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00:00:00 [Music]
00:00:20 And a very special good morning Trinidad and Tobago and the rest of the world.
00:00:23 I'm Marlon Hopkinson and as always welcome to the Morning Edition.
00:00:27 It's Thursday 19th October 2023. Thank you very much for joining us.
00:00:32 Let me just say for persons that are heading into Port of Spain this morning
00:00:37 and who usually drive on the main road to come down to Port of Spain,
00:00:42 when you reach in the vicinity of the abattoir, you know the retention pond area,
00:00:50 well that area is up to a short while ago it was impassable.
00:00:54 Alright, so you are going to have to find another route to get into Port of Spain
00:00:58 especially when you get to that area there.
00:01:01 Also, I think because of the heavy rains yesterday and in other parts of the country
00:01:07 there was no rain, a lot of sun, a lot of heat, but in Port of Spain you had a lot of rain.
00:01:12 So this morning you have a situation where certain parts are still drying off
00:01:18 but the parts that have dried off and the water has subsided, now you have dust.
00:01:24 So it would be a good idea to come into Port of Spain today with your mask on.
00:01:29 For people like me who have allergies and so on, yeah you I'm speaking to.
00:01:34 Alright, so let's check out to see what's happening in the Daily Express.
00:01:37 The front page this morning, "Cops Dismayed by Toddlers Living Conditions at Dabbadee Home."
00:01:44 "Shocking Poverty" and the caption says, "Sad Situation."
00:01:49 The 33-year-old father of the two toddlers who were spotted playing on a pavement
00:01:54 by two police officers on Monday night stands yesterday amid the squalor of his home
00:01:59 at Jordan Trace off Salmon Drive, Red Hill in Dabbadee where they lived.
00:02:05 And Rowley calls for crime help.
00:02:07 Let's check out to see what's happening in sport.
00:02:10 "We Qualified! Coach Eve Boyd Despite 5-3 Defeat to Curacao."
00:02:16 "We Qualified!" declared Angus Eve, Trinidad and Tobago's senior men's football team head coach.
00:02:21 "I think the campaign was a huge success."
00:02:24 "Eve remained a beat despite his charges ending the 2023-2024 Conquercat for a Nations League group campaign
00:02:33 with a 5-3 defeat away to Curacao on Tuesday night."
00:02:38 And Uruguay upset Brazil. The score is here.
00:02:42 Let me see. Uruguay went on to win 2-0.
00:02:46 I know that the Brazilians and the Brazilian fans will not be too happy about that.
00:02:51 And just to remind you that the RIC is having its news conference today
00:02:57 and will reveal its decision today on electricity rates.
00:03:02 All right. So let's move in to the program.
00:03:08 This is a story that we are following up on.
00:03:11 It is a story that we would have done some months ago and it concerns the Ottawa RC School.
00:03:17 And at that time, we would have shown you some of the conditions at that school.
00:03:22 Well, today, parents intend to stage a protest outside the education ministry.
00:03:27 So we do have on the line at this time Stacy Alfred Henry.
00:03:34 Mrs. Alfred Henry, good morning.
00:03:39 Mrs. Alfred Henry.
00:03:43 All right. We seem to be having some difficulty in having a connection with Mrs. Alfred Henry.
00:03:50 Let's try again.
00:03:52 Mrs. Alfred Henry, are you there?
00:03:57 All right. We will try to make that contact for her because we're hearing some distortion.
00:04:03 Yeah. So it's time to remind you of a Trinbago, your nice feature to participate.
00:04:07 What's up your videos and images to 737-3778.
00:04:12 And we do have this image for you. Captioned fiery sunrise from Laurel Childs.
00:04:18 Yeah. I think that people are getting fed up with me asking studio to to to name the pictures.
00:04:24 So you know what? People naming the pictures now.
00:04:27 OK, so here's what we have to get that picture for you.
00:04:31 All right. But Laurel, a very special good morning to you. So we do have a packed city, packed program for you today.
00:04:38 We are following up on this protest by the parents of the Ottawa RC School and we are going to very short break.
00:04:44 Hopefully when we come back, we can have that interview for you with Mrs. Stacey Alfred Henry.
00:04:50 We're coming back. Don't miss David Rutter's final concert at Chopin Cultural Complex in Tobago on Sunday,
00:05:08 22nd October, see the iconic performer in his last live onstage appearance for a limited time only.
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00:06:58 Beyond the Tape. Weekdays at 530 p.m.
00:07:01 The 2023 Jazz Concert Series for the Holy Trinity Cathedral Restoration Project is going down south.
00:07:09 Saturday, October 21st, 7 p.m. at Sapa.
00:07:13 South's first lady of jazz, Fonette Bigford, welcomes steel pan virtuoso Dr. Ray Holman,
00:07:19 ace musician, Leston Paul, and the legendary brother Valentino.
00:07:23 Tickets go on sale at the Sapa box office Thursday, September 28th, online at suntics.com/events
00:07:30 or call 288-TIXX or Sapa box office 219-7272 extension 6015.
00:07:39 General seating 200, VIP 300.
00:07:42 A night of great music for a great cause.
00:07:45 See you at Sapa.
00:07:51 The world is in crisis.
00:07:53 Distressing news are flowing from every quarter in the society.
00:07:58 And the hearts of many are failing them for fear.
00:08:02 However, in the midst of these alarming conditions come good news.
00:08:08 Jesus Christ saves, keeps, and satisfies.
00:08:13 This is the message of Daybreak.
00:08:16 [Music]
00:08:22 Greetings, Saints.
00:08:24 We are from Pillars of Truth Evangelistic Outreach Ministries,
00:08:28 and we warmly welcome you to our television program, Turning Point.
00:08:32 We are a church in the heart of the community with a heart for the community.
00:08:36 Our host pastors, Apostle Dr. Reverend Dale DeVeans and his wife, Reverend Dawn DeVeans,
00:08:42 warmly welcome you to join us every second and fourth Sunday, 6 a.m., right here on TV6ish.
00:08:50 [Music]
00:08:54 They said that vaping is safer than smoking cigarettes.
00:08:57 They said it has no health risks.
00:08:59 They even said that it's just like water.
00:09:03 They lied.
00:09:05 Research suggests that vaping is harmful to both your heart and your lungs.
00:09:10 And e-cigarettes are just as addictive as traditional ones.
00:09:14 Consider the consequences.
00:09:16 Don't vape.
00:09:18 [Music]
00:09:22 [Music]
00:09:30 It is a living vibration rooted deep within my Caribbean belly.
00:09:38 Lyrics to make a politician cringe.
00:09:42 Turn a woman's body into jelly.
00:09:47 Ah, yeah, so this is the picture that we promised you earlier.
00:09:53 And this picture is of a fiery sunrise from Laurel Charles.
00:09:59 Laurel, thank you very, very much.
00:10:01 It really looks like fire.
00:10:03 It really looks like something is happening in the back there.
00:10:06 So thank you very much for that picture, Laurel.
00:10:09 Yeah?
00:10:11 All right, before we get into further things on the program this morning,
00:10:15 let me just tell you of this story that broke yesterday.
00:10:18 And the information really came from the Ministry of Health,
00:10:22 that there's chicken pox at Five Rivers Secondary.
00:10:27 Classes sanitized.
00:10:28 So several cases of the chicken pox virus have been reported at the Five Rivers Secondary School in Aruka.
00:10:35 The Ministry of Health confirmed.
00:10:38 The office of the county medical officer of health was alerted by the principal of the school of this occurrence,
00:10:44 the ministry said yesterday.
00:10:46 The ministry says this is consistent with the longstanding protocols for the reporting of infections,
00:10:53 diseases to the Ministry of Health.
00:10:56 The CMOH, in collaboration with the school's principal and other key officials,
00:11:01 has taken the necessary public health measures, which include closure and sanitization of the affected classrooms,
00:11:08 as well as training of the parent teacher association of the school, the ministry said in a statement.
00:11:13 All right. So we have been trying to follow up on this protest today by parents of the Ottawa RC school.
00:11:23 We do have on the line this morning, Stacey Alfred Henry.
00:11:27 This is Alfred Henry. Good morning.
00:11:29 Good morning, sir. All right.
00:11:31 Mrs. Alfred Henry, what's the situation this morning?
00:11:34 We understand that you are embarking on protest.
00:11:37 Yes, we are. Reason being, our school was shut down last week, Wednesday, for electrical problems.
00:11:46 And. All right.
00:11:53 OK, so we are having some connection problems here this morning.
00:11:58 We are trying to do this interview for you to to really highlight the the concerns and challenges of the parents and students at the school.
00:12:08 All right. Let me just touch on another story that is making the news today in the express newspaper.
00:12:14 Do we have her back? I think we do. I think we do.
