Seems that it was just yesterday we were attending Carnival all-inclusive fetes, singing the refrain of Like ah Boss and revelling in the street. Ash Wednesday is but a memory, the final day of Lent is here and it is the long Easter weekend holiday once more.

Easter is ushered in with the “40-day, 40-nights” Lenten period for Christians where traditionally, many discipline themselves to eating fish and seafood while abstaining from drinking liquor and alcoholic beverages, smoking and having any carnal activity.

The actual Easter weekend itself, culminates with Holy Week that tail-ends with Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Glorias Saturday and the holiday Easter Monday.

In days gone by it was deemed taboo to sing, even whistle at home, a calypso during Lent. Calypso was not played on the airwaves as the music was deemed to be “satanic.” The calypso “ban” however was rested on St Joseph Day and completely lifted on Glorias Saturday, when the playing of calypso resumed. No one knows when the blackmark against calypso during Lent was relaxed and subsequently removed?

Perhaps the most significant day of the year on the Christian calendar, today (Good Friday) is steeped in tradition and myth. The morning traditionally opens with a sumptuous breakfast in which hot crossed buns are the requisite item. Breakfast is normally followed by attending the three-hour Station of the Cross church service.

Late lunch, with fish as the main ingredient, usually was embellished by white-coloured food, usually white provision, white peas (gub gub or lima beans), and, white wine. 

A major myth of Good Friday was that if you should bathe in the sea before 6 pm today you would turn into a fish. No one has ever witnessed this but many adhered to the myth and stayed away from beaches on Good Friday. 

Another myth of yore dealt with egg white and a glass of water. When placed in the sun if the egg white changed into a church steeple, you were blessed and would have prosperity.

Good Friday tradition also included the beating of the bobolee, a stuffed effigy made in memory of Judas Iscariot, the villain in the betrayal of Christ. Through the years, bobolees have evolved, from being reincarnations of Judas to effigies of public figures the public is aggrieved with, to celebrities who are wed, complete with ceremony and procession, like the annual bobolee festival in Maraval. This being an election year one expect there will be several political figures portrayed. The remainder of the weekend is usually occupied with family outings, mainly to the beach or to wide open spaces, like Port-of-Spain’s Queen’s Park Savannah, to fly kites of every design and variety, from little chee-kee-chongs to huge, elaborate mad bulls.

One expects beaches nationwide to be chock-a-block with seabathers and sun-seekers on Monday. However, a popular and traditional Easter Monday pastime is horse racing and the second of the year’s triple-crown races–Easter Guineas–will be held at the Arima racing facility. This is a gala affair and attendees dress to the hilt in sartorial fashion splendour.

Whatever you choose to do Pulse wishes you a safe and enjoyable Easter holiday weekend.

This year’s Tobago Jazz Experience begins on April 19, but Randy Glasgow Promotions is staging a big curtain-raiser one week before, April 11, in Buccoo. Billed as Bacchanal in D Jazz, the concert will feature former National Calypso Monarchs Cro Cro and Pink Panther, past Extempore Monarch Brian London, Mr Shak, Skatie, comedian Tommy Joseph and more.

But, it is Good Friday and today ushers in a long weekend of fun and entertainment. Perseverance Sports and Action Community Council hosts its annual Good Friday Sports & Family Day at the Hugo Francis Recreation Ground, Woodford Lodge, Chaguanas. The action commences with a 5K race at 7 am and continues from 3 pm with athletics, novelty events and an Easter Bonnet Competition.

Good Friday fun continues at 1 pm when Causin Rabb holds its annual Good Friday cricket street tournament, on Thomasine Street, Success Village, Laventille.

At the same, Tuco will begin its  annual Good Friday fete match, at The Paddock, Queen’s Park Savannah, Port-of-Spain. 

Jazz is also in the mix as the Women in Jazz series of shows begins tomorrow at Fiesta Plaza, MovieTowne, Port-of-Spain. Beginning at 8.30 pm the star of the night will be Krystal Khanye.

Many parties are planned this weekend and one of the biggest will be the annual Yorke Inc Glorious Saturday Party, also to be held tomorrow, at Pier 1, Chaguaramas. Music will be by DJs Howie T, Mr Q, Richard Simply Smooth and Sensational Sammy.

On Sunday afternoon, at 2 pm, DC Shell Theatre continues its run of Sinbad at Queen’s Hall, St Ann’s. A second show will be staged that evening at 6.30 pm.

ComPANion will hold its Steelbands Sports and Family Day cricket preliminaries on Sunday, at 2 pm, at Republic Bank Exodus Pan Amphitheatre, EMR, St Augustine.

That evening, from 4 pm, Belmont Cultural Improvement Committee will hold its annual easter Bonnet Parade 2015, at Belmont Community Centre on Jerningham Avenue.

Weather permitting, outdoor activity ought be extremely enjoyable for all  this Easter weekend.

Professor stars in Baltimore

Popular Trinidadian steelband arranger/composer/musician Ken “Professor” Philmore was the star of The Baltimore Sun newspapers last month when coached students of Catonsville High School in playing the national instrument. Philmore was invited to do the workshop by the steelband’s musical director Jim Wharton who annually invites a professional musician to come and teach members of the school steelband.

Philmore worked with the students for one week, his course culminating on March 27. Beaming with pride and a sense of accomplishment, Wharton likened Philmore’s visit to the school’s football team acquiring the services of acclaimed football coach Joe Flacco. During his visit Philmore taught the young pan musicians, ranging from freshmen to seniors, how to play the instrument without reading a music score. In a published feature in The Sun, Wharton said: “He (Philmore) is absolutely a virtuoso performer and a star arranger … it’s really an honor to have him here.”

Also interviewed, Philmore told The Sun: “I know music just naturally, kind of like the wind does. I have ears as big as an elephant’s. I can’t read or write music, but I feel music. For me, it’s a very spiritual thing.”

The Sun reported that Philmore's goal is for more children to learn to play ‘steel drum’ and for more people worldwide to respect it like traditional drums, guitar or piano.”

He added: “I love teaching kids, because I like to see the joy in their faces. It’s easier to work with kids than with big people …with kids, it’s just a joy. It’s fun.”

Independent Liberal Party (ILP) leader Jack Warner believes that there is another more sinister reason behind the People’s Partnership Government’s ramped up distribution of Housing Development Corporation (HDC) houses.

He says the drive may be linked to a Government plan to use information contained in the Elections and Boundaries Commission’s (EBC) report on the 2013 local government elections, which it has so far failed to disclose to Parliament, to its advantage ahead of the general elections.

Speaking to the T&T Guardian yesterday, Warner claimed Government officials received the report 18 months ago and are hiding it.

“The ILP is very concerned over this because we believe that the Government is suppressing this report for many reasons and have therefore failed to lay it before the Parliament.

“I believe that the distribution of houses is just another candid scheme to help them manipulate some constituencies, like Couva North and Couva South, since persons can be relocated into select constituencies, especially marginal constituencies, and registered as electors in those constituencies after only two months according to Section 12 (1) of the Representation of the People Act.”

Attempts by the ILP, for the greater part of last year, to obtain a copy of the election report from the EBC have been unsuccessful, Warner said.

“The ILP has been constantly advised by EBC officials that the report was prepared by the EBC and forwarded to the Minister of Local Government as required by the law, and the release of the report is therefore up to the whim of the Government,” he said.

Warner strongly believes that alleged manipulation of the electorate to obtain an advantage is a fraud on the population.

“It is a threat to democracy that brings into question whether the General Election 2015 will be fair,” he said.

Hidden Agenda

The Independent Liberal Party (ILP), in a release, has claimed that the PP Government demonstrated a reputation for tampering with and attempting to tamper with the electoral process.

It outlined:

1. Local Government Elections 2013

The EBC’s 7th Report under the Municipal Corporations Act and the EBC (Local Government) Act for the purposes of Local Government Elections (LGE) was suppressed for 25 months before it was brought to the Parliament.

2. EBC 2014 Report on the Review of Constituency Boundaries

EBC’s 2014 Report on the Review of Constituency Boundaries, Pursuant to Section 72 of the Constitution was dated March 27, 2014, but as tabled in the Parliament on March 18, 2015 – almost one year after the EBC gave it to the PP Government.

That report alters the boundaries of ten constituencies.

3. Run-off-Bill’

The Constitution (Amendment) Bill, No 18 of 2014, was tabled in the Parliament on August 2014. That bill, which the PP has tried to sell to the population as constitutional reform, proposes to radically change the method for electing Members to the House of Representative by introducing a run-off ballot system.

What the act says:

Section 12 (1) of the Representation of the People Act Chapter 2:01, states:

The Commission shall immediately after each election, cause to be printed a report giving—

a) the number of votes polled for each candidate, by polling divisions;

b) the number of rejected ballots;

c) the number of names on the revised lists of electors and on the list of special electors; and

d) any other information that it may deem fit to include, and shall forthwith forward a copy of the report to the persons respectively set out in subrule (5)(b).

