent parliamentary sitting held at Port of Spain’s Red House, Trinidad and Tobago’s Education Minister Dr Michael Dowlath has laid out a clear timeline for the disbursement of the widely anticipated 2026 School Supplies and Book Grant, responding to mounting pressure from opposition lawmakers and anxious parents across the country.

    The urgent question that prompted Dowlath’s announcement came from Opposition MP Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly, a former education minister who raised growing public alarm over the delayed distribution of the need-based financial assistance ahead of the 2026-2027 academic year, which launched on September 7. Gadsby-Dolly highlighted that thousands of eligible families had yet to access the grant funds meant to offset back-to-school costs, demanding a firm, public deadline for all approved applicants.

    In his official response, Dowlath confirmed that every pre-vetted approved applicant can expect to receive their grant payment no later than Monday, September 21, 2026. He pushed back against criticism of the current administration’s timeline by noting that even under the previous People’s National Movement (PNM) government that Gadsby-Dolly served in, grant distributions were not completed until September 30 in both 2024 and 2025, making the 2026 deadline earlier than the last two cycles of the program.

    The rollout of this year’s grant has faced consistent scrutiny since it launched on September 2, just five days ahead of the first day of school, a timeline that drew sharp criticism from both parents and opposition representatives for being unnecessarily delayed. When pressed by Gadsby-Dolly to share how many grants had already been disbursed as of the parliamentary sitting, Dowlath declined to provide a figure, arguing the question fell outside the scope of the original urgent query she had submitted.

    The grant program offers $1,000 per eligible student at most grade levels, with a adjusted allocation of $500 for Form Two students, a change made to account for existing provisions of textbooks and educational technology for that cohort. This year, the ministry expanded the program to include 20,744 beneficiaries, a net increase of 744 eligible students compared to the 2025 cycle, according to comments Dowlath made to journalists during a recent school tour in southern Trinidad.

    Dowlath also defended the compressed processing timeline this cycle, explaining that official authorization to launch the grant program was only granted in June 2026, giving the ministry just six weeks to verify the more than 45,953 submitted applications, compared to the six-month processing window that was available for the 2024 cycle. A subsequent ministry statement clarified that the entire distribution effort remains within the $20 million budget allocation approved in the 2026 Mid-Year Review, so no additional public funding will be required for the expanded program.

    In a second urgent question brought forward during the same parliamentary sitting, Gadsby-Dolly raised another pressing education issue: a severe bat infestation at St Hilda’s Government Primary School that forced the campus to pause in-person classes shortly after the new term began. Dowlath addressed the outbreak, confirming that campus administrators reported the bat presence on school grounds to the ministry immediately after the start of term, and the ministry has already contracted the National Maintenance Training and Security Company Ltd (MTS) to carry out full remediation.

    Per the current work schedule, pest removal and site clearance work is set to begin on September 12 and wrap up by September 13, clearing the way for the school to fully reopen to all students the following Monday. In the interim, Dowlath noted, school leadership has arranged for Standard Five students to continue their studies remotely: teachers are preparing assignments that parents can pick up and drop off completed work at the school’s guarded entrance booth, ensuring no disruption to student learning while the infestation is resolved.

  • Star weeps after PDO revoked

    Star weeps after PDO revoked

    After nearly four months of restricted detention, 69-year-old cheese maker Star Sabga has regained her personal freedom after Trinidad and Tobago’s Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander formally revoked the Preventive Detention Order (PDO) that targeted her. Her attorney Faris Al-Rawi told reporters that when the revocation notice was delivered by Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) officers at 10:15 a.m. yesterday, Sabga broke into tears, overwhelmed by a tangled mix of relief, disbelief and raw emotion after the long period of confinement.

    Sabga’s detention timeline stretches back to June 26, when she was first taken into custody under the PDO. After several weeks held in a prison facility, she was transferred to home confinement at her Regents Towers apartment in Westmoorings starting July 23, a restriction that remained in place until the order was lifted yesterday. Throughout her house arrest, Al-Rawi explained, Sabga was only permitted two 15-minute visits from family members, was barred from leaving her apartment at all, and was completely unable to generate income from her cheese making business. Even now, following her release, Al-Rawi noted that the trauma of the detention will take time to fade: Sabga is still adjusting to the simple freedoms most people take for granted, like being able to lock her doors without unannounced midnight or early-morning checks from authorities while she sleeps. When family members were finally able to gather in her living room freely after the revocation, Sabga was completely overcome by the moment, Al-Rawi added.

    Addressing the controversial remarks that formed the core of the state’s case against Sabga, Al-Rawi clarified the context of the intercepted private conversation at the center of the detention proceedings. Speaking on an affidavit Sabga filed regarding a recorded discussion with her niece Genevieve Hadeed, Al-Rawi said Sabga believed the conversation was completely private. She was only venting personal frustration about the country’s political direction, referencing historical events from 1970 and 1990, and never intended to threaten or cause harm to anyone, including government officials. Sabga has publicly expressed regret for using a racial slur during the discussion, and has firmly stated she has never and would never threaten violence against any person or member of the government.