00:12:19 All right. Mrs. Alfred Henry. Hi, I'm here with you. Yes.
00:12:23 All right. So you were telling us about the reason for the protest.
00:12:26 OK, so our school was closed on last week, Wednesday, due to an electrical problem.
00:12:32 And bearing in mind that it's due for closure because of the main building being a mark for the demolition.
00:12:39 And last week, Wednesday, they told us school is closed until further notice, but no notification when it would be reopening.
00:12:46 What is happening to the main building?
00:12:48 All we were told is that the because of the electrical problem, the school would be closed and will will be done on the two buildings that are currently occupied.
00:12:57 Now, what we as parents are saying, it doesn't make sense to close the school for electrical work.
00:13:03 And then you have to close the school again to demolish the main building.
00:13:07 We are asking the authorities that be since the school is already closed, could we have the main building demolished and a building rebuilt for us as they promised?
00:13:17 And we have one closure and done rather than you close school just to do electrical, which might be about three weeks, given, taken.
00:13:25 What did the measures of what that has to be done? And then school reopened. Mind you, that building is a mark for demolition.
00:13:32 Can you rewire that old building? It doesn't make sense to us.
00:13:36 So we would have had we would have had a discussion months ago about this situation at that school.
00:13:42 Has there been any improvement? No improvement.
00:13:45 What's actually has gotten worse to the point where it's closed until further notice.
00:13:50 What about accommodation for the students and what about their continued education?
00:13:56 Well, accommodation, nothing was done right now other than we have gone back to Zoom for most of the classes.
00:14:04 Who doesn't have Zoom where the teachers are sending work via WhatsApp and other means that they find available to them.
00:14:12 We have asked that the principal look at probably we have the Ottawa Community Centre, which is a building for security reasons.
00:14:22 They have some minor repairs to do. And we ask whoever is an authority can help us with the repairs to that building and ask them to come and take a tour of it and have the children in the building,
00:14:32 continuing their education. We are really worried, especially about Standard 4 and 5, seeing that SEA is just around the corner.
00:14:40 Zoom, those Zoom worked for a while. We would have all seen the results of that.
00:14:45 Given now that it's not during COVID, so parents are back out to work, which means some children would be left unsupervised to do their Zoom school.
00:14:54 This online schooling, that is not acceptable to us as parents.
00:14:58 How many people, how many students have been affected?
00:15:02 Our school has a population of 203 students.
00:15:05 All right. I just want to get something clear, Mrs. Alfred-Henry.
00:15:09 So, as I said, a few months ago, we would have spoken about this situation.
00:15:13 You have said that things have deteriorated. But during that period, did a crew come to the school?
00:15:22 Did the education ministry intervene? What happened?
00:15:26 The next, very next day, they came, they cut the grass.
00:15:30 We had officials view the school through a PTA meeting that we had.
00:15:34 The principal would have said to us that the building was approved for demolition.
00:15:40 When was the question? She said she couldn't give us a time or date.
00:15:44 It could be any time. And could be any time for us would mean it could be two days, three days.
00:15:49 It could be a year for that matter. They don't have a timeline.
00:15:53 So we are saying we need time to put everything.
00:15:56 Now that they had, after that, they installed new AC units in the two buildings that's there.
00:16:01 And because of the old wiring, it could not have taken the load of the new AC units that were installed.
00:16:07 So what happened is that the breaker started to run hot, started to trip.
00:16:12 So hence the reason it became a fire hazard now.
00:16:15 So they would have closed down the school, as we said, it's like putting plaster on the floor.
00:16:19 So we protested. You didn't do anything much. You came here, put in some AC because the classrooms are very hot.
00:16:24 Not rewiring the building that you'd used or no due diligence was done because that old wiring could not have taken that load of those new ACs they installed.
00:16:33 So hence the reason the school was closed.
00:16:36 And definitely we have, that's all we heard.
00:16:39 When would the building be demolished? No background, no timing was done.
00:16:44 It could be any time. They said we are marked for demolition, but when? We don't know. It could be next year, but probably between by Christmas it should be done.
00:16:52 But here we are before Christmas, the school's been closed for rewiring.
00:16:56 Yeah, but Mrs. Alfred-Henry, the picture that you're painting for us here this morning is that it could be a very dangerous situation for the students at the school and teachers.
00:17:10 Because if you're saying that certain electrical equipment at the school is overheating and so on, it poses a risk.
00:17:17 It is a risk. Hence the reason for the school's closure. But the school is closed until further notice. When is until further notice?
00:17:25 That's something that we want cleared up. And then the building that's marked for demolition, when would it be demolished?
00:17:32 What do you need almost immediately? What do you need immediately?
00:17:36 Immediately, they could come and demolish that building. And instead of rewiring the two existing buildings, you will have one rewiring work done with the new building included.
00:17:47 So that would clear up everything. And let's get the children housed somewhere. The children's education has to be continued.
00:17:54 Let's get them housed somewhere. We have the resource center. We have the civic center. We have Ottawa Community Center, Wayne-Mare.
00:18:02 If transport has to be provided to get the children to and from wherever they put in them, then let's have that arranged.
00:18:09 We have PTSC that has buses that could do that. So we are saying have us housed somewhere, have the children's education continued.
00:18:16 In the meantime, you demolish that building, have the prefab building go up as you promised, and rewire the whole building, everything, and done.
00:18:24 So that God, let's say Godspeed, by January coming, the new school term, our students could be in a new building and comfortable. That's all we're asking.
00:18:34 Mrs. Alfred-Henry, thank you very much for speaking with us this morning. And it's a story that we are going to be following up on. So thank you very much again.
00:18:42 You're most welcome, sir.
00:18:44 All right. So we are going to a very short break. We are coming back.
00:18:48 [Music]
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00:20:33 [Music]
00:20:43 [Music]
00:21:10 Some of us like to test limits.
00:21:13 But there won't always be second chances.
00:21:17 Obey the speed limits.
00:21:19 Maybe you don't value your life, but others value theirs.
00:21:25 [Music]
00:21:30 A message from the TTPS.
00:21:32 [Music]
00:21:44 Welcome back everyone.
00:21:45 So we do have an important segment for you right now.
00:21:47 We're dealing with the carnage on the nation's roads.
00:21:50 You would remember that one of the latest victims is a university student.
00:21:55 That incident would have happened on the weekend.
00:21:57 But we do have on the line at this time, police road safety officer Brent Batson.
00:22:02 Brent, good morning.
00:22:09 Hello, Brent.
00:22:10 Good morning.
00:22:15 Brent, you're hearing me?
00:22:21 Okay.
00:22:22 It seems to be one of those mornings, right?
00:22:25 So we'll try to work out that for you.
00:22:28 Yeah, all the fun of live television, right?
00:22:33 So let me just tell you about this summit in Ottawa.
00:22:38 Prime Minister seeks Canada's help on crime.
00:22:41 Help us.
00:22:42 This was a request made of Canada by Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley.
00:22:47 As he admitted the crime situation in the CARICOM region had worsened.
00:22:54 The Prime Minister sought Canada's assistance in the area of police training to achieve effective policing in securing small craft to patrol the coastal areas and for improved cyber security.
00:23:07 I am sorry to report that in the CARICOM region we have a worsening violent crime situation, he said, as he addressed the Canada CARICOM summit in Ottawa.
00:23:18 One of the things that we have to admit is that the criminal element engaged in this violence using arms and ammunition has grown its ability faster than the police have been able to cope with.
00:23:30 And therefore, we need improved police training and more effective policing.
00:23:37 Right. And true, though, debt relief for CARICOM nations in times of crisis.
00:23:42 CARICOM countries hit by crisis or catastrophe would get a temporary relief from debt repayment to loans granted to them by the Canadian government.
00:23:53 So some of the issues, some of the developments taking place at the summit in Ottawa where Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley is attending at this time.
00:24:05 You see some of the other stories that making the rounds on the newspaper this morning.
00:24:12 Of course, you had the big arms haul, more weapons found in Santa Cruz.
00:24:18 Another cache of weapons has been found in Santa Cruz this time.
00:24:22 The cache included bulletproof vests, police uniforms, boots, sirens, police with lights and rifles.
00:24:29 All right. Let's see if we can speak to Mr. Brent Batson again.
00:24:33 Brent, good morning. Good morning, Marlon. Pleasure to have you here.
00:24:37 Yeah. Well, thank you very much for joining us this morning, Brent.
00:24:40 As I spoke about earlier, there has been recent carnage on the nation's roads, highways and byways.
00:24:49 And one of the latest victims is a university student.
00:24:52 As you look at the situation this year, Brent, what is the data telling you?
00:25:00 Well, what's been happening is that we're seeing that this reckless approach to road use has been permeating back into, unfortunately, the roadways.