Sub-Rule 108(5) (b) (ii) identifies those persons to whom the report is required to be forwarded forthwith, in the case of a Municipal Council Election, as follows:

 “…the Minister and to the Town Clerk and the Chief Executive Officer, as the case may be, of the Municipal Council concerned.”

Sub-Rule 108(7) identifies the Minister referred to as, “the Minister responsible for Local Government.”

Archbishop Joseph Harris has scolded politicians for the scandalous comments in Parliament and on the election platform, saying tarnishing people’s character appears to be the new trend in T&T.

In delivering his Holy Thursday Mass homily at Our Lady of Perpetual Help RC Church, he preached the humility of Jesus Christ in washing his disciples’ feet. He said although some see the washing of the feet as repulsive because of some people’s dirtied condition, it was an act of love shown by Jesus, St Damian of Molokai, who sought out lepers, and Mother Teresa, who cared for dying street dwellers.

However, in an obvious reference to recent attacks in Parliament and on the political campaign trail, he said not all people are dirtied in the same way, explaining that, “lying about someone and telling the truth about someone to defame that person are sins.” He said, “People are dirtied in various ways. 

Unfortunately, the trend in our country at the moment seems to say that we are allowed to malign others and sully their characters in the worst way possible. 

“The gospel for this Eucharistic celebration shows us, however, the Lord and Master lovingly washing and cleaning his disciples’ feet.

“Must we not therefore concentrate on cleaning up others rather than sullying them? Lies, half-truths and innuendos cannot be and must not be part of the arsenal of disciples of Jesus Christ nor of any religious person. “All religions hold sacred the values of selfless love and of truth and honesty, nor is it permissible to tell the truth about someone if by telling the truth we intend to place someone in a bad light.” Just last Saturday, Harris joined other citizens in expressing shock at the comments made by Tobago East MP Vernella Alleyne-Toppin in the Parliament against Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley, in which she claimed the PNM leader was a product of rape and may have engaged in the act himself. 

Citizens and other groups have also voiced their dismay at Rowley “dog and cyat” comments in reference to the Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar at a cottage meeting in Brazil and Housing Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal’s claim that Rowley had the “nastiest mouth in the Caribbean.” 

During his sermon, Harris also paid tribute to citizens of poverty-stricken communities, saying that he admired their continued struggle for better lives, despite living in environments that were toxic. (See page A12) He said one wonders how human beings can live in such squalor, adding that it appeared that they have been forgotten by civil society and religious authorities.

kevon.felmine@guardian.co.tt

Roman Catholic Priest Father Clyde Harvey yesterday (Good Friday) led a group of Catholics in a silent protest around the Parliament building in Port-of-Spain, as he lashed out against the state of T&T’s politics. 

The group gathered outside Parliament at the Waterfront Complex at noon. 

Harvey read a letter which encapsulated that Parliament had become a “place for minding other people’s business.” 

“No party has been innocent in this regard. All are guilty. All are responsible. This year Parliament may well be seen as an appropriate nominee for Good Friday Bobolee,” Harvey read.

Saying that all the country’s institutions were dying if not already dead, Harvey added that there was still hope as Easter signified a time of new beginning.

The group then walked around the Parliament building and at 12.30 pm they walked in an anti-clockwise direction. At one pm, they then faced the building and recited the Lord’s Prayer, followed by the singing of God Bless Our Nation. Harvey then led the group in front of the memorial wall bearing the names of this country’s famous athletes, where the National Anthem was sung.

On why he decided to hold the such a march, Harvey described it as a will of the “flesh” more than anything else.

“It really took flesh during mass on the Saturday before Palm Sunday when I was praying and it suddenly came to me, ‘Good Friday...Parliament building.’ From then it was a question of asking people what they thought and whether they would support it,” Harvey said.

Asked whether he believed anything would be achieved and if those holding the seat of power would actually pay attention to the action, Harvey said he intended to send them a copy of the letter.  

“It’s up to them, but really I think the country is at a point now where either they grab the ball and run with it in terms of people wanting a better T&T, or they refuse to run for a better T&T and the consequences we all face,” Harvey said.

Regarding detractors who may accuse him of mixing religion and politics, Harvey said politics was a very “broad” word.

“You can start with partisan politics, which is centered on your own group and your own group’s interest, the politics which is the affairs of the city, the State is something which all of us are involved in,” he said.

Police Social and Welfare Association president Inspector Anand Ramesar is calling on Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to retract her statement on the possibility of the police abusing provisions of the Bail (Amendment) Bill.

In a brief interview yesterday, Ramesar said his members were very concerned by the prime minister’s comments on the issue because of her role as head of the National Security Council. 

“This also undermines the integrity of a lot of hard working officers especially those who operate in key areas such as homicide, the Anti-Kidnapping Squad and now the Anti-Terrorism Unit,” Ramesar said. 

Ramesar said his association was disappointed by the comment and it should not have been made. 

Persad-Bissessar made the comments while speaking with reporters following a Housing Development Corporation (HDC) home distribution ceremony to differently able persons at the South Academy for the Performing Arms in San Fernando on Thursday afternoon. 

She was responding to a call from the Law Association to repeal the bill, which was passed in Upper House of Parliament with the support of Opposition and Independent Senators last Tuesday. The legislation proposes a 120 day period where repeat offenders will be denied bail for firearm related offences. It is yet to receive presidential assent. 

While Persad-Bissessar acknowledged the law association’s concerns over the possibility of police abusing the bill through false charges, she refused to accede to the request as she stated that the legislation was an important crime-fighting tool. 

Ramesar also said that his association fully supported Government’s move to introduce the legislation.

“It is an important element in fighting crime as firearms remain the prefered weapon of criminals in T&T whether they are committing murder, robbery or other offences against a person,” Ramesar said.  

Police are investigating the death of a 32-year-old man who drowned after jumping into waters outside the International Waterfront Centre at Wrightson Road, Port-of-Spain, on Thursday. 

According to reports, around 7.52 pm, limers at the seafront complex contacted police when they noticed the man behaving suspiciously as he walked along the edge of the embankment near to the five-star Hyatt Regency Hotel. 

Homicide detectives said the man spoke with two concerned onlookers before he jumped into the sea. Eyewitnesses did not dive in to save him because of choppy water and poor lighting conditions. 

Coast Guard officers and divers were dispatched and the man’s body was eventually recovered. Emergency Health Services (EHS) personnel were unable to resuscitate him after he was brought to shore around 9.30 pm. 

The man was later identified as Satyam Mahabir, of Cipero Road, Golconda. An autopsy will be performed at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, on Tuesday.  

Investigators believe that Mahabir may have committed suicide, as he was fully clothed and ignored several “No swimming” warning signs before he chose to dive in. 

Eyewitness interviewed by police said the man was incoherent and did not explain his reason for taking his life. 

“More than likely he had some underlying psychological issue or issues. We will only be able to confirm when we speak more with his family, but usually depression is not widely diagnosed,” a senior homicide detective said in a telephone interview yesterday.

Detectives of the Region One Homicide Bureau are continuing investigations. 

Easter Warning

Contacted yesterday, Coast Guard public relations officer Lt Commander Kirk Jean-Baptiste also issued a warning for all people spending the Easter weekend at the nation’s beaches. 

“We would like to remind people that at Easter the sea is particularly different from what you would know it as during the year. The sea is no place to play,” he said. 

He also warned people using small vessels to wear their life jackets at all times. 

“Please supervise all small children in any water facility, be it at the beach or river,” Jean-Baptiste said. 

Less than four hours after Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar expressed shock at a major drug and weapons haul near her Philippine, San Fernando home on Thursday, police made further inroads into the transhipment operation when they uncovered another stash of drugs and ammunition in Debe.

Saying that the latest find was even closer to Persad-Bissessar’s home, a senior officer said yesterday that the arrest of the 27-year-old US deportee responsible for the operations puts a major dent in the distribution of cocaine and marijuana in South Trinidad.

It was just Tuesday that police caught the suspect cooking $1.6 million in cocaine in two aluminium pots at his Hermitage Village, San Fernando home, where they also seized $100,000 worth of marijuana and four high-powered guns with ammunition.

On Thursday night, Southern Division police, led by Snr Supt Irwin Hackshaw, Supt Florence Hodge Griffith and Insp Don Gajadhar, got further information that the suspect had another apartment along the SS Erin Road.

Around 7 pm, a CID team, including Sgt Steve Persad, Sgt Dale Ramroop, Cpl Marlon Mendoza and PCs Moses, Douglas and Rampersad, went to the apartment with the suspect. In one room they found seven rounds of .38 ammunition, 21 rounds of 9 mm ammunition, the butt for an AK-47 assault rifle and four magazines, one of which is used with the high-powered, automatic pistol used by the US Secret Service and FBI.