    While the revocation of the PDO has restored Sabga’s personal freedom, it has not closed the book on the broader legal proceedings that involve Sabga, Genevieve Hadeed and Dominic Hadeed. Two major High Court cases are still pending: one for judicial review of the state’s actions, and a constitutional claim that challenges the issuance of warrants, the PDOs themselves, the interception of private communications, and alleged breaches of core constitutional rights including the right to liberty, equal treatment under the law, and the right to private life. The proceedings also seek formal court declarations of wrongdoing and financial damages. Al-Rawi noted that a state appeal against a prior ruling allowing Sabga to serve her detention at home is now effectively moot after the PDO’s revocation, but all underlying legal questions remain to be decided by the courts — and could ultimately go all the way to the Privy Council, the highest appellate body for the country.

    The case raises far broader questions than the circumstances of the three individuals involved, Al-Rawi emphasized. In particular, the legal team is challenging Section 6(2)(b) of Trinidad and Tobago’s Interception of Communications Act, which permits the Commissioner of Police, Chief of Defence Staff, and head of the Strategic Services Agency to request communication interception without first obtaining a judicial warrant. The defense argues this provision is unconstitutional, because it lacks the safeguards built into other sections of the law that require a judge to approve a warrant before surveillance can proceed.

    Al-Rawi also pointed to critical discrepancies in the state’s evidence: the state has confirmed the interception at the center of the case happened on June 11, but the warrant approving the interception was not requested or granted until between June 18 and June 24, days after the surveillance was already completed. Of the 13 audio clips the state has submitted to the court, the defense disputes how the state has attributed statements to Sabga and the Hadeeds. Al-Rawi stressed that the June 11 conversation between Sabga and her niece is the foundation of the detention orders, but many of the statements the state attributed to Dominic and Genevieve Hadeed “simply never happened,” and Sabga’s remarks were made in a completely different context than the state has presented. These discrepancies will be a core part of the ongoing constitutional and judicial review challenges.

    Despite the ongoing legal fight, Al-Rawi emphasized that Sabga and her co-defendants have no interest in escalating conflict with the government or the TTPS. “They don’t want a war with Government. They don’t want a war with the TTPS. They want their good names restored,” he said.

  • Families wait for loved ones

    Families wait for loved ones

    The long-awaited process of releasing detainees held under Preventive Detention Orders (PDOs) amid Trinidad’s ongoing state of emergency got underway on Tuesday, with the rollout stretching from early morning through overnight as family members waiting to reunite with their loved ones described the experience as slow and disorganized. Prison authorities set an ambitious target of releasing the vast majority of the detainees by 7 p.m. on Tuesday, but the process hit significant logistical delays, leading to continued releases scheduled for Wednesday.

    Local outlet Trinidad Express reporters arrived at the entrance of the Eastern Correctional Rehabilitation Centre (ECRC), located off the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway in Santa Rosa, Arima, at approximately 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday. By that time, around 30 personal vehicles, including passenger cars and SUVs, were already lined up and parked along the side of the adjacent road, filled with friends and family waiting to pick up released detainees, many of whom had been held in custody for months. The current national state of emergency is scheduled to expire next week, prompting the large-scale release effort.

    Acting Prisons Commissioner Elvin Scanterbury told the Express Tuesday that he did not have a final confirmed count of how many detainees were scheduled for release that day. He did, however, highlight the coordinated work across national security agencies to pull off the operation: “But it was a nice collaboration between all arms of National Security and I am really hoping that it would all be done by 7 [last night].” Scanterbury added that parallel release processes were also ongoing at two other facilities: the country’s Women’s Prison and the men’s correctional facility at Golden Grove. He emphasized that the operation required extensive advance preparation, including multiple late-night planning meetings, and expressed confidence in the work his team had completed. “It has been a smooth process and it took a lot of planning and I am very proud of all the work we have done and all of the meetings held late into the night to plan this out,” he said.

    At the ECRC entrance, waiting relatives were instructed to remain in their vehicles at all times, waiting for a text message or radio signal to alert them when they could enter the facility grounds to collect their loved one. A large white security tent set up near the facility entrance was staffed by heavily armed police officers and masked prison personnel, who managed the flow of incoming vehicles. One woman waiting to pick up her brother explained that vehicles were only allowed to move forward one at a time through the checkpoint process. After officials call a vehicle forward, police conduct a full search of the car and take a photograph of the person designated to pick up the detainee before clearing the vehicle to pass through a security barrier and proceed to the facility entrance. Once the detainee is brought out to the vehicle, the car is immediately asked to exit the compound, with visitors discouraged from lingering at the entrance to avoid overcrowding.