00:25:11 And that's not just for drivers, but even some of the behaviors practiced by the pedestrians as well.
00:25:19 And the type of chance taking, especially when crossing the highways at night, you know, not given persons.
00:25:27 So drivers didn't have an opportunity to see the pedestrian in time to even avoid it, him or her.
00:25:35 But what also has been happening, Marlon, is that we're seeing that persons are taking chances with their lives,
00:25:42 and even the lives of their passengers, in situations where these things can be preventable.
00:25:49 And it's unnecessary risk taking.
00:25:51 For example, we were mentioning that with the fatal accident that took the life of a university student, you know, somebody broke a red light, right?
00:26:01 I mean, the investigators would be dealing with the CCTV footage.
00:26:05 But why would you take that chance with your life, knowing that the other person could be coming at such a speed that the impact itself could be deadly for us?
00:26:17 And when persons are at intersections, this is why we keep on asking the public, when you're, especially drivers, you're moving off from an intersection that has changed to red,
00:26:28 just wait a little bit, delay acceleration of two, three seconds, ensure that that intersection is clear before you even touch that accelerator.
00:26:37 Remember, we're living at an age of distractions, where you don't even know if that person is on their cell phone,
00:26:44 you don't know if they're replying to a WhatsApp text, you don't know what it is they're doing.
00:26:48 I mean, all those would be breaches as well, but the point is you have self-preservation should be that key at that point.
00:26:54 So just take a couple seconds to ensure, you know, that you have clear roadway ahead and to make sure everybody has stopped, you know, before you actually move off on that green light.
00:27:05 These little things can make a big difference out there.
00:27:08 And of course, prosecuting those who have run the red light, that's our part, and CCTV footage, I mean, unless we're there when it happens, we really depend on the technology.
00:27:20 So we're really hoping things like the red light camera systems and stuff really come up on stream, at least within the next year.
00:27:28 Yeah.
00:27:29 Brent, I know with the introduction of the demerit point system, I know that there was great optimism, and I know that initially there was some impact on the behavior of motorists.
00:27:43 Has the demerit point system worked in the way that you all thought that it would have?
00:27:52 Well, I think it definitely has, because, you know, one thing I would remind persons, you know, 10 years ago, around now, our road fatality figure would be around 170 or 180 road deaths.
00:28:06 I'm not saying 83 is a good number, but I'm just saying definitely San Tobago has moved in the right direction in attempting to – well, we've reversed that trend of continuous upward road carnage.
00:28:19 And as compared to Jamaica, which is struggling, you know, struggling to even begin to reduce their road traffic deaths.
00:28:26 So I think a lot of the majority of drivers have bought into responsible driving, but those who are almost, you know, not willing to change their behaviors or not understanding that risk-taking, a lot more has to be done to try and get to those persons, whether it's for more education.
00:28:47 I know the Ministry of Works has a plan to start a road safety educational awareness campaign through the National Road Safety Council, so we're waiting to hear more about that.
00:28:58 But that technology has definitely helped what we call driver recidivism, where persons are a lot more conscious of receiving a traffic ticket or a traffic – committing a traffic violation, for that matter.
00:29:12 But definitely we are going to target – and I want everybody to be clear on this – what the data does reveal, there's been an increase in speeding behaviors on the main roads.
00:29:24 So when a lot of these incidents happen on 50-kilometer-hour roads, which where crashes or impacts would generally be survivable, it's not happening.
00:29:34 And it's a great indication that speeding on the main roads has definitely become an issue.
00:29:40 And we will be targeting – we got permission from the Commission of Police and the Traffic and Highway Patrol Branch to deploy special teams now to the main roads.
00:29:49 And that's why I want to put the public on notice, especially drivers.
00:29:52 If your main road speed limit is 50 kilometers an hour, and we catch you going 80 kilometers an hour, your ticket is going to be $3,000 and 60 merit points.
00:30:04 So we're warning people, pay attention to your main road speed limits.
00:30:08 Because when we start to operate in that area, and we're talking about from as early as today, we want you all to – don't say that you're not aware, because we've told you, be aware, we're going to be out there.
00:30:22 Our job is public safety and to save lives, and we're going to do what we have to do.
00:30:26 Yeah. Brent, we're really on the cusp of the Christmas and Carnival season, which is going to follow.
00:30:35 What can you tell us about some of the plans that are going to be in place to monitor motorists?
00:30:43 Well, we have two situations, even before we go into the Christmas and Carnival.
00:30:48 We're actually going into the Tobago Carnival from next week.
00:30:51 Yes.
00:30:52 So the Commission of Police, together with the ACP Specialized Support, Deputy Commissioner Operations, and ACP Tobago, they have a special traffic team.
00:31:03 And I'm glad you raised this, Marlon, so that the Tobagonians and the Trinidadians going across there for the revelry, we have a special traffic unit going across just to deal with that.
00:31:16 And we're talking about a complement of breathalyzer technicians, a complement of speed gun operators.
00:31:24 So we're asking people, you know, go across there.
00:31:27 Everybody have a great time in Tobago for the Carnival, but we want people to exit Carnival how they entered, right?
00:31:32 And that's safe in one piece.
00:31:34 Have fun, but we're going to be across there to enforce the law to the T, because we're not going to tolerate people, you know, drinking a whole set of alcohol and then driving on the road and injuring themselves or other people.
00:31:45 It puts a strain on everybody else, and unfortunately, it puts a damp on the whole festivities when people are hurt or injured or, God forbid, killed.
00:31:54 Going into the Christmas time, we are actually ramping up the amount of training of breathalyzer technicians, and we're actually looking at procuring more equipment, especially electronic tickets and going there so we can have, like I said, a more multi-pronged approach there.
00:32:11 And we're hoping, you know, citizens get the message that we're really out there to keep persons safe, you know, to save lives and, you know, keep families together.
00:32:21 Yeah. And talking about the message, Brent, because you have been speaking about this for years now, and you are still conceiving a certain type of behavior from motorists.
00:32:33 Is there anything more that could be done so that the message becomes more palatable to the motorists for the information to sink in? Because in some cases, the information, while it is out there, it's just not registering.
00:32:54 Yeah, definitely. I think what we need to do is actually put out a little bit more in the press on the actual prosecution of the offenses.
00:33:03 So, for example, we had a lot of success with the judiciary support, where we had some DUI repeat offenders being charged fines of $20,000, $21,000 for a second-time DUI offense.
00:33:18 We had some first-time offenders receiving fines as high as $10,000 for a first-time offense, you know.
00:33:25 So we've been – we probably need to educate people more that, you know, these consequences are real and these offenses are serious.
00:33:33 There's no ticket for these. You're going to be arrested and charged. It's the same thing for dangerous driving.
00:33:38 We had a successful prosecution where, you know, a person was disqualified for life, holding for life as a result of a dangerous drive.
00:33:46 So we're going to help try and show people the real consequence, you know, on safe behaviors, as well as try and use some victim testimony.
00:33:55 In November is the World Day of Remembrance for road traffic victims.
00:33:59 So sometimes people have to understand the ripple effect of – especially with road traffic that is really far-reaching and how it affects persons' families.
00:34:07 Just because somebody didn't wear a seatbelt, somebody decided to send a text while going through intersections, or just break a speed limit or take a reckless overtake.
00:34:16 So hopefully with that type of perspective, we could get a broader approach to the appreciation of the importance of responsible road safety use – well, road safety behavior.
00:34:27 Yeah. Brent, how do you feel about the suggestion of mandatory defensive driving? Is that something that could be considered?
00:34:34 Well, that's my background. It's something that – to me, it has to start on both sides.
00:34:39 You know, it's something that the insurance – it's interesting you mention that because a lot of the insurance companies now,
00:34:44 especially when it comes to younger drivers, they have it as mandatory in order to waive the excess.
00:34:51 With the younger driver risk, they mandate newly licensed drivers or younger drivers to do the defensive driving course
00:34:59 because it really changes perspective with regards to risk taken on the road and promotes, again, safe and responsible road use.
00:35:06 Also, even changing – I understand that the – our last conversation with the transport commissioner was involving changing the way the drivers are trained,
00:35:16 you know, from a driving instructor standpoint.
00:35:19 So, definitely we would support that and anyhow, we need to try and change persons' appreciation for the importance of obeying road traffic regulations.
00:35:29 Yeah. Brent Batson, it's always a pleasure speaking with you. I know that you're already out and getting ready to traverse the nation's highways and byways,
00:35:38 so I'll leave you to that, but always, as always, thank you very much for speaking with us.
00:35:43 Sure. Thanks very much, Mal.
00:35:45 All right. Bye for now. So, we are going to a very short break. We do have this image for you.
00:35:50 Cathedral Rock, Paria Bay from Tricia Henry. Good morning, Tricia. Thank you very much. We're coming back.