Three blocks of high grade kush cannabis (marijuana) worth $120,000 was found in another area. 

“We believe we have made a big dent in a drug transshipment operation, as there were kilos of wrapping that the drugs came in, crocus bags, foil and thousands of small plastic bags around the apartment. We believe he is an importer and distributor of cocaine and high grade marijuana,” a senior officer said.

The suspect, who was also arrested in Princes Town during the 2011 state of emergency, is expected to appear at the San Fernando Magistrates Court on Tuesday, charged with two counts of possession of ammunition, two counts of possession of marijuana for trafficking, possession of firearm components, possession of cocaine for trafficking and possession of four firearms. The charges were laid by PCs Bacchus and Goddard.

Twelve police officers will appear in court next week to answer several criminal charges arising out of an incident in which a suspect was doused with hot water during an interrogation session at the Sangre Grande Police Station in February. 

When the 11 policemen and one woman police constable (WPC) appear in the Sangre Grande Magistrate Court on Tuesday morning, they will join a long list of police taken before court this year to answer criminal charges related to their on-duty exploits. 

The police officers have been in custody since they were arrested by detectives of the Professional Standards Bureau early last week. 

Police sources said investigators wrapped up their investigation on Thursday evening when the victim, Ralph Andre Lewis, participated in the last of a series of individual identification exercises carried out. 

Unlike the other identification parades, where Lewis allegedly fingered the officers from batches of decoys while standing behind a one-way mirror, Thursday’s procedure reportedly took place at a bar in Sangre Grande.

Under the lawful procedure, which is refered to as a “confrontation,” Lewis was taken to the bar and asked to identify the officer under investigation, who was disguised as a patron at the bar. This is usually employed in cases where the victim knew the suspect before the incident occurred. 

After it was completed, the officers, who were being detained at various police stations acrosss north Trinidad, were transfered from the Sangre Grande Police Station—their former base and the venue of Lewis’ alleged attack. 

Yesterday, investigators began processing paperwork required to facilitate their colleagues’ court appearance.   

The dozen officers, an acting inspector, a sergeant, an SRP sergeant, three acting corporals and six police constables (including the WPC), are facing charges which include assault occasioning actual bodily harm, beating by assault, misbehaviour in public office and perverting the course of justice. 

Each officer is to face varying quantities of charges depending on their role in the alleged attack. 

The charges reportedly do not include bribery offences related to Lewis’ claim that he was offered money to forego reporting the incident to police, as the alleged communication was done through third parties.

The officers will spend the rest of the long Easter weekend in custody, as they were not allowed to access station bail, which is sometimes offered to people charged with lesser criminal offences as well as high profile accused. 

“Even the ones who did not interfere with the man (Lewis) and just get one charge for failing to report the thing have to stay inside. They are being treated as common criminals,” a source close to one of the accused officers said in a brief interview yesterday.

Lewis, 22, of Coronation Road, Sangre Grande, who first appeared on the CrimeWatch programme with host Ian Alleyne on CNC3, claimed that on February 24 he went to the Sangre Grande Police Station after he learned he was wanted in connection with house breaking and larceny.

Lewis was detained overnight and was interrogated the following day. Lewis claims that after he repeatedly refused to confess to the crimes he was accused of committing, he was stripped naked, with one of the five officers questioning him heating water in a microwave before pouring it on his lower extremities. 

He sustained burns to the genital area and his buttocks and was hospitalised at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope for close to a week. 

He has indicated his intention to sue the State for compensation for the injuries he sustained. 

Rough time for service

The first three months of this year have been tough period for the T&T Police Service’s image, with several officers being charged with criminal offences against civilians. 

Most of the offences have been violent or sexual in nature, but several of the accused officers were also charged with taking bribes, with the exception of the most senior officer, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Peter Reyes, who is accused of civil aviation crimes.

The following is a list of the police who were charged this year and a synopsis of the crimes they are accused of committing-

January 5: Special Reserve Police (SRP) Tamika Phillip and Ronaldo Rajcoomar appeared in court for assaulting wheelchair-bound homeless man Robby Ramcharitar along High Street, San Fernando. They were charged after a short video clip of Rajcoomar repeatedly slapping Ramcharitar was circulated on social media websites. 

January 10: Sgt Dane Sorzano, a police court prosecutor, appeared in court for raping a teenager from Fyzabad on three occasions between 2010 and December, last year. He was already facing a separate charge for raping another woman in 2011. 

January 30: ACP Peter Reyes appeared charged with three offences under the Civil Aviation Act for endangering the lives of passengers and crew members on a Caribbean Airlines Limited (CAL) aircraft by refusing to switch off his cellphone. The incident took place at the Piarco International Airport on a domestic flight to Tobago, where Reyes was due to start duties as head of the Tobago Division. 

March 13: PCs Adrian Jack and Omari Gonsales were slapped with 12 criminal offences, including bribery and grievous sexual assault. Charges arose out of an incident on February 25, in which they allegedly solicited several bribes from a woman who they arrested for marijuana possession. 

March 17: SRP Atiba Thomas, of Diego Martin, charged with 22 offences for having sex with a minor and for grievous sexual assault. Thomas is alleged to have attacked the 12-year-old girl 11 times between 2012 and last year. 

Three more police officers could join this list by the end of next week, as investigators work to complete a investigation into the assault of a San Juan man last month. The victim, Garrison Augustus, was allegedly abducted by the officers from his Hunt Street home and taken to a desolate area where he was beaten. He claimed it stemmed from a dispute with one of the policemen over his ex-wife.  Despite being identified by Augustus two weeks ago, the suspected officers are yet to detained and charged by investigators. Police sources said the investigation will be concluded early next week.​

Construtora OAS, the Brazilian firm involved in construction of the Point Fortin highway, is among companies in the OAS Group granted judicial recovery to negotiate debts incurred due to credit restrictions imposed as a result of investigations into the Petrobras scandal.

 Judge Daniel Carnio Costa of the First Section of Bankruptcy and Judicial Recoveries of the Court of Justice of the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. accepted the petition for judicial recovery placed by nine companies of OAS Group—Construtora OAS, OAS S.A., OAS Imoveis S.A., SPE Gestao e Exploracao de Arenas Multiuso, OAS Empreendimentos S.A., OAS Infraestrutura S.A., OAS Investments Ltd, OAS Investments GmbH and OAS Finance Ltd. 

They have been given 60 days to submit to creditors and suppliers a plan for recovery of debts contracted until March 31. All debts contracted as of April will be fully paid. Payments of salaries and benefits of more than 100,000 direct or indirect employees will not be affected by the process of judicial recovery.

Alvarez & Marsal Consultoria Empresarial do Brasil  is the court-appointed trustee that will inspect the operations of the companies, verify the list of creditors and inspect compliance with the judicial recovery plan. 

“With almost 40 years of existence, OAS is compelled to take measures which allow it to continue operating in a healthy debt renegotiation process, preserving thousands of direct and indirect jobs,” said Fabio Yonamine, chairman of OAS Investimentos. 

Diego Barreto, director of Corporate Development of Construtora OAS, said the group “will take to the negotiation of this process contributions which are very different from the ones observed in other judicial recoveries. A company with resources to maintain its activities, valuable assets and a team of professional managers provides clients, creditors and suppliers with a much safer environment for negotiations.” 

OAS will sell some of its assets i to provide safety to investors who will take no risk of having their business contested by the creditors of the group. The disinvestment in assets is also caused by the decision to concentrate efforts on what is its main vocation, heavy construction.

Construtora OAS goes into judicial recovery for technical matters, as it is already the guarantor of the group’s loans, rather than for lack of liquidity. 

“Construtora OAS bets on a professional governance, a corporate remodelling, revision of its management processes, strengthening of the compliance and internal audit areas, besides tough guidelines for reducing risks in the business conduction. The aim is making the company leaner, more agile, more competitive, focused on productivity and costs,” said Yonamine.

Late last year, Brazil’s Supreme Court approved the investigation of dozens of politicians for their alleged involvement in a kickback scheme at the state-run oil firm Petrobras. Prosecutors have charged executives from six of the country’s largest construction firms for allegedly channelling kickbacks into a Petrobras scheme to pay politicians.

ANSA McAL Group chairman and chief executive A Norman Sabga has paid tribute to Gerry Brooks, chief operating officer and sector head, manufacturing, who is retiring after 25 years of service.

He said Brooks, who will retire on April 30, was inspirational in his role as chief operating officer and served loyally in other key leadership positions. 

“On behalf of the entire ANSA McAL Group and family, we extend our sincere appreciation to Gerry for his contribution to the Group. He took great pride in overseeing the continued growth of the Group and our subsidiaries beyond traditional boundaries, and it is a privilege to reflect on working with him over the last 25 years,” Sabga.