    Many waiting family members reported hours of uncommunicated delays that left them frustrated. One woman, who had been on site since 7 a.m., was sitting on a case of bottled water under the tent smoking a cigarette when the Express spoke to her around 2 p.m. She and several other waiting relatives said they had received almost no updated information about the timeline of the release process. “They have us here waiting but they are not telling us anything but to hold on,” she said. She also complained that people who had arrived at the site hours later than the early morning group were often processed through the checkpoint before those who had waited the longest. “But that’s how the thing does go,” another waiting woman shrugged in response.

    One man waiting to pick up a relative said he and a small group of other visitors had traveled all the way from South Trinidad to reach the ECRC, while other visitors told reporters they had come from as far east as Toco. “This is very frustrating,” he told reporters.

    As the afternoon wore on, however, prison officials adjusted their process and began moving from vehicle to vehicle to collect visitor names and check identification in advance, updating waiting groups on the timeline. As more information became available, the overall mood among waiting relatives began to improve. By mid-afternoon, the Express observed a steady stream of vehicles being called forward, searched, and cleared to enter the facility to pick up their released family members. After all releases on Tuesday were wrapped up, officials confirmed that the remaining detainees would be released on Wednesday as the process concludes.

  • Cops kill two main suspects

    Cops kill two main suspects

    Nearly two months after a off-duty Trinidad and Tobago police constable was gunned down during an alleged robbery attempt, the last two primary suspects in his killing were killed in an early morning shootout with law enforcement in Maloney. The fatal confrontation brings the total number of suspects linked to the high-profile killing who have died in police encounters to four.

    The two suspects killed on Thursday were identified by police as Tyreek De Coteau and Shakeel Martin. Following the shootout, both men were rushed to the Arima Hospital, where medical staff pronounced them dead immediately upon their arrival. Law enforcement officials confirmed that illegal firearms were recovered from the confrontation site after the encounter ended. The large-scale operation was led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) Suzette Martin, carried out by a specialized team of officers from the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS).

    The deadly police operation marked the final major breakthrough in a manhunt launched after the July 28 killing of 48-year-old PC Romel Kerry Douglas, an officer assigned to the Four Roads Police Station. Douglas was off-duty when the attack unfolded around 11:05 p.m. that night, as he sat in his parked vehicle at the intersection of Hydraulic Trace and Caroni South Bank Road in Kelly Village, Caroni. According to police accounts, a white Nissan Tiida pulled up alongside Douglas’ car, and the people inside the vehicle initiated an attempted armed robbery.

    A violent exchange of gunfire broke out between the suspects and Douglas, who was licensed to carry a personal firearm. Douglas was struck multiple times during the shootout; when first responders arrived at the scene roughly 10 minutes later, they found him dead inside his vehicle. Investigators confirmed that Douglas’ own licensed weapon was stolen by the suspects during the attack. One of the would-be robbers, 19-year-old Adetola Ammon from Arima, was also killed in the exchange — police have concluded Ammon was shot dead by one of his own accomplices during the chaos of the attack. The suspects’ getaway Nissan Tiida was later found abandoned nearby, prompting TTPS to launch an immediate, widespread manhunt for the remaining co-conspirators.

    The third suspect, 18-year-old Hassan “H-Man” Johnson, a resident of Arima who had been hiding from authorities since the killing, was shot dead in a separate police confrontation on August 11. Police tracked Johnson to a two-bedroom home at the 7 3/4-mile mark on Main Road, Mora Trace, Matura, where he was staying at his girlfriend’s residence. A joint team of officers from the TTPS Home Invasion Team, Special Investigations Unit, multiple divisional gang units, the Deputy Commissioner’s operations team, and support personnel from the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force surrounded the property before moving in. When officers breached the home’s eastern entrance, police said Johnson opened fire on the team first, prompting officers to return fire and strike him multiple times. Johnson was transported to the Sangre Grande Hospital and pronounced dead at approximately 11:55 p.m. that night. Two other people — a 19-year-old man and Johnson’s girlfriend — were inside the home during the operation but escaped without injury, and were taken into custody for questioning.

    With the deaths of De Coteau and Martin, all four suspects identified by police in connection with Douglas’s killing have now died in shooting incidents. Douglas was laid to rest on August 6 following a public funeral service held at the Morvant Central Community Centre on Cipriani Street in Morvant. During the memorial service, loved ones and colleagues remembered Douglas as a devoted family man who prioritized his loved ones above all else.