00:35:56 [Music]
00:36:14 Tune into TV6 for Le Grand's Affair, the exciting conclusion of the Prime Minister's Best Village Trophy Competition.
00:36:21 Watch as the overall winners in the various categories claim their titles and pageant hopefuls grace the stage,
00:36:27 vying for the prestigious crown of La Renne Rivée.
00:36:30 Which community will produce a queen?
00:36:32 Find out as the curtain comes down with Le Grand's Affair, the exciting conclusion of the Prime Minister's Best Village Trophy Competition on CCN TV6.
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00:37:30 Celebrate their lives with a special All Saints Memorial in the Express Classifieds.
00:37:36 Book today to honor your loved ones.
00:37:39 The 2023 Jazz Concert Series for the Holy Trinity Cathedral Restoration Project is going down south.
00:37:51 Saturday, October 21st, 7pm at Sapphire.
00:37:54 South's first lady of jazz, Fonette Bigford, welcomes steel-pan virtuoso Dr. Ray Holman,
00:38:00 ace musician, Leston Paul, and the legendary Brother Valentino.
00:38:04 Tickets go on sale at the Sapphire Box Office, Thursday, September 28th, online at suntics.com/events
00:38:11 or call 288-TIXX or Sapphire Box Office, 219-7272, extension 6015.
00:38:20 General seating, 200. VIP, 300.
00:38:23 A night of great music for a great cause.
00:38:26 See you at Sapphire.
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00:39:07 Alright, so welcome back everyone.
00:39:09 So we do have on the line at this time, we do have Dr. Indira Sajuan,
00:39:14 and we are going to be speaking about the economy now.
00:39:16 Doctor, good morning.
00:39:18 Good morning, Marlon, and good morning to all your viewers.
00:39:21 Yes, well Doctor, I don't know if you would have seen a statement coming from the Ministry of Finance yesterday,
00:39:28 and it is again speaking about, or is painting a picture of blue skies for the economy.
00:39:36 So it says, "On Monday, October 16th, Cary Crisp, a regional credit rating agency,
00:39:40 has reaffirmed the high credit worthiness ratings of Cary AA or AA on its regional scale
00:39:48 for the government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
00:39:50 The scale goes from Cary AAA to Cary BB.
00:39:54 In response to this excellent credit rating from Cary Crisp,
00:39:57 the Minister of Finance wishes to point out that all rating agencies have confirmed
00:40:02 the resiliency of our economy and the appropriateness of the government's policies
00:40:07 to respond to and overcome external shocks."
00:40:10 So just a part of what the Finance Minister is saying.
00:40:14 Of course, you would also remember during his budget presentation,
00:40:19 he would have also spoken about GDP.
00:40:21 It's over $190 billion.
00:40:24 So, as I said, over the past few weeks really, the government has tried to paint this beautiful picture
00:40:32 of what is happening with the economy.
00:40:34 What's your thoughts this morning, Doctor Sajuan?
00:40:38 Well, Marlon, it is a fact that the rating agencies have in fact given us stable, decent outlooks.
00:40:48 But we have to understand the context in which we receive that,
00:40:52 and we have to read further than simply the rating.
00:40:55 So while we have been given decent ratings, the agencies are careful to tell us
00:41:00 this is in the context of the way in which, in the fact that we have remained resilient
00:41:05 in the course of external shocks.
00:41:07 The external shocks obviously they refer to are things like the pandemic, the Ukrainian-Russian war,
00:41:13 and in the case of Trinidad and Tobago, in fact, the positive growth that the Minister is talking about.
00:41:17 In large part, we have to give the credit, which is a bad way to say that we have to give credit to a war
00:41:25 while we are in a decent place with respect to growth.
00:41:28 And it is largely because we have an oil and gas economy, and with the Ukrainian-Russian war,
00:41:33 the price of gas and natural gas increases as well as petrochemicals,
00:41:37 and we enjoy the benefit of receiving more money from selling the same amount,
00:41:42 or in some instances maybe even less or a little bit more of these products.
00:41:46 But that really doesn't have anything to do with us doing anything in a meaningful way,
00:41:51 structurally to change the dynamics of the economy of Trinidad and Tobago.
00:41:55 And that to me is where the real conversation lies.
00:41:57 And I know we're going to get to the dragon feeling what that means for the economy of Trinidad and Tobago
00:42:02 going forward.
00:42:03 And even that is something that we have to be careful about, because it is about long-term sustainability
00:42:10 that we have to be concerned about.
00:42:12 And we have survived one set of pandemic.
00:42:16 Us have, most parts of the region, done it in a fairly decent manner.
00:42:21 But it is how we position ourselves moving forward that is extremely important.
00:42:25 Yeah. Well, let's speak about the Dragon Deal, because a few days ago it was announced by the Energy Minister
00:42:30 that Trinidad and Tobago can now make cash payments to Venezuela for the natural gas extracted from the Dragon Field,
00:42:37 and that's according to Energy Minister Stuart Young.
00:42:41 Doctor, a major development there?
00:42:44 Absolutely a major development, and it is one that we should not dismiss.
00:42:48 It is one to be celebrated, because it puts us one step further towards negotiating and confirming a negotiation
00:42:56 with respect to this deal.
00:42:58 We are a gas-producing economy.
00:43:01 The sale of LNG, the sale of petrochemicals based on natural gas, is the bedrock on which this economy rests.
00:43:08 And we can't wave a magic wand, and that is not so anymore.
00:43:12 So any opportunity that we could potentially have in order to extend the life of this declining sector
00:43:17 is something that we need to aggressively pursue.
00:43:20 So I am in full support of the government in terms of aggressively going down this road,
00:43:26 because really it is a lifeline to this sector.
00:43:29 And if the economy of Trinidad and Tobago, if we fail to diversify our economic bases,
00:43:35 we don't seem to really be significantly interested in doing,
00:43:39 then the dependency on this is even greater.
00:43:43 So the fact that we can now pay Venezuela in hard currency is significant,
00:43:51 because the administration has been very clear earlier that they would not be there
00:43:56 to simply accept a situation where they will be paid in kind.
00:43:59 So that's a good thing.
00:44:02 They have also extended the time frame, so whereas some amount of the two years would have gone forward,
00:44:08 I think there's now an additional 10 months that the governments have in order to negotiate this deal.
00:44:12 So more time, I guess, is a good thing.
00:44:14 But there are things that we need to be realistic to.
00:44:17 The fact that this is not going to materialize tomorrow.
00:44:21 And addressing the issue of how we pay is one thing,
00:44:25 but there are so many other issues that we need to be cognizant of the fact that we don't have control over.
00:44:31 One of the things, for example, is that there was an agreement in Barbados between the parties,
00:44:37 between the government and the opposition of Venezuela,
00:44:40 which now means that Venezuela is going to be having,
00:44:43 and I put it in inverted commas, free and fair elections in 2024, that is next year.
00:44:48 Now, if the outcome of that election is one where, let's say the opposition becomes the government,
00:44:56 to what extent will that opposition honor the arrangements between Toronto and Venezuela
00:45:04 with respect to the Dragonfield in terms of where it would be at that point in time?
00:45:09 We don't know. That is something that's outside of our control.
00:45:13 Venezuela is not known for necessarily being the kind of administration that would respect
00:45:23 an arrangement that may precede a particular government.
00:45:27 So that is something that we have to keep in the back of our minds that could potentially threaten this arrangement.
00:45:33 But since I'm raising the public domain, the issue in terms of what do we get from this.
00:45:38 The government has not been very transparent.
00:45:41 We know we'll be getting natural gas that will feed into LNG and feed into the petrochemical industry.
00:45:47 But what is the arrangement in terms of how the sharing cost arrangement, how profit sharing is going to take place?
00:45:55 And then we have to put into the mix Shell in terms of how we're negotiating with Shell.
00:46:01 And while all of those things are significant, I think the very fact that we could potentially be getting
00:46:07 a source of natural gas that can extend the life of the sector, in my view, it will continue to,
00:46:14 it will once again probably fill up employment generation in the sector.
00:46:18 It could potentially be the basis of new investment because we have not had a basis for new investment
00:46:24 in the energy sector since 2010 with the AUM plants.
00:46:29 So that this could potentially put us in a better fit for that.
00:46:34 It could also potentially strengthen our ability to negotiate with Guyana because we will be stronger,
00:46:40 in a stronger position, not so much beggar-thy-neighbor type of thing, which is where we are now.
00:46:46 Where Guyana doesn't need to take Tarantula to be gone, but maybe in that scenario,
00:46:52 then probably we'll be in a stronger position.
00:46:55 So there are the significant benefits to this.
00:46:57 There are the downsides that we have to be realistic to going forward.