“When you work with someone for that length of time they become more than a just colleague, they become your confidant and friend. His commitment, energy and diligence are well-known attributes and he has paved the way for another generation of excellent leaders. 

He leaves the group in strong and competent hands and the experience and acumen of our directors, together with the professionalism and skills of management will ensure that we continue to grow, provide outstanding service and products to our customers and be involved in the communities we serve. 

“As he finalises his post-retirement plans and shifts his energies to other areas of interest, the ANSA McAL Group remains indebted for his passionate leadership, business acumen and wise counsel and we look forward to more exciting developments from him in the future. We wish Mr Gerry Brooks, Godspeed, continued health and success in his new journey.”

An attorney-at-law, Brooks is the holder of an MBA, Columbia University, (Deans Honour Roll).

He is also deputy chairman of the Caribbean Court of Justice Trust Fund and holds additional directorships in the group including McEnearney Alstons (Barbados) Ltd, Tatil and Tatil Life, and is a member of the ANSA McAL Group Parent Board and Executive Committee.

Brooks is chairman of the Family Planning Association, a past Rotary President and has also served on several Cabinet appointed committees.

As Cable and Wireless Communications Plc (CWC) and Columbus International Inc. (Columbus) prepare for operations as a new, enlarged entity, the Caribbean awaits first signs of how their promise of being “Better Together” will actually play out.

Since the deal for CWC to acquire Columbus for US$3.025 billion was announced last November, the two regional telecommunications providers have been on a campaign to convince consumers, competitors, regulators and investors that their union will be “transformational for CWC and Columbus and beneficial for customers and the wider economies across the Caribbean.” It has not been an easy sell. 

The message of the two companies being “Better Together” has been met with cautious optimism in some quarters and in other cases with fear, scepticism and outright opposition. The shadow of Cable and Wireless’ past and the uncertainty of the telecom-sector’s future have given occasion for region-wide concern.

In the five countries in which their operations overlapped, the companies had to make extra effort to convince wary governments and consumers that merging their operations will not signal a return to the dark, dreaded era of Cable and Wireless as a monopoly provider, with attendant high prices, poor service and limited innovation. 

CWC seems to have convinced regulators that markets and customers will not be adversely affected post-acquisition, arguing that by merging operations they can “compete more effectively in a challenging and evolving market.” 

The March 27 announcement by the Barbados Fair Trading Commission (FTC) of its conditions for the approval the merger in Barbados marked the last major regulatory hurdle for the deal. It cleared the way for CWC to complete its acquisition of Columbus and shift focus fully to integrating the operations of the two companies. 

Conditions apply

CWC has not received an unconditional blessing, however. Regulators and governments have either imposed conditions or requested assurances to safeguard consumer interests be safeguarded and protect the competitiveness of local markets. 

Last January, Jamaica became the first country to officially approve the merger of local assets of CWC and Columbus. The Jamaican government in a statement indicated that the Jamaican Telecommunications Act did not expressly authorise the imposition of conditions in relation to the transaction.

T&T’s regulator followed with their own pronouncement last March, signaling it would approve the deal with conditions that include CWC’s divestment of its 49 per cent stake in Telecommunications Services of T&T (TSTT). 

The local regulator, Telecommunications Authority of T&T (TATT), has prescribed a timeline of one year, with a possible extension to 18 months, for CWC to comply. In the interim, CWC will be required to suspend its shareholder rights, including the right to name directors. It can, however, continue to collect dividends.

For Barbados, the FTC listed 14 conditions to its approval, including that customers of the fixed voice residential and commercial business and the fixed broadband residential and commercial business “must be released from any contracts, if they so desire, so that they are able to exercise the option to choose a service provider.” 

The FTC also stipulated the divestment of one set of fibre cables in the zones where there exists total overlap of the LIME and Flow networks.

Blunted opposition

Competitor Digicel has been one of the loudest critics of the deal. The privately held company heavily campaigned regional regulators to prevent or impose conditions before approving the merger. With the three major markets in the Caribbean each giving their conditional green light, Digicel is now focusing its battle on the Eastern Caribbean front.

Digicel has asked the Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ECTEL) to publicly clarify and confirm the status of the regulatory approvals process they have undertaken in conjunction with the National Telecommunications Regulatory Commissions (NTRCs) as it relates to merged CWC/Columbus operations in Grenada, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Digicel Group CEO, Colm Delves, said; “The proposed merger between Columbus and CWC also involves the creation of a monopoly and strong potential anti-competitive effects in the markets for landline, broadband and Cable TV in Grenada, St Lucia and St Vincent and the Grenadines.” 

Compete if you can

CWC has consistently pushed back against Digicel’s arguments about monopoly concerns, countering that Digicel is a significant competitor, commanding a substantial customer base across the region and making sizable investments in cable, fixed-line, and submarine systems. 

The reality is that the merger of Digicel’s two primary competitors portends more aggressive competition in the mobile space where it is the de-facto dominant provider. 

Further, Digicel will now likely have a harder, more costly time seeing a return on its own growing investments in fixed line, cable TV and broadband. 

At the least, it faces a longer and more challenging journey in its quest to become a significant quad-play service provider.

Ultimately, neither Digicel’s obvious self-interest nor its market tactics, makes it the most effective champion of competition and fair market practice. Its quest to mobilise support for its arguments against the deal have been undermined by its own dubious practices and positions. 

The company last year angered and alienated customers with its oppositional stance to popular “over-the-top” Voice over IP services like Viber. It has also frustrated regulators with its vacillation and sometimes antagonistic positions on important issues like local number-portability and elimination of voice and data roaming in the Caribbean markets in which it operates. A more objective regional watchdog will have to emerge.

Completing the CWC transformation

Will the new CWC be able to deliver on its customer service pledge? Will its products and services be better and more affordable? Will its social commitment increase to match its increase influence as a corporate citizen? Will its drive to realise a return on its considerable financial investment be matched by commensurate investment in human resource capital? 

The answers to these questions will not be long in coming.

Bevil Wooding is an internet strategist with Packet Clearing House (www.pch.net) an international non-profit organisation responsible for providing operational support and security to critical Internet infrastructure, including Internet exchange points and the core of the domain name system. Follow on Twitter: @bevilwooding 

The publication of Angostura Holdings Ltd’s results for 2014 on Friday, March 27, 2015, coincided with an important press release from the Central Bank relating to some positive developments for Clico policyholders.

One consequence of the release was that Clico’s ownership of 32.5 per cent of AHL would be transferred to the government (perhaps, on a temporary basis) in order to fulfil part of the $7 billion interim settlement. A valuation of those shares would have to be done.

A subsequent press conference by the Minister of Finance clarified that it was not the government’s intention to hold on to the AHL shares (and that of two other companies) indefinitely. He further indicated that it was possible that those shares could form part of another “NEL-type” entity. No firm decision has yet been taken on that possibility.

Previously, there was some speculation that both CL Financial’s 45 per cent and Clico’s 32.5 per cent stake might have been combined and sold to one entity, either local or foreign. For example, this package might have been (and probably still is) of great interest to the ANSA McAL/Carib Brewery group. We seem addicted to using state-ownership to “solve” many problems.

We will start with a review of AHL’s results for the period ended December 31, 2014.

Financial position

The company’s financial position continues to improve with total assets climbing by 13.4 per cent to $1.05 billion from the restated 2013 level of $924.2 million.

The company’s continuous investment in new plant and machinery saw the value of property, plant and equipment move from $321.1 million to $347.3 million. Additions of almost $42 million comfortably exceeded current year’s depreciation charges of nearly $20 million.

Retirement benefit assets improved to $64.7 million from the previous level of $53.6 million. Mainly, this reflected that the value of the plan assets grew at a faster rate than its pension obligations.

The bulk of the pension plan’s assets are represented by an insured managed fund contract, which Clico manages. Approximately, 18.7 per cent or $62.69 million of that fund’s value represents the value of AHL’s shares held in the fund. 

Using the closing price as at December 31, 2014 of $13.50, this corresponds to ownership of about 4.64 million shares in AHL.

Current assets rose to $636.3 million from 2013’s $544.4 million.

Trade and other receivables of $241.6 million comfortably exceed trade and other payables of $106.6 million; as at year-end 2013, the respective figures were $194.2 and $109.9 million.

In addition, the company’s hoard of cash and equivalents grew from $148 million to last year- end’s $173.4 million. For both periods, these balances exceeded its total borrowings of $114.8 million and $110.1 million respectively. Essentially, the company is described as being debt-free.

Shareholders’ equity improved to $775 million from the previous level of $657.9 million. The main contributor to this change was the increase in retained earnings, which closed 2014 at $556.6 million; at year-end 2013, this figure was $452.2 million.