    In a separate, unrelated incident that unfolded hours later on the same day in Carapichaima, a third man was fatally shot by TTPS officers after he opened fire on a team investigating extortion allegations. The Anti-Extortion Unit was executing an investigation at a residential property on Palm Avenue in the Orangefield Settlement when the confrontation erupted at approximately 4 a.m. According to official police reports, as officers entered the property, one of the occupants opened fire on the team. Officers returned fire, striking the 36-year-old occupant, later identified as Riyad Sean Ali. Ali, who was hit in the chest, was transported to the Chaguanas District Health Facility where he was pronounced dead. A firearm was recovered at the scene of the confrontation. When officers cleared the home after the shootout, they found Ali’s elderly mother hiding in one of the bedrooms unharmed. Ali’s brother was taken into custody to assist with ongoing investigations, police confirmed.

  • Fourth man killed in Morvant in three days

    Fourth man killed in Morvant in three days

    A small Trinidad and Tobago community is reeling from a wave of brutal violence that has left four people dead in less than 96 hours, with the latest victim a 21-year-old resident gunned down at his own home early Saturday.

    Local law enforcement has identified the most recent fatality as Nathaniel Lewis, a resident of Second Caledonia in Morvant. Investigative accounts confirm that shortly after 5 a.m., two armed gunmen forced entry into Lewis’ residence while he was inside, and immediately opened fire. First responders were dispatched to the scene within minutes of neighbors calling in reports of gunshots, arriving to find Lewis critically injured from multiple bullet wounds. Emergency medical personnel were alerted urgently, but by the time they reached the property, Lewis had already succumbed to his injuries. Investigators collecting evidence at the scene recovered multiple spent bullet casings, though no suspects have been named or apprehended as of the latest updates.

    While official law enforcement has not confirmed a public motive for Lewis’ killing, the string of consecutive deadly shootings in the same neighborhood has led investigators to suspect gang-related activity is behind the surge in violence. Lewis’ death marks the fourth homicide recorded in the Morvant area since the previous Tuesday.

    The first of the four killings unfolded early Tuesday, when 22-year-old Tylan Hinkson, a Morvant resident from Redwood Street, was found shot dead. Police received a report of a body lying on Second Caledonia Road, near the shuttered former Juman’s Shopping Complex, around 1:30 a.m. When officers arrived, they found Hinkson’s remains, with clear gunshot wounds to his face, hands, and legs.

    Later that same Tuesday night, a second older victim was claimed by the violence: 62-year-old Steve Griffith. Police responding to another shooting report found Griffith’s body lying face down on an unpaved track in Second Caledonia. According to local residents who spoke to investigators, Griffith was known to regularly socialize with younger men in the community, several of whom are reputed to have ties to local gangs. Neighborhood residents have speculated that these associations may have been the trigger for his murder.

    The third victim, 57-year-old Clarence Thompson, was found dead Wednesday after a nearly 12-hour search. Residents reported hearing gunshots near Thompson’s home in Crichlow Trace, Chinapoo, around 10 p.m. Tuesday. Thompson’s relatives, who lived close by, grew concerned when he did not make contact Wednesday morning and went to check his property. There they found a disturbing scene: blood spatter across the living room floor, spent bullet casings scattered across the space, and clear evidence that the home had been ransacked. The family contacted police immediately, but responding officers were unable to locate Thompson’s body due to dense surrounding vegetation and limited night visibility. It was only when members of the volunteer Hunters Search and Rescue Team joined the search that Thompson’s body was found in a bushy ravine just behind his home, 12 hours after the initial gunshots were heard. He had been hit multiple times by gunfire. A close relative of Thompson spoke to local media on condition of anonymity Wednesday, saying he could not imagine any reason for the killing. “He was a cool, easy-going fella who didn’t go to any parties or anything,” the relative said.

    The rapid succession of killings has terrified local residents, who have taken to social media to call for urgent action from law enforcement. Many residents describe the neighborhood as having devolved into an active war zone, and are demanding increased security to protect innocent civilians.

    Senior Superintendent Claire Guy-Alleyne, head of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service’s North Eastern Division, has stated that law enforcement takes the escalating violence in Morvant extremely seriously. She confirmed that immediately following Thompson’s killing, police high command ordered a visible increase in uniformed patrols across all high-risk areas of the community, and that targeted anti-violence operations are currently underway to disrupt gang activity and prevent further bloodshed.

    As of this update, the national murder toll for the current calendar year stands at 253. By comparison, the total number of homicides recorded across the country by this same point last year was 262, marking a small year-over-year decrease despite the recent outbreak of violence in Morvant.

  • That’s not diplomacy

    That’s not diplomacy

    A major diplomatic row has erupted in Trinidad and Tobago this week, as former foreign affairs minister and opposition figure Dr. Amery Browne has publicly rejected Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s recent public expression of affection for Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, dismissing the comment as a disingenuous political pivot that does not fix already damaged bilateral ties.