00:47:01 But having said all of that, the issue of the world and where the world is going.
00:47:07 So even as we continue to hope that this source of natural gas is going to continue
00:47:14 because we have a significant investment in the energy sector,
00:47:18 the reality is the world is shifting away from fossil fuel.
00:47:23 Europe, for example, has increased its target in terms of the amount of energy
00:47:32 that they want to have from renewable energy.
00:47:35 They have increased to 42% by 2030.
00:47:38 China, which is the world's largest consumer of energy, has actually increased the rate
00:47:44 at which it is achieving its targets towards going towards renewable.
00:47:48 So these are things that could mean that the price of these products could potentially be declining
00:47:55 within the next five to ten years.
00:47:57 How are we going to deal with that as a country?
00:48:00 And I suspect that's another argument for diversification.
00:48:03 Of course, the theme of the finance minister's budget was linked to diversification.
00:48:12 Judging from what you would have heard the finance minister with his budget presentation,
00:48:18 do you think that he made out that case for diversification in Trinidad and Tobago?
00:48:24 No, I don't, Marlon, because basically what we heard in the budget was a hodgepodge of things
00:48:29 that we have heard repeatedly, and year in, year out, we talk about putting the country
00:48:35 on a foot into diversification, but we fail to say what we did in the previous year
00:48:40 that would have moved us along the process.
00:48:44 So we continue to talk about diversification in the future tense.
00:48:48 I know the minister celebrated, and I listened to Minister Treit as well,
00:48:52 and he spoke significantly on the growth that has taken place in the non-energy sector.
00:49:00 However, we have to be realistic to the fact that a lot of the growth that took place there
00:49:04 is on account of the petrochemical industry, which has now been put into manufacturing.
00:49:10 But there was mention of growth areas in printed and packaging, in food manufacturing.
00:49:20 That is where growth did take place.
00:49:22 The minister talked about new investment taking place, but we are celebrating things like
00:49:26 increased employment generated through call centers.
00:49:29 Call centers are principally persons sitting down in Trinidad and Tobago and taking a phone call
00:49:35 on behalf of some company in another part of the world.
00:49:38 That is not diversification in any kind of sustainable way in which we want it to take place.
00:49:44 The trend in foreign direct investment in Trinidad and Tobago has been on the decline.
00:49:49 It's not negative, but it has been on the decline over the last 10, 15 years.
00:49:54 That is a fact, even though the minister of finance in his budget talked about the fact that
00:49:59 we are ranked second in the region in terms of investment destination, but when we factor in crime,
00:50:06 and the fact that most developed countries are telling their citizens,
00:50:10 "Do not come here. Do not invest here. Do not come visit here."
00:50:14 These are issues that will negatively impact our effort at diversification.
00:50:19 The minister talked about food security at length, and that is extremely important
00:50:24 in the context of the current global shortage of food, and that is going to worsen
00:50:29 within the next 10, 15 years as population growth continues to accelerate
00:50:34 and climate change continues to affect the way production is taking place
00:50:39 and affect the yields on traditional type of manufacturing.
00:50:44 The challenge to get food is going to be increasingly more and more difficult,
00:50:50 and we are by and large a net importer of food, $7 billion according to the minister.
00:50:55 That is not a little bit of money.
00:50:57 And what are we doing in order to transform the agricultural sector?
00:51:01 The budget to the agricultural sector has not increased significantly, $1.4 billion,
00:51:06 and because of that for current expenditure, very little going towards development.
00:51:11 And I understand in the last fiscal year, even the approximately $200 million
00:51:16 that was allocated to development in the agricultural sector, much of it was not spent.
00:51:21 So we talk a good talk when it comes to food and food security,
00:51:27 but when you look at what we are actually doing, there is very little that is actually being done.
00:51:34 So when we look at our agricultural sector, we need to really aggressively engage
00:51:38 with the issue of technology-based agriculture, small island state, climate change imperatives.
00:51:44 We need to look at how technology can increase our productive capacity in food production,
00:51:51 but more so we need to look at what are those areas in which we can produce to scale
00:51:57 some products that can then feed into value-adding and manufacturing
00:52:02 because that is where sustainability lies.
00:52:05 Then we will earn in foreign exchange through what we produce,
00:52:09 that can then ease the burden of foreign exchange crisis that we currently have.
00:52:14 Because the minister has not significantly addressed that,
00:52:17 except to hope that the arrangement with Venezuela will come in,
00:52:23 and in a few years we will not suffer in this particular foreign exchange crisis.
00:52:26 But that is not enough by a long shot.
00:52:28 We have to be engaging with how our other sectors manufacture,
00:52:33 not just traditional manufacturing, we need to move away from that.
00:52:37 We need to look at the world and we need to look at how the world is changing.
00:52:41 How has the world changed, for example, since the pandemic?
00:52:44 What are the areas in manufacturing that we are not engaging,
00:52:48 but will continue, that will now be the new growth poles around which we need to find a niche
00:52:55 and shift our manufacturing pattern into those areas,
00:52:59 because we are certain that there is going to be demand within the next 10 to 15 years
00:53:05 going forward for these products and therefore increase our capacity to earn foreign exchange.
00:53:10 But aren't we between a rock and a hard place?
00:53:13 And I say that in the context of how does a small country like Trinidad and Tobago
00:53:19 increase its competitiveness, increase its attractiveness?
00:53:25 We have heard about suggestions of wind farms,
00:53:29 we have heard suggestions of more e-tech parks in Trinidad and Tobago.
00:53:34 But when you think about what is, let's say, happening in Silicon Valley,
00:53:38 why would an investor want to leave Silicon Valley to come to a small country like Trinidad and Tobago?
00:53:46 Well, Marlon, one of the reasons they would consider it would be our competitiveness with respect to cheap electricity.
00:53:54 But as we know, in fact, I think today we may be hearing about what potentially that increase is going to be.
00:54:01 What does this portend for the manufacturing sector, for the sector we need to be competitive?
00:54:09 I mean, we're not even talking about households, which we know it's going to impact us significantly.
00:54:14 I was on a forum with Minister Manning, who was at pains repeatedly talking about the fact that
00:54:21 our competitiveness in large part resides in our cheap electricity rates.
00:54:28 Now, if we remove that, as we are about to do, what is going to happen to the cost of manufacturing?
00:54:36 And what is going to therefore happen to our competitiveness on the international market?
00:54:42 That is a real consideration. I'm assuming the governments, any minister, finance minister, trade minister,
00:54:51 have the answers, but it is certainly going to negatively impact. We have lost a lot in manufacturing.
00:54:58 We have seen major manufacturers shift their manufacturing capacity outside of Trinidad and Tobago in the last couple of years.
00:55:04 Unilever, Nestle, they have shifted away from Trinidad and Tobago.
00:55:10 Our manufacturing sector, where we do produce, rests heavily on imported inputs into the production process.
00:55:20 Most of all, the sources that we boast about are produced based on imported pepper mash,
00:55:26 because our capacity to produce peppers in order to serve that sector in a reliable manner to the scale that is required
00:55:33 is not something that we have addressed in an aggressive manner.
00:55:36 Our chocolates that we boast of, most of the chocolates that are produced are based on imported chocolate,
00:55:42 chocolate, you know, the raw chocolate, because we need bulk chocolate, which we don't produce.
00:55:50 We produce fine-flavored cocoa. And yes, we have seen the emergence of a recent artisanal industry coming out of our fine-flavored cocoa.
00:56:03 However, the production of cocoa in Trinidad and Tobago continues to decline.
00:56:07 The sector is now riddled by disease, and we are not aggressively taking hold of that sector
00:56:15 and ensuring that we continue to produce this raw commodity, fine-flavored cocoa, in which we have competitive advantage.
00:56:24 And every year we talk about it as a premium product and an area that we have competitiveness in.
00:56:30 But year on year, production continues to decline.
00:56:33 So how can we continue to talk about developing a sustainable export-driven industry out of that
00:56:39 if we are not shoring up and protecting the basis on which that competitive advantage resides?
00:56:46 We could talk about tourism, Marlon, and the fact that we are not doing anywhere near what is sufficient in order to recover the tourism sector.
00:56:55 Tobago, we could compare to the smaller islands such as Minson and Grenada, etc.
00:57:00 And while their tourism sectors have by now reached 2019 levels and they are booming, once again, in fact,
00:57:08 the Caribbean islands, the rate at which tourism has recovered, is the fastest in the entire world tourism industry.
00:57:15 But Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago, we don't factor into that because the tourism sector and stakeholders in Tobago Tourism have continued to talk about that.
00:57:24 The fact that it is simply not recovered.
00:57:27 Let's look at Airlift.
00:57:28 The minister in his budget talked about the issue of tourism being a priority sector.