The major positive movement in retained earnings came from the current year’s profit of $153.4 million and was reduced by dividends to shareholders of $53.6 million. In addition, this item was further boosted by a positive prior year net adjustment of $9.3 million, which eliminated a previous provision for inventory evaporation.

With 205,820,000 shares outstanding, each share has a book value of $3.77 (2013: $3.20). To this value we should add a further $4.78, which is the per share value of the $984.6 million owed to AHL by its parent company, CL Financial.

This calculation suggests that the “floor value” of AHL’s shares is $8.55 ($3.77 plus $4.78). We will return to this point later.

Sales and profit

Total revenues improved by a modest 1.35 per cent to $672.2 million from $663.2 million in 2013.

The gross profit margin declined to 59.6 per cent from 60.3 per cent in 2013. Consequently, the gross profit rose to $401 million from the previous year’s $400 million.

Both selling and marketing and administrative expenses declined. In the case of the former, the movement was from $124.2 million in 2013 to $117.8 million last year. In the latter’s case, the reduction was from $70.6 million in the earlier period down to $62.9 million in 2014.

These changes saw operating profit for 2014 come in at $220.2 million. This represents an improvement of 7.3 per cent over the $205.2 million recorded for 2013.

Net finance costs in 2014 fell to $2.9 million from 2013’s $9.05 million.

This resulted in profits from continuing operations coming in at $217.3 million, reflecting an improvement of 10.75 per cent over the $196.2 million reported for 2013.

In 2014, the loss on revaluation of land and buildings ($10.9 million) and foreign exchange losses of $1.2 million pulled down pre-tax profits to $207 million.

In the 2013 period, pre-tax profits were boosted by foreign exchanges gains ($21 million), gain on settlement of a financial liability ($44.5 million) and a gain on disposal of investments ($83.8 million). These were the main factors that boosted its pre-tax profit to $350.8 million.

At the after-tax level, profits fell to $153.4 million from the 2013 result of $289 million. This 2014 result translated into EPS of $0.75 (2013: $1.41).

Segment performance

In previous reporting, AHL showed segments as being either “alcohol” or “non-alcohol”. This led to some confusion, since the company’s flagship and most famous product, Angostura® Bitters, and which contains 44.7 per cent alcohol, was classified under the “non-alcohol” segment! In addition, the alcohol segment included both branded products and non-branded (bulk) products, mainly bulk rum.

In a more logical move, segments are now classified as being either “branded” or “commodity”. Naturally, the commodity segment consists primarily of bulk rum. However, the branded trade comprises of both manufactured products and similar beverages produced by other manufacturers. Perhaps, in a subsequent version, the branded trade would be divided into two areas, those that are made by AHL and those that it distributes for others?

From our table, we note that the gross profit margin increased from 30.95 per cent in 2013 to last year’s 32.76 per cent. The principal gains were made under the branded trade segment, where margins improved from 36 per cent to 38.35 per cent.

It was here that the reductions in selling, marketing and administrative expenses would have been most pronounced. Probably also helping to improve the picture was its increasing volumes of trade in non-manufactured products.

Share price and dividends

AHL’s share price closed on January 2, 2014 at $12.47 and drifted down to $10.75 by January 28, 2014. But by December 31, 2014, its price closed at $13.50. Against the background of the Methanol sale and probably in anticipation of a settlement to the long-running saga of CL Financial/Clico, investors bid up its price to $16.00 at which level it closed on January 26, 2015. Once again, the price drifted downwards and it closed on April 1, 2015 at $14.00, with some buy bids coming in at $11.90.

For 2014, AHL increased its dividend to $0.26 per share (2013: $0.24). At the most recent $14.00 price, this dividend gives investors a yield of 1.86 per cent.

Valuations and ownership considerations

We have already derived a “book value” for AHL at $3.77. To this figure we added the per-share value of the money owed to it by CLF and came up with a possible share value of $8.55.

Another way to value a company is to compare its dividend yield to that of other companies operating in a similar type of business. In this case, we might want to compare AHL’s yield to that of Unilever Caribbean (UCL) and National Flour Mills (NFM), both food companies.

Using data from West Indies Stockbrokers Ltd weekly report dated March 27, 2015, we note the following figures. In the case of UCL, we have a share price of $64.56 and a historic dividend of $1.95 giving a yield of 2.97 per cent. In the case of NFM, its share price was $1.50 and its historic dividend of $0.05 gives us a dividend yield of 3.33 per cent.

Interestingly, the book value of UCL was shown as $8.35 while that of NFM was $1.63. This suggests that book value may not be the most reliable or logical estimate to place on a company’s shares. Naturally, there are other factors that have a greater influence on the market price.

Staying with these comparators for the moment, we might assume that a food company, such as AHL, should give us a dividend yield of about three per cent. On the basis of its most recent dividend indication, we can derive a “safe” value for AHL of $8.67 (The dividend of $0.26 divided by three per cent).

But we do know that AHL has a “special receivable” of $4.78 per share owed to it. So, logically, we should add these two figures to get a possible realistic value of $13.45. At that price, Clico/Government’s 66,971,877 shares are worth $900.77 million.

Of course, there are other more intricate ways of valuing a company’s shares, but those are beyond the scope of this article. We also have not factored in a credible value for Angostura® Bitters.

But the question remains, when will CL Financial be in a position to make this payment? 

The March 27, 2015 press conference and interview did not shed any light on this.

Quite possibly, this payment will have to wait on the additional sales of specific assets together with the hammering out of a realistic and politically acceptable agreement between CL Financial and the government. We might be looking at a time-frame of six to 18 months.

In the interim, AHL’s ownership will essentially remain with CL Financial (which is still controlled by the government) owning 45 per cent, Clico/Govt having 32.5 per cent and with public shareholders (including Clico’s managed fund) holding the remaining 22.5 per cent.

Is this ownership structure restricting AHL’s ability to grow revenue and profits at meaningful rates? 

After all, the benefits of cost reduction measures do have their limits!

Client Situation

Sulin, 32, works as an accounts supervisor at a manufacturing company. She earns $10,000 before taxes and has been regularly making minimum payments (1/24th of the statement balance) on her credit card for eight years. Her card is currently maxed out at $35,000 and, apart from the annual membership fee, the interest rate is 24 per cent per annum.  

Sulin really wants to eliminate the debt before it gets out of hand but would like to keep the facility to pay her monthly bills of $5,000. Her bank is willing to covert the debt into a loan repayable in 24 monthly installments. She knows the interest cost may be significantly lower with the loan but she is afraid that bank would cancel the facility altogether.  

Arnold, a coworker, suggested she stops using the card and pay a fixed amount of $1,500 per month.  

Another friend, Julie, suggested she stop using the card but add $200 to her regular monthly minimums. 

Sulin wants to know which option is best for her.  

Nick’s Assessment  & Advice

Sulin’s case is quite common as many individuals who “religiously” make minimum payments often get their limits increased periodically. The local expression of: “have money will spend” is very applicable in these circumstances as it is very easy to swipe a credit card at peak shopping seasons when available funds are conveniently added to one’s account. Using the money is easy and paying the minimum’s not a hassle as part of the payment is accessible after the interest is deducted (revolving credit).

What is important to Sulin is maintaining the convenience of the card whist addressing the growing debt problem. The strategies above each have merit but must be qualified by actual numbers in order to advise which is best.

Losing the facility

First off, Sulin does not have to worry about losing the facility as she has a good credit rating evidenced by her timely payments. She could actually negotiate with her bank to get the loan and keep the card.

Strategies

Minimum payments only

Paying only the minimum and reusing the card perpetuates the debt.  

If Sulin stops using the card and only makes the minimum payments she would still have a balance of $582.00 even after 15 years and racked up interest cost of $30,564. This is because a fractional part of the residual balance is paid every month (1/24th) so the debt never really gets paid off completely.

 Fixed payment of $1,500

If she takes Arnold’s advice, she would repay the debt within three years (32 months) and the total interest payback would be $12,618.

Minimum payments plus $200

Julie’s recommendation of adding the extra $200 to the minimum is quite common, however, part of the payment is still fractional (1/24th) and will protract payments up to six years with accumulated interest of $18,637.

Loan for $35,000

We have not been given the interest rate but, assuming an APR of 13 per cent and a repayment for two years, the monthly installment would be $1,664 and the total interest cost would be $4,936.

Loan for $30,000

None of the suggestions above satisfy Sulin’s need to repay the debt and maintain access to the facility to pay monthly bills.

A good hybrid of all strategies is to:

1. Hive off a major portion of the debt to a lower interest loan

2. Retain the credit card debt and facility at a reduced level and

3. Use the revolving feature to roll over debt without interest

Sulin can request that the bank convert only $30,000 of the debt into a loan and reduce the credit card limit/debt to $5,000 which she will roll over every month when she gets paid. She will deposit $5,000 from her salary to the card clearing the balance (by the due date) but regaining access to the facility whilst paying no interest. 