    Persad-Bissessar first made headlines with her remarks earlier this week, when she spoke to reporters on the steps of Port of Spain’s Hall of Justice during the annual ceremonial opening of the new law term. Alongside sharing her statement of “love” for Rodríguez, the Prime Minister confirmed she is planning to hold a bilateral meeting with the Venezuelan interim leader on the sidelines of the upcoming United Nations General Assembly, scheduled to take place later this month in New York.

    Speaking from the Office of the Leader of the Opposition in Port of Spain one day after Persad-Bissessar’s announcement, Browne argued that the current administration is only now attempting to repair a bilateral relationship that its own leadership actively undermined during its time in office. The opposition leader also pointed out that Trinidad and Tobago’s government has yet to issue a formal apology to the Venezuelan government for past critical comments Persad-Bissessar made about Rodríguez.

    Browne emphasized that warm personal remarks do not amount to substantive, principled diplomacy, noting that the ruling United National Congress (UNC) administration led by Persad-Bissessar bears full responsibility for the current frayed ties between the two neighboring nations. He recalled that just years prior, the Prime Minister publicly backed harsh international sanctions targeting Rodríguez, framing her sudden embrace of the Venezuelan leader as a move driven purely by political convenience rather than genuine change in policy.

    He also pushed back on Persad-Bissessar’s reference to her own family ties to Venezuela – the Prime Minister has noted her mother-in-law is Venezuelan – arguing that personal connections to the country have no bearing on official state-to-state relations between neighboring countries. “One is anticipated to demonstrate principle. One is anticipated to demonstrate dignity. And one is anticipated and called upon to demonstrate consistency,” Browne said, adding that Persad-Bissessar has failed on all three counts.

    Browne called for a full review of the Prime Minister’s long record on Venezuela policy, rather than only focusing on her recent remarks. “When the Prime Minister says to tell Delcy Rodríguez that I love her, we need to examine not just the words of today or yesterday, but also the actions and statements of the Prime Minister and the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, going back years since her appointment and even during her time as leader of the Opposition,” he explained.

    Over years of inconsistent stances, Browne claimed, Persad-Bissessar has come to be seen internationally as an unreliable, unprincipled actor on regional diplomacy. “Previous statements by Persad-Bissessar have led to a view and those actions have led to a view, that this Prime Minister is being viewed as a pawn, as a vassal, as someone who is inconsistent and shifty,” Browne said.

    The opposition leader rejected the framing of Persad-Bissessar’s comments as a genuine new chapter in bilateral relations, arguing that past actions cannot be erased with warm words. “When you spend years verbally abusing a neighbouring state, its people, its government, its positions, you cannot now cast that as love,” he added.

    Browne also leveled a separate accusation that the Prime Minister lied to the Trinidad and Tobago public about the country’s role in efforts to remove former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from power. He noted that before the UNC took office, bilateral relations between Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela were at a strong, positive point, with no need for any diplomatic reset. “Relations were at an optimal level, and it is this Prime Minister, deliberately, against all warnings and good advice, who damaged those relationships,” he said.

    In a final striking point, Browne reminded the public that the Prime Minister still holds persona non grata status in Venezuela, a restriction that has not been lifted even with her new public expressions of goodwill toward Rodríguez and the Venezuelan government.

  • PM eyes meeting with Delcy

    PM eyes meeting with Delcy

    Following the ceremonial opening of the 2026-2027 judicial law term on the steps of Port of Spain’s Hall of Justice, Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar shared new updates on warming bilateral ties with neighboring Venezuela in an address to reporters Tuesday.

    Persad-Bissessar opened up about ongoing behind-the-scenes planning for a potential bilateral meeting between herself and Venezuelan Interim President Delcy Rodríguez on the sidelines of the upcoming United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, currently scheduled for late September. The Prime Minister also publicly shared warm personal feelings toward Rodríguez, expressing clear enthusiasm for the prospective encounter.

    “I love her. I look forward to meeting her,” Persad-Bissessar told reporters, noting that cabinet minister Sean Sobers is currently coordinating logistics for the meeting, which is being targeted for September 25. When asked about her willingness to hold the summit, she emphasized that her priority will always be advancing the interests of Trinidad and Tobago’s citizens: “I will meet with anyone who wishes to meet me for the benefit of the people of Trinidad and Tobago. I will do whatever I have to do always.” She added that if the logistics cannot be finalized in time, the public will be updated promptly on the change of plans.

    The comments come amid a fresh push to reactivate diplomatic cooperation between the two neighboring Caribbean and South American nations after years of stalled relations. Earlier this month, on September 3, Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs Sean Sobers completed a working visit to Caracas, where he held talks with top Venezuelan government officials including Foreign Minister Felix Plasencia. After the trip, Sobers announced that the two sides had reached an agreement to form a bilateral joint commission, designed to break through years of diplomatic and technical stagnation and move forward collaboration on cross-cutting issues that impact both nations. The technical working group formed under the commission will help both governments identify shared priority areas and deliver tangible outcomes for their populations. Persad-Bissessar publicly backed the trip, confirming it had been a success.