00:57:33 He talked about Caribbean Airlines' position in itself to take advantage of the hole that the absence of Liat has created in the smaller islands.
00:57:44 But he didn't talk about the fact that Airlift into Trinidad and Tobago from our major destinations have declined significantly.
00:57:50 And nothing is being done to recover that. Air Canada, for example, talked about resuming flights from November of 2023.
00:57:58 They have said that that is now on hold indefinitely.
00:58:02 In order to get to Miami, in some instances, and if prices are prohibited, you have to do things like go to Houston, come back down to Miami.
00:58:09 The Airlift, which is an important basis on which the tourism sector can thrive, is simply not there post-COVID.
00:58:19 How are we addressing that? We're not hearing anything about that.
00:58:23 Product development is another area.
00:58:25 And of course, the issue of crime, its impact on the tourism product.
00:58:30 I could go on, Marlon. I don't know if you have time for us to go on.
00:58:34 But there are so many low-hanging fruits in Trinidad and Tobago, which we are not doing what is necessary in order to allow them to be able to boom.
00:58:44 In fact, in 2024, when the minister is presenting in 2025, but you need to talk about the fact that yachting, which we have been supporting for the last two years,
00:58:53 we are now seeing arrivals of yachts increased by 20-30 percent.
00:59:00 That is the kind of year-to-year accounting that we need.
00:59:04 We don't need in 2024 the minister to come and tell us,
00:59:08 as we look towards positioning Tarantibes on a pathway to diversification,
00:59:14 we are going to be focusing on sector A, B and C.
00:59:19 We need to know how we have moved the radar on it.
00:59:23 And we have been talking about this now, Marlon, for well over 20-30 years.
00:59:27 Yet it all seems to be planned in the future.
00:59:31 And we continue to carry on with this love affair that we have with oil and gas that continues to keep us extremely dependent and vulnerable to what is happening in the world around us.
00:59:44 Dr. Sajuan, we have run out of time, but thank you very much.
00:59:47 You have given us a lot to think about, and we thank you very much for speaking with us this morning.
00:59:52 Bye for now.
00:59:53 You're very welcome, Marlon. Thank you.
00:59:55 Bye-bye.
00:59:56 So we are going to a very short break, but we do have this image for you.
01:00:00 It's from Nadine Williams, and she calls it "The City from my Office during the Rain" on Wednesday.
01:00:07 Good morning, Nadine. Thank you very much.
01:00:09 Be coming back.
01:00:10 [Music]
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01:02:34 Hut 93 and Fuchs Titan Motor Oil are sending one lucky winner and a guest to experience the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Las Vegas.
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01:04:01 [music]
01:04:11 Alright, hey boy. You caught me dancing, right?
01:04:15 I'm told that song is from Destra and Peter Ram.
01:04:18 So, that's a collaboration there.
01:04:20 So, as you know, we're just a few weeks, if I can say, from Christmas.
01:04:26 And it's a time of a plenty and overindulgence.
01:04:29 Well, we are discussing this morning the issue of obesity.
01:04:33 We do have on the line Dr. Fuad Khan. Dr. Khan, good morning.
01:04:37 Morning, Roland. Morning once again.
01:04:39 Morning to the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
01:04:41 And thank you very much for joining us, Dr. Khan.
01:04:43 Let's speak about the issue of obesity.
01:04:46 Sure. I want to say that that is a disease that is now engulfing Trinidad and Tobago
01:04:54 in all ages and all sexes.
01:04:58 If you look around, just as a sample, out of every 10 people,
01:05:04 you will find that 7 to 8 of them, be it men and women, more women, are now obese.
01:05:12 What is obesity?
01:05:13 Obesity is when your basal metabolic index, right,
01:05:19 the size of the fat pad on your systems is more than 26 based on a figure.
01:05:28 Now, what I'm saying to you, why are we becoming so fat?
01:05:33 I have been looking at it since I was the Minister of Health,
01:05:37 and I found out, and I seem to doubt Mr. de Alcing is also picking up the banter,
01:05:42 that sugar and certain processed foods that what we eat are causing the obesity problem of today.
01:05:53 Now, why are people, people have become accustomed to being fat,
01:05:58 and they are sweeping the fatness under the carpet,
01:06:03 because there's something called fat acceptance.
01:06:06 But there's a downside of being obese.
01:06:09 Obese, you have cardiac heart problems, you have high blood pressure problems,
01:06:14 you have diabetic problems, you have problems where you can't even walk up a stair,
01:06:21 you have problems of relationships, you have problems of everything else.
01:06:25 But people have become so accustomed to accepting being fat
01:06:31 that they're not looking at it in the right manner.
01:06:34 What causes you to be obese?
01:06:36 That is a disease.
01:06:38 What? In what you eat.
01:06:40 Now, there is something called food addiction,
01:06:44 where people who make food, who sell food,
01:06:48 the fast foods and the other foods, and processed foods,
01:06:53 have substances in those foods, and you have to start reading the labels.
01:06:59 Because when you intake foods high in, so high fructose corn syrup,
01:07:04 you take foods that are high in MSG, soy protein, and sugars,
01:07:11 you are going to find, sorry,
01:07:16 you are going to find that your mind is going to channel you in a direction
01:07:23 where you are going to want and crave these items.
01:07:27 And sugar, salt, and oils, together with MSG,
01:07:34 and something like high fructose corn syrup,
01:07:37 they are all in a concoction, ready to play on your mind,
01:07:43 and then make you into a food addict for that substance,
01:07:47 that food that is mixed in it.
01:07:49 We have to start eating closer to the ground.
01:07:52 More vegetables and meat, less rice, less white flour, less bread, less sugar.
01:07:59 Now, let me tell you about sugar.
01:08:01 If you eat a white bread, a slice of white bread or white rice,
01:08:06 you will eventually break down in your body to glucose and fructose.
01:08:13 That is sugar.
01:08:14 And the sugar, fructose, goes into the liver and stimulates the fatness in your body.
01:08:21 And blocks your insulin.
01:08:23 So as a result of that, your ability to cut off when you are full does not take place.
01:08:31 If you eat fast foods, and you eat outside foods that have these substances,
01:08:37 I call them poisons,
01:08:38 they put poisons that taste well in the food and make you addicted to the food.
01:08:43 You eat and you eat and you eat and you eat,
01:08:46 because it shuts down what is called your satiety,
01:08:49 your ability to be satisfied and full.
01:08:52 And you now start to put all this fat around your waist, your legs, your body,
01:08:59 and your heart internally, your intestines, your liver, your kidneys, and everything.
01:09:07 And you end up now in a state of chronic obesity.
01:09:12 And yet society, because they want to keep eating,
01:09:15 and the fast food industry wants to keep pushing the food down your throat
01:09:20 and making you, tell you to be fat accepted.
01:09:23 There's nothing wrong with your body.
01:09:25 I realize that you have described obesity as a disease.
01:09:32 It is a disease, Marlon, but it's a disease that is acceptable.
01:09:37 When you look at addiction and you look at alcohol intake in this country, it's high.
01:09:42 Alcohol is glorified in this country, in children all over.
01:09:48 And when you have alcohol together with the substances of food,
01:09:52 the only thing that is affected is you become fat, you become obese.
01:09:59 I am looking around, and I am looking at one time we had 20 to 30 years ago,
01:10:06 when you see pictures, there was 90% slimness, 1% obesity.
01:10:12 Now it's reversed to 90% fat people and 1% slim people.
01:10:18 And at the end of the day, what we do have in this country,
01:10:22 we need to attack like well on point the obesity epidemic that is occurring in Trinidad and Tobago.
01:10:31 I want people who are listening to me to start reading the labels.
01:10:35 Read the labels and you will see that there are a lot of chemicals in processed foods.
01:10:40 There's high fructose corn syrup.
01:10:43 The word fructose is what gets you fat in most cases.
01:10:48 If you eat a lot of bread, cut down, too much of white rice, refined foods, cut down.
01:10:55 Substitute it with vegetables.
01:10:57 If you're going to eat stew, try not to put too much of sugar in it.
01:11:02 Use tomatoes, real tomatoes, and you will get your stew taste.
01:11:07 When you look at the -- and stop drinking soft drinks.
01:11:11 Soft drinks are the main killer with juice in this country.
01:11:15 When I look at a soft drink label and a juice label, and I see 15 -- well, they don't tell you that.
01:11:22 They say each 100 mils, you have about, let's say, 10 grams or whatever it is.
01:11:30 One -- four grams is equal to one teaspoon.
01:11:34 Remember that.
01:11:35 Four grams of sugar, one teaspoon.
01:11:38 And then you can calculate how much teaspoons in that soft drink or juice.
01:11:42 And you will find in small packets, you have close to about five and six teaspoons of sugar.