She will contain her debt at $5,000 but must refrain from accepting future limit increases. If this loan runs for two years with an APR of 13 per cent the monthly payment will be $1,426 and her total interest cost would be $4,224.

Illustrations

The charts take a snapshot of each strategy for one-year comparing the residual balances, accumulated interest cost and the total payback (principal & interest) over the period.

In 1926, land on Broadway and Wall Street in New York City cost US$7 a square inch; the first public demonstration of television toke place in a lab in London; ANR Robinson, who would one day be prime minister and president of this country was born in Castara, Tobago and the colony had a two dollar bill.

That very year, George S Clason published The Richest Man in Babylon. 

Richest Man was originally a series of financial parables issued to banks and insurance companies in the US and popularised as these companies’ clients read them and passed them on.

The parables are, in fact, still used as a training tool by some insurance companies and financial advisers both abroad and locally.

What is interesting about The Richest Man in Babylon is firstly its age: almost 80 years, pre-dating several modern personal finance gurus’ books by decades and its setting in the ancient city of Babylon.

According to the author, he set his parables here as it was one the richest cities ever to exist and the rules that made it so were practicable and relevant to those living centuries later.

Its heroes are Bansir, a chariot maker, and his best friend Kobbi, a musician. Both begin the story lamenting their bad financial luck and comparing their lives to another friend, Arkad, who started off just as poor as they, but became the richest man in the kingdom, a man so fabulously wealthy even the King sought him out whenever Babylon’s treasuries ran dry.

Hoping to change their fortunes, Bansir and Kobbi go to see Arkad to see if he would teach them the secrets of amassing such a fortune.

The other parables are loosely connected to the characters introduced in the first, but all generally run along the same theme: how to increase wealth, earnings, protect against an uncertain future, avoid or get out of debt and understanding the psychology of money.

What the Richest Man          told his friends

Arkad, Babylon’s richest man, recounts to Bansir and Kobbi that he started as a scribe in Babylon’s hall of records.

Algamish, a wealthy visitor to the hall, presents him with an opportunity to earn some extra money, as well as knowledge of how to become rich. Arkad, follows the advice, making some initial gains, but eventually loses all of this through a bad investment. However, he perseveres and is able to recoup the loss and builds this into the massive wealth for which he becomes known.

This is how he was able to do it:

• Start fattening thy purse. A part of all you earn is yours to keep. It should not be less than 10 per cent, no matter how little you earn.

• Learn to live on less than one earns

• Gold coins are slaves, to be made to work for you

Use the rental from these gold coins to bring other gold coins. 

• Do not eat the children of your savings

• Increase one’s ability to earn

• Advice is one thing given freely, but watch that you take only what is worth. He who takes advice about his savings from one who is experienced in such matters, shall pay with his savings.

• Be prepared to take advantage of financial opportunities that present themselves

• A small, safe return is better than one fraught with risk.

• Enjoy life while you are here. Do not overstrain or try to save too much

• Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment

• Insure an income for your future. Invest thy treasure with the greatest caution that it not be lost

• Provide for thy family should the gods call you to their realms

Just as relevant today

Archaic language aside, the fictional Babylonian, Arkad—through his engaging tale—hits on many financial tenets the Sunday BG has explored with its readers through its pages over the past year:

• Budgeting and saving (Learn to live on less and fattening they purse): The ability to increase wealth is severely crippled without a plan to accumulate the funds necessary to invest.

• Investment (Gold coins are slaves): This accumulated capital can now be placed in investment instruments suited to particular financial goals, whether this is purchasing a home, car or saving for retirement.

• Compounding (Do not “eat” the children of your savings): Any earnings from investment should not immediately be spent on consumables, but re-invested into other ventures that provide their own returns.

• Increasing one’s ability to earn: This is usually done by acquiring a new skill through education, which in turn increases the chance of getting higher income.

• Taking financial advice from those qualified to give it: This one is self explanatory and the Sunday BG has always advocated in our articles to seek further professional advice on any of the issues we’ve covered, whether it be pensions, insurance, obtaining mortgages, or making any other long-term financial commitment.

• Being prepared to take advantage of financial opportunities that present themselves: Arkad, the character in The Richest Man in Babylon, was able to increase his wealth because he had accumulated capital to take advantage of investment opportunities that came up along the way.

In the parable, Arkad was able to purchase a successful estate from Algamish, whose own children were not interested in running it.

• Small, safer returns better than large risk: Of course, as several of the financial professionals we have spoken to in the past year have indicated, this all depends on your risk tolerance, but as a general rule of thumb, the greater the potential rewards of any investment, the greater the potential to lose as well.

• Own your own home (Make of thy dwelling a profitable place ): Though this advice is sometimes disputed, for the most part, financial advisers still consider owning a home to be an asset.

• Protect your investments and insure an income in later years: Whether this is done through insurance and pension plans, some provision should be made for reducing the effects of misfortune and advancing age on one’s finances.

• Prepare a will (provide for thy family should the gods call you to their realms): Lastly, working hard throughout life to provide a legacy will come to naught if no thought is given to what will happen to all one's hard earned assets after death while alive.

A free, downloadable copy of The Richest Man in Babylon is available at http://www.ccsales.com/the_richest_man_in_babylon.pdf.

Two Fridays ago, on March 27, the Central Bank issued its monetary policy announcement in which it reported that Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) had “agreed to raise the ‘repo’ rate for a fourth consecutive time by 25 basis points to 3.75 per cent.”

One of the more extraordinary aspects of this statement was its headline: “Interest rate hike needed to protect T&T economy.”

The obvious questions are: 

1) What is the T&T economy being protected against? and 

2) Will increasing interest rates provide the protection that the Central Bank seems to believe the domestic economy needs?

 In explaining why the MPC “agreed” to increase the repo rate to 3.75 per cent, the Central Bank cited three factors that provide some clues that may help to discern what the domestic economy is being protected against.  

The MPC “agreed” to increase rates because of “the potential for higher domestic inflation in the medium term,” and because of “the relatively positive growth outlook for 2015.”

 The third factor—the possibility that the US Federal Reserve may increase interest rates in the third quarter of this year—is beyond the control of the T&T authorities in a way that the first two clearly are not.

 The MPC also agreed “to continue with an aggressive programme to absorb excess liquidity so as to strengthen the impact higher interest rates are expected to have throughout the financial system. 

On the issue of higher domestic inflation in the medium term, the Central Bank noted that “headline inflation slowed for the third consecutive month in February 2015 to just over 6 per cent from 9 per cent in November 2014.”

Why is the Central Bank increasing interest rates if the rate of inflation is declining? 

The reason is that “this easing in headline inflation may be short lived, as inflationary pressures are expected to pick up in the rest of 2015 due to a number of factors.” 

As far as can be determined, the Central Bank says there are three reasons why inflationary pressures are expected to be higher later on in 2015 than in February: 

• Growth of consumer credit remains robust, increasing by nearly 8.5 per cent in January 2015, suggesting consumers are still willing to spend despite negative sentiment surrounding falling oil prices;

• Current and expected settlement of wage negotiations for teachers, civil servants and other public sector workers with considerably large retroactive payments and salary increments will boost consumer spending and further stoke inflationary pressures; 

• The expansionary fiscal stimulus remains on track. Central Government’s spending on its capital programme was higher by 7 per cent in the first four months of the 2015 fiscal year when compared to the corresponding period one year ago.

In picking apart these factors:

a) Higher consumer credit—It seems quite extraordinary, even counter-intuitive, that consumer credit was 8.5 per cent greater in January this year than in January 2014. This means that the consumers of T&T are borrowing to spend this year—when the prices of T&T’s energy exports have collapsed—at a pace that is significantly higher than one year ago. 

Could it be, then, that the Central Bank is attempting to protect T&T residents from themselves? 

What does it mean that consumer are borrowing at a faster rate in 2015 than one year ago?

Is there a link between the “robust” consumer credit and the Prime Minister’s speech on the State of the Economy on January 8, in which she said: “I am of the firm view that this is no time for sudden changes in the direction of economic development policies. Such an approach will negatively impact your comfort, investor confidence, business expansion and employment. I am also of the firm view that using a period of challenges to promote fear and panic will be irresponsible, and will have the impact of creating problems where in fact no such problems exist.”

From this quote, it is clear to me that this national mood of comfort and wellbeing—in the face of an inevitable future of higher taxes and a reduction in transfers and subsidies—was created by the Prime Minister’s “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” speech. 