    Addressing past tensions, the Prime Minister pushed back on discussions about her being labeled persona non grata under the previous Nicolás Maduro regime, instead centering the deep, longstanding ties that bind the two countries and their people. She highlighted her own personal familial connections to Venezuela, noting “my mother-in-law is Venezuelan. My two grand-nephews are Venezuelan. Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela, we have very, very close ties. We are family.”

    Beyond diplomatic engagement, Persad-Bissessar delivered a clear, optimistic update on the long-discussed plan to import natural gas from Venezuela, saying she is fully confident cross-border gas supplies will reach Trinidad and Tobago within the next 12 months. She cited the countries’ extreme geographic proximity – just seven miles separate the two nations – and pre-existing agreements with major international energy firms as evidence the project will come to fruition. “I have absolutely no doubt that gas from Venezuela will come to Trinidad and Tobago. It is the only funnel, the only place it can pass. We are seven miles away, and it will come,” she said. The Prime Minister added that her administration has already finalized cooperation agreements with energy giant bp, and is working to conclude similar deals with Shell, XRG and other major energy players.

    Securing additional Venezuelan natural gas imports is considered a critical strategic priority for Trinidad and Tobago’s energy sector, as the country looks to boost incoming supply to support its existing downstream petrochemical and liquefied natural gas industries, which form a core pillar of the national economy. Persad-Bissessar concluded by reaffirming that all bilateral efforts with Venezuela will advance the shared interests of both nations, saying “whatever has to be done, we will do in the best interest of Trinidad and Tobago and Venezuela” and that the public can “expect the best” as relations continue to deepen.

  • Govt to support Judiciary’s swifter justice push, says PM

    Govt to support Judiciary’s swifter justice push, says PM

    At the ceremonial opening of the 2026-2027 judicial law term held in Port of Spain, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has publicly reaffirmed her administration’s unwavering commitment to backing the Judiciary in its mission to deliver faster, more equitable access to justice for all Trinidad and Tobago citizens.

    Taking the stage alongside Chief Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh and Attorney General John Jeremie at the Hall of Justice event, Persad-Bissessar said she had carefully reviewed the Chief Justice’s vision for judicial administration, and emphasized that accessible, fair justice is a non-negotiable right for ordinary people. “Justice must never be distant from the people. It must never be beyond the reach of the ordinary citizen. It must be accessible, efficient and fair, and our citizens must have confidence that the institutions established to protect their rights will work for them,” she stated.

    Persad-Bissessar took office in April 2025, and immediately launched a sweeping overhaul of what her administration identified as stagnant, outdated public systems that failed to meet citizens’ expectations. Her government moved quickly to collaborate with cross-sector justice stakeholders to map bottlenecks to efficiency, then rolled out an aggressive modernization agenda covering both legal affairs and civil and criminal justice frameworks. Just over a year into the program, she says tangible, meaningful change is already underway.

    One of the flagship achievements highlighted by the Prime Minister is newly enacted legislation to digitize Trinidad and Tobago’s entire body of national laws, which will eventually give citizens free centralized access to all legal statutes through a single public online portal. Far from just a technological upgrade, Persad-Bissessar framed the reform as a critical step toward democratizing access to the law. “This is more than technological progress. It is the democratization of the law,” she said, adding that expanded public access will narrow the gap between communities and the judicial system, while strengthening public trust in the rule of law.

    Another key legislative win is the 2026 Civil Division Act, which answers decades of requests from the Judiciary for a formal legal framework to restructure civil justice through a standalone, specialized division. Persad-Bissessar explained the act addresses longstanding systemic gaps including understaffing and administrative disorganization, cuts down on crippling case delays and backlogs, creates targeted specialized subdivisions, and boosts overall operational efficiency.

    Turning to criminal justice reforms, the Prime Minister pointed to the 2026 Bail (Amendment) Act, which introduced a new formal process of Bail Source Hearings. This new regulation gives courts the power to verify that cash or real property used to secure bail comes from legitimate, legal sources. “The justice system must never become an avenue through which the proceeds of criminal activity can be legitimised,” she noted, adding that enhanced transparency and judicial oversight of bail will strengthen national efforts to combat organized crime, money laundering, and other high-level offenses.

    Her administration also updated the decades-old Probation of Offenders Act, first written in 1947, to expand judicial access to split sentencing. Under the new framework, sentences can combine terms of incarceration with supervised community probation, including provisions for electronic monitoring, curfews, mandatory community service, and vocational training. Persad-Bissessar said the model balances accountability for criminal acts with a focus on rehabilitation and successful reintegration. “Justice must protect society and punish wrongdoing, but a modern justice system must also recognise that where rehabilitation is possible, people should have a meaningful opportunity to rebuild their lives and become productive members of society,” she said.