01:11:49 In some bottles, you have 15 teaspoons of sugar.
01:11:52 What does sugar do?
01:11:54 Sugar goes into your system.
01:11:56 It goes -- breaks down into sucrose and fructose.
01:12:00 The sucrose goes for energy, and the fructose goes to form fat.
01:12:05 It's 50/50.
01:12:07 And when you have fructose in your system at such a level, you are going to get obese.
01:12:12 Children are becoming obese and having diseases of adults.
01:12:18 You have children walking around today, fat children, with type 2 diabetes, which is found in adults.
01:12:25 Hypercholesterolemia, which is found in adults.
01:12:28 High blood pressure.
01:12:30 These are 10-year-old children.
01:12:32 Now, what do adults do?
01:12:33 The children follow.
01:12:35 Now, you are being a slave to the fast-food industry and the processed food industry.
01:12:39 You are being indoctrinated by the media, which is not your media, but the advertising media.
01:12:48 And they have a lot of money to spend.
01:12:50 When you see a certain suffering being glorified in every single sports meeting, you know for a fact that that is not what is going to make you fit.
01:13:03 It's going to make you fat.
01:13:05 But, Doctor --
01:13:06 I had a plan.
01:13:07 I had a thing called "Fight the Fat" when I was minister.
01:13:10 They said, "Don't use the word 'fat,'" but I am going to keep using the word "fat" because women, men, and children are becoming too fat.
01:13:18 Obesity is a serious disease.
01:13:20 But, Doctor Khan, I think what you are suggesting here is a -- I hope you are hearing me.
01:13:27 But what you are suggesting here is a reprogramming of the entire society.
01:13:32 Because people -- a lot of people have moved away from -- I mean, Doctor Khan, to be honest with you, I don't know that -- I wonder if I should say this, boy.
01:13:43 But things like cassava flour and planting flour and dashing flour and dashing bacon and so on, it just doesn't sound attractive to the person out there.
01:13:54 And I get what you are saying, and I agree what you are saying, that we need to return to the days of the past.
01:14:00 It's a faster world now.
01:14:02 Fast food has become a part of the household because parents just don't -- a lot of them don't have time to cook and so on anymore.
01:14:10 I do understand what you are saying, but it calls for a really reprogramming of the entire society.
01:14:16 I want to take you up on something.
01:14:18 Go ahead.
01:14:19 Really and truly, really and truly, it's not so much that people is a fast ruler.
01:14:25 Yes.
01:14:26 What they have put into the food, food substances, the chemicals that they have put into the food, are on your tongue and in your mind.
01:14:35 And you crave it.
01:14:37 It's an addiction, like a heroin addiction, a cocaine addiction, a marijuana addiction.
01:14:44 It is now a food addiction.
01:14:46 But because it's food, people don't look at it as an addiction.
01:14:49 We are addicted to the food because when we put it in our mouth, it gives us a high, a dopamine high, in the same way that addiction gives the addict a dopamine high and calls them back each time to receive that high.
01:15:07 The reason why some fast food chicken places have long lines, some hamburger places have long lines and some don't, is because in those foods have the concoction, it's called your bliss point, it has a concoction that makes you addicted.
01:15:27 Why does one area have a long line and the others don't?
01:15:32 Yes.
01:15:33 And what is in that food that makes it so attractive?
01:15:36 It's creating addicts in the food industry.
01:15:39 And people are becoming addicts and fat and accepting it.
01:15:44 But doctor, if we are speaking about how sugar is so bad and the fats and the salt and all of these things are so bad, what are the substitutes?
01:15:58 The substitute for sugar, the substitute for salt, the substitute for fat and so on?
01:16:03 Moderation.
01:16:04 Moderation.
01:16:05 Yes.
01:16:06 Because when you put it in yourself, you can moderate how much you put in it, what volume.
01:16:11 When they put it in for you, they overdo it.
01:16:14 They over soak it.
01:16:16 That is why at home you can never duplicate what the taste is in the outside restaurants because they lace it with salt, they lace it with sugar, they lace it with this thing, MSG, etc.
01:16:33 Yes.
01:16:34 So you're not going to put that level in your food at home.
01:16:37 So it's not going to have the same taste.
01:16:40 And the taste that you crave and the addiction that you get when you eat outside and in processed foods is the taste that captures you.
01:16:51 So your food at home does not taste as good because you're now accustomed to the outside taste.
01:16:57 You run to get it all the time.
01:16:59 And then you wait until you're very hungry before you go and eat.
01:17:03 You're supposed to eat just before you get hungry so you don't overdo what you're going to eat and grab at everything else.
01:17:10 Some people spend the whole day, don't eat, and then go home and wolf at night.
01:17:14 So you put in extra calories.
01:17:16 When you eat sugar and those other foods I'm speaking about, you get hungry within two hours.
01:17:22 So you go look for sugar again.
01:17:23 You look for something else.
01:17:25 If you eat things with a lot of fiber and a lot of protein, you will not be as hungry as when you eat the carbohydrates and the sugar-containing foods.
01:17:36 You will not be as hungry.
01:17:38 So I'm telling people to switch to the high fiber.
01:17:41 If you want to eat provisions, it's high fiber.
01:17:44 If you want to eat meat, high fiber.
01:17:48 You want to eat anything, make sure it has a large amount of fiber in it.
01:17:53 Little biscuits like rye vita and those things, they have lots of fiber, whole grain.
01:18:00 You have to switch your diet.
01:18:02 I am sick and tired of seeing the population of Toronto putting on all this weight, looking unattractive.
01:18:09 I don't care if you're a fat acceptance and not looking after themselves and wanting to be different.
01:18:16 It's all addiction to food and being focused on pushing them out by the advertisements and also the people who make it.
01:18:26 The food industry is creating people into addicts and fat.
01:18:30 That's what they're doing.
01:18:31 But, you know, doctor, you have made a very salient point there and a very important point of moderation.
01:18:39 Because I don't think that the message is if you want to eat a little piece of cake or have some juice, I don't think you're saying don't do it.
01:18:49 But if you want to sit down and eat a whole cake, a whole chicken, well, then that's where the problem is.
01:18:54 So there must be strict moderation.
01:18:58 And curtail your alcohol.
01:19:00 Alcohol breaks down the sugar in your body and sugar, fructose and glucose.
01:19:05 And you end up with the fructose that causes you to get fat.
01:19:08 That is why people drink a lot.
01:19:10 Right. If they're not over addicts and they tend to be hungry all the time because it stimulates your eating centers.
01:19:18 So alcohol is another thing in this country that causes you to put on a lot of weight.
01:19:24 So if you want to if you want to basically live a long life, healthy exercise, watch what you eat and try to not be a slave to the food industry.
01:19:37 Yeah. And, you know, some of you may forget, but Dr. Khan was a former health minister.
01:19:43 So, Dr. Khan, thank you very much for your perspective this morning.
01:19:47 It's always appreciate appreciated and hope to speak with you very soon again.
01:19:52 Thank you again. All right.
01:19:54 Thanks for having me on. Of course. All right.
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01:23:28 I welcome back, everyone. So the Dyslexia Association is celebrating Dyslexia Week.
01:23:33 So speaking with us now is Catherine Kelshaw of the Dyslexia Association of Trinidad and Tobago.
01:23:40 Miss Kelshaw, thank you very much for joining us this morning. And good morning.
01:23:44 And thank you for having me. Yeah. Miss Kelshaw, if we could, let's first try to break down for our viewers this morning.
01:23:54 What exactly is dyslexia? Because I remember some years ago where this term was a very new term and persons within the school system.
01:24:08 They may have been misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all with dyslexia.
01:24:14 And some students were just seen as as troublesome. So on that basis, let's let's break down exactly what dyslexia is.
01:24:23 All right. Well, they are still a lot of students falling through the cracker. I want to say that at the outset.
01:24:28 Yes. I like to explain dyslexia as an unexpected reading failure.
01:24:34 So parents have this child. He's bright enough. Maybe he's actually very talented in building puzzles or art.
01:24:44 And then he goes to school. And if the dyslexia is very severe, very soon the teacher will say he's not learning his sounds.
01:24:51 If it's not that severe, he might be fine in point one or two where they're just doing very phonetic words.
01:24:58 And then when they get into standard one where things get more difficult, then you begin to see the difference.
01:25:04 But this is really what I like to call a discrepancy child. It's a child in class who has their hands up.
01:25:10 They are they know the answer. Yes, yes, yes. But oh, my goodness.
01:25:15 Don't ask them to write it down because they can't.
01:25:19 And the spelling is often quite bizarre. And they're really struggling with that reading.
01:25:25 And before we finish this, they get a lot of blame for it. I mean, I hear about teachers telling children, you must learn to read.
01:25:31 That's if it's their job. But it's actually our job to teach them to read.