Is the Central Bank trying to protect the country from the lack of concern about the future laid bare by the 8.5 per cent increase in consumer credit?

b) Backpay will boost spending—The Central Bank is right when it states that if the Government decides to make lumpsum payments of backpay to public servants and teacher that this will “boost consumer spending and further stoke inflationary pressures.” If the Central Bank knows this, one must assume that the Ministry of Finance knows this as well. 

So, it must be assumed that Minister of Finance, Larry Howai, is aware that if public servants and teachers get the $2 billion in backpay owed to them as a lumpsum in June or July, they will go out on spend it at amazon.com and in the purchase of cars, fridges, stoves, washing machines, driers and even dishwashers. 

And to this figure of $2 billion must be added the $1.75 billion that is due to be distributed to non-assenting holders of Clico’s Executive Felixible Premium Annuities and to British American (BAT) holders of short-term investment products by June.

If Mr Howai is aware of that a $3.75 billion tsunami of spending is about to descend on the country that would “further stoke inflationary pressures,” what is he going to do about it?

Will he proceed to make lumpsum disbursements of monies to Clico/BAT policyholders and backpay to public servants and teachers—which would suit his party’s political agenda to win this year’s general election—or will he stagger those payments over a three-month period as the St Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies is doing for its academic and non-academix staff?

Will Mr Howai ensure that there are adequate fixed income and equity investment opportunities—such as the tax-free savings bonds, shares in Phoenix Park Gas Processors and the enhanced tax savings as a result of a $50,000 allocation to annuities—available to public servants, teachers and policyholders?

Or will those public servants, teachers and policyholders who realise that they would be worse off in the long run if they were to go out and blow their lumpsums only have the option of income funds and deposit account earning 1 per cent or less in interest?

If you know something bad is going to happen through your own actions, wouldn’t it be the responsible and rational approach to put mitigation measures in place?

Is the Central Bank trying to protect T&T from the political season that we are in?

c) Expansionary fiscal spending—Again, if the Minister of Finance knows that excessive Government spending is going to contribute to a tsunami of consumer credit and spending, what is he going to do about it?

At the start of this piece, the second question that was asked was: Will increasing interest rates provide the protection that the Central Bank seems to believe the domestic economy needs?

The answer is that the conventional thinking is that interest rates take between nine and 18 months to impact economic activity—and this assumes lending rates are going up across the board in T&T.

Clearly they are not, as the Central Bank has been  very careful not to increase the mortgage market reference rate from 2.25 per cent as this is something that could really have an impact on the public’s sentiment. 

All of this does not diagnose what could be the real problem that the Central Bank is attempting to protect T&T from, which is the declining foreign exchange reserves.

There is a link between increasing interest rates and T&T’s foreign reserves as the Central Bank attempts to make T&T assets more valuable, but that is a story for another day.

By Orlando Griffith

WE HAVE ALL HEARD the local saying “Don’t sweat nobody fever”, and we understand it to mean you shouldn’t be fighting another person’s battles, especially if it’s really none of your business. It’s worse if you weren’t asked to get involved, and the person whose behalf you are advocating cares less than you do. Well what about sweating your own fever? We’ve heard from the old folks you should sweat out the fever, we’ve perhaps taken some homeopathic remedy to solve the problem. Whether it’s orange peel tea, garlic tea, ginger tea or shining bush tea, we’ve probably done it all for relief. But what about exercising during illness and sweating the fever that way?

Runners, athletes and avid exercisers alike have a difficult time taking time off to nurse themselves back to health when they’re coming down with or experiencing an illness. I myself know the feeling when time off is needed but I want to stay on schedule and not lose my training rhythm. The withdrawal from the training high is real if you’ve been consistent but often times the symptoms and manifestations of illness are too real to deny that you should rest. Most medical practitioners caution against training during a cold or flu. If you decide to push through, hoping you’ll perhaps morph into a superhero or gain extra kudos with your peers, you’ll be sorry, because you may end up prolonging the symptoms of your illness, and you’ll take longer to regain the fitness level that you were at before. I also caution my clients and athletes against even stepping foot into the training facility when they’re ill, although I appreciate the effort for trying to come.

Even if you’re the most fit and healthy athlete, on a daily basis your body is fighting infections, sometimes too small to recognize, but those times when it is recognizable it needs resources and energy to fight it off; therefore, during illness, source your energy from whole foods, fruits, vegetables, and good complex carbs to provide a steady supply of sustained energy. Although you may not feel thirsty while experiencing a fever or severe cold, increase your water intake to keep you cool. Your water is lost through perspiration, mucus during coughing and sneezing and, if you’re lucky; through diarrhoea (Joy)! Rest is perhaps the most integral aspect of recovery during an illness, and a good night’s sleep gives the body the opportunity to go into overdrive, focusing its attention to the areas under duress.

Again, most doctors would caution against working out during illness because it can escalate into something a lot more serious that may affect the lungs and respiratory tract. Don’t push it!

I would advise the few who would still decide to feel it out and do their own thing to follow this rule of thumb; according to doctors, if there’s no fever, where there are only symptoms above the neck, like a sore throat, runny nose or congestion, you should take it easy. 

Finally, one more factor to consider is overtraining, which could be your cause of illness. Overtraining is caused by excess exercising, and this can lead to overtraining syndrome. This neuroendocrine disorder is known for its association to poor performance during competition and training where muscle soreness, persistent fatigue, crankiness, being frequently ill, not being able to recover from workouts quickly enough and disturbed sleeping patterns are a few of its symptoms . The biggest indicator is the upper respiratory infections that occur during prolonged sessions of endurance training. The general recreational population of exercisers and non-athletes wouldn’t need to worry so much about that, but it’s good to know. 

Remember if you’re training smart you’re going to have peaks and valleys and opportunities for rest and regeneration within a training plan, therefore training shouldn’t get you sick. Otherwise take steps to continuously stay in great health. Good luck! 

Orlando Griffith is an Athletic Development and Performance Specialist. Ariessportsperformance@gmail.com

By Tishanna Williams

HELLO, KINKY CURLIES!

Hope the holiday is treating you well and you are taking care to ensure your tresses are in tip top shape. Easter is a big time in Trinidad and Tobago with (dare I say), a large contingent of Trinis heading to the sister isle for some R&R with the sun, sea and sand. Although the beach and hotel poolside are great places to let it all hang out, and natural girl accessories and swimwear seem to heating up the fashion world with the coming of ‘summer’, our hair is still one of our biggest attractions and it’s easy to throw caution to the wind for the weekend and go jumping, hair included, into salty seas and chlorinated pools.

Though many of us would have a heart attack if our weaves, straightened or colour-treated hair got wet (especially if we just had it done), we often pay less attention when it’s our unprocessed hair because we think it stronger and more able to withstand. This may be somewhat true, but chlorine in pool water removes natural hair oils, resulting in loss of shine and flexibility as well as weakening of the chemical bonds between fibres forming hair shafts, disrupting structural integrity of the hair shaft. 

Once the bonds are broken, the ends of the hairs can split. Hair can also become rough and prone to damage or breakage. Salt water, though quite beneficial for hair and skin (some experts suggest it can aid in treating eczema and psoriasis as well as promote circulation) can also become quite drying if hair is not washed after and the sea salt is allowed to dry on hair and scalp. So, before you go jumping in, take a few minutes to look over these tips for ensuring your hair’s health over your Easter extravaganza.

Rinse hair with warm water first

Hair absorbs and becomes swollen with water before you hop in the pool. This way the hair does not absorb as much chlorinated or salt water.

Apply oil or conditioner

This may not seem like a good idea, especially for a pool dip since you may end up getting your products in the water, but remember, with oils especially, a little goes a long way, so no need to over-saturate hair with it. Both conditioners and oils coat strands, giving an extra layer of moisture and seal of protection respectively against chlorine and excess salts.

Protective style

That cute high bun or twist style will be just as cute as a twist out with your sexy bikini, and provide a lot more protection for your hair.

Post-dip wash and DC

After a dip, cleanse your hair of the unwanted minerals and excess salts that would have deposited during your water palance. For those no-poo peeps, invest in a cleansing conditioner (Shea Moisture, for example). If you use pools often, you may wish to invest in a chelating shampoo (one which contains compounds that bond with the chemical deposits from pool water and allow their removal from hair). Note these should be used only once or twice a month to remove buildup, rather than every time you hit the pool. You also need to regularly DC (deep conditioning) — which by now you are an old hand at since we’ve dealt with the importance of this process many times in previous articles, and you even have some sweet home recipes to DIY. Bentonite clay is also considered useful for removing ions, etc.

Note: Some chelating shampoos may be available locally (Pennywise, haircare stores). Look for shampoos containing EDTA, or acetic or citric acid.

Swim caps

Yes! A swim cap. It may not be the sexiest thing out there, but it’s the safest thing, and with hair bands, scarfs, ties and all other forms of fashion accoutrements to cover the most unflattering style of cap, we are sure you will be just fine and still fashionable.