    Beyond legislative changes, the Prime Minister confirmed the government has allocated full funding to support the Judiciary’s initiative to reopen shuttered magistrates’ courts across the country, a move designed to eliminate geographic barriers to justice. “A citizen in Mayaro deserves the same access to justice and essential court services as a citizen in Port of Spain, San Fernando, Tobago, or anywhere else in our Republic,” she said. She highlighted that prior to the reform, residents of rural areas like Mayaro faced unnecessary burdens: for example, those requiring probation officer services were forced to travel long distances to San Fernando, after local probation staff lost dedicated workspace in regional magistrates’ courts. With court reopenings, probation officers will once again be based in local courthouses across all jurisdictions. “That is what meaningful reform is about—not simply changing laws on paper, but improving the everyday experience of citizens who depend upon the State,” she said.

    Looking ahead, Persad-Bissessar pledged the executive branch will continue to provide all necessary funding and resources to the Judiciary to advance its efficiency goals, and confirmed the justice reform program will continue with additional legislative and administrative updates in the coming term.

  • CJ moves to tackle court backlog

    CJ moves to tackle court backlog

    In his inaugural address marking the opening of the 2026-2027 judicial law term at Port of Spain’s Hall of Justice Convocation Hall, newly appointed Chief Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh has announced a comprehensive set of systemic reforms aimed at dismantling the long-standing criminal case backlog that has plagued the country’s judiciary and expanding overall court capacity.

    Boodoosingh, who assumed the top judicial role in October 2025, used his first public opening address to lay out the findings of a months-long institutional assessment he conducted after taking office, which uncovered systemic failures across infrastructure, staffing, and case management that have eroded public access to timely justice.

    Physical court infrastructure emerged as a top critical concern: the San Fernando Supreme Court Building has remained fully shuttered since the COVID-19 pandemic, stripping the judicial system of 16 functional courtrooms and dedicated staff housing. Meanwhile, the main Hall of Justice and Tobago’s Hall of Justice operate far below their intended capacity, and nearly every regional Magistrates’ Court building across the country is in urgent need of maintenance, major renovations, or structural repairs.

    Unlike most other public sector institutions and school systems that returned to full in-person operations after pandemic restrictions lifted, the judiciary has remained almost entirely virtual, Boodoosingh noted. This shift has left many members of the public without consistent in-person access to court staff and critical services, deepening public frustration with the judicial process.

    The most pressing challenge identified by the assessment is the growing backlog of pending cases, particularly in the Criminal Court and Family Court divisions. Even after post-pandemic adjustments to preliminary inquiry protocols and traffic case processing, the backlog in Magistrates’ Courts has continued to climb at an alarming rate. Boodoosingh emphasized that reform efforts must center on the core needs of the public, who seek a straightforward, expedited process regardless of whether their case involves a traffic violation, family dispute, criminal charge, or civil claim.

    “While the judiciary does not intentionally create delays or place unnecessary obstacles in the path of people seeking justice, resource constraints have undeniably limited our ability to deliver timely outcomes,” Boodoosingh acknowledged. “But that is not an excuse for failing to take every reasonable action to build a more effective justice system. When our systems are not working as well as they should, our job is to fix them.”

    To anchor accountability, Boodoosingh is moving to enforce the existing six-month target for most judicial judgments — a standard first established decades ago and reaffirmed by former Chief Justice Ivor Archie in 2025. All judicial officers are now required to submit monthly reports to the Chief Justice’s office detailing sitting hours, completed cases, and pending judgments, creating transparent data to track institutional performance.

    A new, cross-stakeholder Criminal Justice Board has already been convened, holding monthly meetings since April 2026 to diagnose bottlenecks and coordinate targeted solutions. A focused backlog clearance initiative is prioritizing the oldest cases in the system for accelerated processing or dismissal. Boodoosingh noted that some cases have lingered in the system for decades, and many are effectively “dead cases” with no path to a trial. The administration aims to resolve and remove all of these legacy cases from the system by the end of the current 2026-2027 law term.

    One of the most impactful immediate changes is a near doubling of available criminal jury court space: 15 dedicated Criminal Jury High Court rooms have been operational since the start of September 2026, up from just eight available under the previous system. The judiciary has also scrapped its outdated docket assignment system, instead assigning individual judges to permanent courtrooms with full responsibility for managing and trying their assigned caseloads.

    Top judicial officials have already secured commitments from key partners to support the expanded court capacity: Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard, SC, has pledged to continuously assign prosecutors to all 15 new courtrooms, and the judiciary is collaborating with the Public Defender’s Department to ensure consistent defense counsel coverage for each court. Boodoosingh has publicly backed the Public Defender’s Department’s call for additional staffing to meet this expanded demand, noting that the Judicial and Legal Service Commission is currently working with the DPP’s office to fill long-standing vacant positions across the legal system.

    The reforms also include plans to extend sitting hours and cut down on avoidable downtime in the criminal justice system, a change Boodoosingh said is critical to moving cases through the pipeline faster.

    In a major pivot away from the pandemic-era virtual model, Boodoosingh announced a gradual phased plan to restore full in-person hearings at all Magistrates’ Courts nationwide by the end of 2027. Official data makes clear that virtual hearings have drastically underperformed in-person proceedings when it comes to case completion rates, he said.

    Between 2006 and 2016, when in-person operations were standard, annual case completion rates ranged from 65% to 120% of new annual filings. That rate dropped to just 44% in the most recent completed judicial year. While the number of completed cases has ticked up slightly from 10,746 in 2023/2024 to 15,994 in 2025/2026, that number remains a small fraction of pre-pandemic completion volumes: 115,491 cases were disposed of in 2016/2017, and 82,841 in 2017/2018. A comparative analysis found that virtual hearings dispose of less than 20% of the number of cases completed through in-person proceedings.

    “Virtual hearings offer convenience for many stakeholders, including lawyers, magistrates, and law enforcement officers,” Boodoosingh said. “But for the Magistrates’ Court system, they have not delivered the same effectiveness as in-person hearings when it comes to completing cases in a timely manner. That is a gap we must address.”

  • FINAL OFFER

    FINAL OFFER

    After eight years of protracted negotiations that have outlasted two national administrations, three union presidents and three chief personnel officers, the Trinidad and Tobago government has issued a firm deadline to the Public Services Association (PSA): the union has 14 days to respond to the state’s final offer for resolving long-outstanding salary backpay claims covering 2014 to 2019.

    The details of the final proposal were outlined in an official statement released by the Office of Chief Personnel Officer Commander Dr Daryl Dindial, following a new round of talks held Wednesday with PSA president Felisha Thomas and the union’s executive leadership team. The meeting was convened to review the PSA’s counterproposal to the government’s original backpay framework, which was first tabled in May.

    At the core of the decade-long dispute is a 2023 December Memorandum of Agreement that secured a 10% salary increase for public sector workers, but deferred negotiations on the structural breakdown of the $3.8 billion total backpay package. In May, the CPO tabled the government’s first final position: a mixed package structured as 40% cash and 60% non-cash benefits, giving the PSA four weeks to respond. The union formally rejected that offer days later, submitting a counterproposal calling for a reverse split of 60% cash and 40% non-cash or deferred benefits.

    Following the rejection, PSA president Thomas publicly voiced frustration in a late July Facebook post, noting that nearly two months had passed without a formal meeting to discuss the union’s counteroffer. At the time, Thomas told public sector members that the CPO’s office had stated it was still reviewing the proposal and could not schedule a sit-down. As of Thursday, efforts by media to secure additional comment from Thomas on the latest round of talks were unsuccessful.

    In his official statement on the new meeting, Dindial reaffirmed that the 40% cash / 60% non-cash structure remains the government’s non-negotiable final offer. He emphasized that the administration has structured the proposal to balance the needs of public workers with long-term fiscal responsibility, arguing that the framework is designed to protect public sector jobs amid economic pressures.

    Dindial explained that the non-cash components of the package carry tangible value for workers, and in many cases require the government to forgo projected revenue to offset workers’ outstanding obligations. The only adjustment the government has made to the original May offer is a new flexible payment option: workers can choose to receive their cash portion of backpay in monthly installments spread across a three-year period, rather than a lump sum.

    The CPO added that all other public sector bargaining units have already finalized negotiations for the 2014–2019 salary periods, leaving the PSA as the only major public service association yet to resolve the backpay issue. “This process must now move towards finalization,” Dindial said, noting that the government’s position has been clearly articulated after eight years of talks, and the latest framework is intended to deliver a resolution that is both fiscally responsible and sustainable for the country.

    He urged the PSA leadership to seriously consider the offer in order to bring the long-running dispute to a close and deliver long-awaited certainty to thousands of public sector workers across the country. Beyond the two-week deadline for a formal response, Dindial thanked Thomas and the PSA executive for their continued engagement throughout the years of negotiations, and reiterated the government’s commitment to reaching a resolution that is fair, responsible and sustainable for all parties.

    The non-cash benefits included in the government’s offer cover a wide range of worker needs: offsets for mortgage and rental obligations owed to the Housing Development Corporation and Trinidad and Tobago Mortgage Bank, settlement of outstanding personal tax liabilities, $3,500 in executive-level medical coverage, tuition fee offsets for students attending state-owned tertiary institutions, tax exemptions for purchases of new and roll-on/roll-off vehicles, plus food cards and fuel assistance.