So enjoy your swim, stay safe in the water, and do whatever it take to make sure your glorious mane is as gorgeous after your outing as it was before!

AS ANTICIPATION BUILDS for the upcoming Tobago Fashion Coda, which will be held at the Magdalena Grand Beach and Golf Resort on Thursday 23rd April, we present more of the designers who are set to storm the stage.

NOOR

The essence of Noor lies in her ability to draw inspiration from a wide variety of artistic disciplines, including visual art, architecture and cinema. Her inspiration translates creatively into modern, dynamic and bold, yet timeless fashion. NOOR’s garments display high quality craftsmanship while exuding elegance. The brand prides itself on the keen attention to detail and ensuring perfection in each piece, as each design is controlled carefully from initial sketch to the finished product. Even though she is currently busy creating a new line for 2015, NOOR is ready to present her Resort Collection to Tobago Fashion Coda.

The Cloth

The Cloth has been a staple of the fashion scene for 30 years. The label has come to represent a unique, dynamic and always original Caribbean aesthetic. Directed by the enigmatic Robert Young, the style perspective for The Cloth collections has always embodied elements of Caribbean folk traditions, the spirit of revolution and an interest in restoration of the social ecology and integration of community for public change. Its vibrant colours, flowing lines and eye-catching prints invite excitement and awe. Robert has designed consistently throughout the years. He shows annually, and has been a part of Caribbean Fashion Week in Jamaica since 2001. The Cloth is turning things up a notch with their new collection cleverly coined #inaboxtryingtogetoutofapattern 

Saleem Samuel Designs 

Designing for over 20 years, what began as simple and chic in the early nineties soon transformed into elegant and luxurious clothing. Traditionally confined to the Trinbagonian fashion scene, Saleem’s Designs soon made way across shores to Kingston, Brooklyn & Miami. Whether it's bridal or day-wear, formal or casual, men's or women's, all of Saleem’s pieces are custom created. Every creation must be able to transport wearers to another place. Fashion is one of the most accessible forms of creativity and innovation, and thus he has never compromised on originality. We gauge the success of our designs with how well they can best tell a story, give a detail or provide insight into the woman or man clothed in Saleem Samuel Designs.

JEWELLERY DESIGNERS FOR THE SHOW

Jo Fine Jewellery 

Josanne Mark was born and raised in south Trinidad, from the industrial, oil-producing area of Fyzabad. Trained by the best in the industry, she graduated from The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) in Manhattan, Summa Cum Laude in the Degree in Jewellery Design. Josanne strives to find a balance between masculine and feminine sensibilities, and challenges the use of conventional materials in jewellery production. She aims to create collections that infuse a fresh perspective into a millennia-old industry, while preserving hand crafting techniques. Her fusion of geometric and organic, natural and synthetic, sparkling and distressed, results in jewellery that walks the fine line between accessory and work of art.

Koko Karibi Designs

There creations reflect the diversity of cultural experiences and the Caribbean people and, by extension, the migratory heritage of their origins. Jacqueline Snaggs-Charles started creating jewellery as a viable economic alternative to visual expression and design that would incorporate her training in design from the John S. Donaldson Technical Institute (JSDTI) and The University of the West Indies (UWI) with her fine arts aesthetics. She has worked at various levels of the creative industries and sits on the board of various related industry organizations (TMAM and ACAD). She is very environmentally conscious and uses recycled materials and techniques in her production and material, sourcing all from ethically verifiable suppliers.  

Monika Schenkel

Schenkel is a German-born Jewellery Designer, on and off residing in Trinidad and Tobago. A fashion design degree notwithstanding, she made an early exit from the cut-throat industry. She didn't plan on crafting a career in jewellery design, yet as a girl she was fixated with stones on beaches and river banks. Now she dabbles with gem stones. A market for her anti-symmetrical, individual take on jewellery sprouted up through friends, word of mouth and exhibitions everywhere from Tobago to London to Germany. Creating the pieces remains a freestyle exercise. She is always inspired by the material she works with. 

BY ANY STANDARD, Makini McGuire is an over-achiever; she’s a medical doctor with her own general practice in Chaguanas, as well as an entrepreneur.  Along with her husband, Nigel Brown, McGuire co-owns Corp-So Events Solutions, a professional event management service for corporate and social functions, all at the ‘tender’ age of twenty four! 

It’s a good thing that Dr McGuire is “a multi-tasker who loves to keep busy”; it’s a balancing act that she seems to have perfected. “It was more difficult to balance both, when I was at the general hospitals because of the intense hours; sometimes I would be on 12 or 24 hour call.... with my own practice I’m more flexible”. 

A globally certified events professional, Dr McGuire founded Corp-So Events a year ago. “Thank God for my husband; he’s my inspiration. He saw my gift and encouraged me to start this business, and he paid for it!”

One of her biggest coups  was the recently completed ‘I Do’ Bridal Expo, held at La Soledad estate. Corp-So Events Solutions was brought in less than two weeks before the event, after another service provider failed to deliver. 

“This is why I started my company, because there is a need for greater professionalism in this industry. My client experienced the same thing I did as a bride: lack of communication by the events planner. Imagine you’re planning a really special occasion, you’ve entrusted it to a professional, yet they are not keeping you informed of the decisions they’re making or they are not meeting the timelines as agreed. This can be very nerve-wracking and unsettling for a bride or host...at the end of the day, your planner needs to understand that while they may be planning your special occasion, it’s still YOUR day and you are paying for it.”

Dr Mc Guire relished the opportunity to build her brand. “I love challenges. We worked really hard to pull off the event; we were glad to prove ourselves... Our client and the attendees gave us the thumbs up; it was a success.”

Dr Mc Guire approaches every event with the precision of a surgeon, with a three-step method. Firstly, “there’s the conceptualization stage, where we get an idea from the client of their vision, and we brainstorm. Secondly, we ‘plan and manage’; we create an event plan and walk through each step to ensure that everyone is on the same page. Then, on the day, we execute our event plan and coordinate the event.” Drawing from her medical background, Corp-So offers a unique bridal service: a couples’ blood test. I shudder to think of the consequences of a negative outcome on a couples’ wedding plans! “As a medical doctor, I’ve seen positive blood tests for one person but their partner is unaware; because of patient-doctor confidentiality I cannot say anything,” Mc Guire sighs.

While event professionals need to keep their clients looped in and communicate frequently. McGuire shares that customers also need to let their event professional do their job. Borrowing an analogy from medicine, a good doctor listens to their patient and a good patient listens to their doctor. But sometimes you get a ‘client from hell’ who is very stubborn; they disregard advice, they want things their way; sometimes they reel themselves back just before the brink of disaster. It’s a good thing, then, that Dr McGuire knows how to be patient. “If it’s a minor thing and they insist, I let them have their way, let them be happy, but if it’s a major thing that could impact the event and tarnish my reputation as a professional, then I stick to my guns.”

Dr McGuire graduated in 2013, and her practice is doing well. “My patients love my bedside manner. Medicine is my calling, my purpose... events planning is my passion. I love to see something that I’ve planned take shape; I love the finished product. With medicine, the workload is great, the hospital hours were long and only a person who genuinely wants to practice medicine should embark on this journey. I say that because I know people who were coerced, as it were, to become doctors; they didn’t want to disappoint their families but they’re just going through the motions. Their heart is not in it. Recently, a colleague said, Makini, how do you do it? I wish I could... 

Usually, doctors stay longer at the hospital, but 

Dr McGuire went into her own practice so she could have flexibility with her other business. “I keep up with my medical courses and I am doing the Canadian qualifying exams, which are very intensive, to be able to practise there.”

Dr McGuire met her Jamaican husband while both were studying at UWI’s Mona campus. “I had applied to study here; somehow my name appeared on their list and I was accepted there instead... to this day it’s still a mystery to me.” Well, if that’s not Divine intervention, then I don’t know what is. Doctor McGuire gushes that her husband is her rock. As for her father, economist and management consultant Gregory McGuire, she says, “I’m a daddy’s girl; I love my Mummy, but my father did everything to ensure that I am what I am today... he always said, see yourself five or ten years down the road, and then do what it takes to get there”.

JOSEPH; GEORGE Hugo, age 89 in Toronto, Canada on 31st March, 2015. Son of the late Emily and Stanisclaus Joseph. Husband of Jean n?e Robinsosn. Father of Trevor (Arlene) of Toronto and Richard (Kandy). Brother of Joan Morais, Mona Landredth- Smith, Frank and the late Cecil, Elsa Johnston, Audrey Hyatali and Derek.

Grandfather of Allena, Sean, Michelle, Christian and Emily. Great Grandfather of Ricardo, Valentina and Santiago. Cremation will take place in Toronto. A Memorial Mass will be held in Trinidad at a date to be published. For enquiries, call C&B 625-1170