01:25:37 So that is what we do at the Dyslexia Association. Yes.
01:25:41 All right. So let's speak about Dyslexia Week. How are you all observing it?
01:25:47 Sorry, I missed that. Yeah. Let's speak a little bit about Dyslexia Week. How are you all this observing it?
01:25:55 Can you repeat that? Yeah. You hear me?
01:25:58 It's not working very well. All right. Let's speak a little bit about Dyslexia Week.
01:26:02 How are you all this observing it? All right. So what we've done is we've put videos on Facebook.
01:26:10 We have asked some of our dyslexic students who are now adults or people that we knew who dyslexic were successful in business to post short videos.
01:26:23 So if people would like to go on to Facebook, just put in Dyslexia Association Trinidad or Dyslexia Trinidad and they'll come up.
01:26:31 And they're wonderful, wonderful little videos talking about how successful dyslexics can be if they get the right help.
01:26:42 How serious is the situation? We also bring on to television like with you and thank you and also on radio.
01:26:49 Yeah. How serious is the situation of dyslexia in Trinidad and Tobago?
01:26:55 Well, you know, there are no figures, actually, because there's not any generalized testing for dyslexia.
01:27:03 But we can take I mean, all over the world, all the countries they talk about from 10 to 20 percent of people will be dyslexic.
01:27:13 So we can extrapolate that here. Absolutely.
01:27:17 And that conservatively, we have over 100000 dyslexics in the country.
01:27:23 So, in fact, in any country, there are more dyslexics than all the other disabilities combined.
01:27:30 Yeah. And at what age is it most prevalent, you think?
01:27:36 I'm having a lot of trouble hearing you. At what age is it most prevalent where you're seeing it?
01:27:43 Is it prevalent? Yeah. Well, of course, at the Dyslexia Association, we're the ones that get the calls from parents who,
01:27:51 you know, are worried that their children aren't learning to read. So, yes, we get a lot of calls.
01:27:58 We know from our teachers and I know from teaching in schools when I was teaching in school that they would be about four,
01:28:05 three, four dyslexic children in a class easily and they're getting missed.
01:28:12 So, yes, it is a big problem. Yeah.
01:28:16 So do you think that we in Trinidad and Tobago, we have made strides in, let's say,
01:28:24 detecting dyslexia in students and there is help out there for children who are being affected?
01:28:34 I don't think in the main we've made very many strides.
01:28:38 We at the Dyslexia Association train teachers in assessing, recognising dyslexia and teaching dyslexics and failing readers with a specific method that really is designed for them.
01:28:54 So there's those teachers we have trained over a thousand and they're all over Trinidad and Tobago who can now recognise and also teach dyslexics.
01:29:06 But as a general rule, unless we continue doing programmes like this on the radio and continue with articles in the paper, no, there isn't a general rule.
01:29:21 No, I would have to say no. It's not generally recognised and the children really do slip through the cracks.
01:29:28 Yeah. And how soon, when a child is diagnosed as having dyslexia and the child is, I'm sure that there's going to be some sort of programme being prepared for that child,
01:29:45 how soon, how long does that level of training take place?
01:29:51 So how long is the period of training where parents can see a level of transformation in the behaviour of the child, in the education of the child?
01:30:02 So how long after diagnosis you can see a change?
01:30:07 OK, so it depends a little bit on the level of difficulty.
01:30:13 Yes. But I'll give you two wonderful stories. When we run our training course, we have a practicum and children come in on the course.
01:30:22 And after two weeks, they always say, are we coming back on Monday?
01:30:29 And we say, no, they want to come back. So already they've started making progress.
01:30:35 And, you know, I don't know if people realise how much children want to do well.
01:30:40 They really want to do well. They want to learn to read. They want to be like the other children on the class.
01:30:46 They want to please their parents. They want to please their teachers.
01:30:49 So soon as they start making progress, they are happy to come to lessons and the parents will see a difference in them and a difference in the behaviour.
01:31:00 And I'm glad you mentioned behaviour because, of course, these children tend to act out if they're not doing well.
01:31:07 I know certainly teenagers who are not able to read will find an excuse to be put out of the class so they're not embarrassed in front of their friends.
01:31:17 But as far as the whole programme goes, how long the dyslexics have to continue with the programme, it really depends on the level of difficulty.
01:31:27 So it can be and also how often they come. If they come for lessons twice a week, it will be a little longer than if they come three times a week.
01:31:36 So it can take a year, two years, even if the dyslexia is very severe, three years.
01:31:42 And some children will need support all through their school life. That's more rare.
01:31:49 These children will just graduate out of lessons and be fine.
01:31:53 Yeah. So I take it what you're saying, Miss Kelshaw, is that there are different levels of dyslexia.
01:32:01 Yes. Yes. It can be very severe or mild. Right.
01:32:07 You know, the whole gamut. So, yes, from mild to severe and anywhere in between.
01:32:16 And then some dyslexics have an added difficulty. Some of those children might have attention problems, might have difficulties with math, not always.
01:32:27 And actually, that takes me to a wonderful point about math.
01:32:32 A lot of dyslexics are good at math. Not all, but very often I get a phone call in the office and the parent will say, I need help because my child is slow.
01:32:43 So I say, well, slow. What are they slowing? Oh, reading. Miss Spelling is awful.
01:32:50 I say, what about their math? Oh, they're good at math, really good at math.
01:32:55 And then I have to tell the parent, well, you know, your child isn't slow.
01:32:59 Your child has a specific difficulty with reading and spelling.
01:33:05 That really, in a nutshell, is dyslexia. It's very specific to those two difficulties and also handwriting.
01:33:14 Yeah. So I think that early detection is a major key here, because if it is not detected, there is the possibility.
01:33:23 I'm sorry, I'm not getting you. Yeah. Are you hearing me now? Yeah.
01:33:29 Miss Kelshaw, I'm just saying that early detection. I'm not hearing anything. I'm so, so sorry.
01:33:37 Let's try again. Let's try again. Are you hearing me now? I'm just saying that early detection is very,
01:33:46 very important because if it is not detected, dyslexia could have a severe impact on the life of a child.
01:33:55 Absolutely. So then you go into the spiral of failure where the children actually stop going to school.
01:34:03 Oh, I know a very successful dyslexic who hid in the bathrooms for all of Friday because of spelling tests.
01:34:11 And one dyslexic who was actually spontaneously sick every Friday because of dyslexia.
01:34:17 And it was spelling testing. So, yes, it can change their life.
01:34:23 And of course, we like to say it's never too late. But if we can get children when they're quite young,
01:34:28 when they're six, seven, eight, then of course, we don't have that much to make up.
01:34:33 So if we have a seven year old who's reading is a five, we have two years to make up.
01:34:39 But if we get an 11 year old or a 12 year old who's reading is at a seven year old level,
01:34:44 we then have five years to make up. So it's going to take longer.
01:34:48 The child would have had all this failure. We have to get through all of that loss of confidence and work with the child.
01:34:58 It's hard. Yeah. But it's never too late. I want to say that.
01:35:01 Of course. And if parents want to get in contact with the Dyslexia Association, how do they do that?
01:35:08 Can you repeat that? Yeah. If parents want to get in contact with your association, how do they do that?
01:35:19 I'm not hearing anything. What's your contact information?
01:35:26 All right. There we are. Yeah. Contact information, Miss Kelshaw.
01:35:30 All right. There we are. Very important. Yes.
01:35:33 So, in fact, if you just Google Dyslexia Association, because you're in Trinidad, we come up.
01:35:38 But our telephone number is 281-LEAD. That's 281-7323.
01:35:47 And our email is info@dyslexiatt.org. All of this will come up if you Google us.
01:35:58 We're in the telephone book as well. People don't use the telephone book anymore, but we're under dyslexia.
01:36:05 So we are easy to get rolled up. Yeah. Miss Kelshaw, it was a pleasure speaking with you.
01:36:09 Also, I want to reiterate that we have teachers all over Trinidad. I'm speaking.
01:36:13 All right. Miss Kelshaw, it was a pleasure speaking with you. Thank you very much.
01:36:18 I hope she's hearing me. All right. But bye for now, Miss Kelshaw.
01:36:24 Thank you. I'm really sorry about this. I don't know what happened with it. I mean, I do Zoom meetings all the time.
01:36:29 That's the magic of live television, Miss Kelshaw. Bye for now.
01:36:32 Thank you. Bye bye. Thank you very much. All right.
01:36:36 So let's check out this image from Garcia G as we head to another break. We're coming back, everybody.
01:36:43 There is. Cold or flu.
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01:39:10 The world is in crisis. Distressing news are flowing from every quarter in the society.
01:39:17 And the hearts of many are failing them for fear.
01:39:21 However, in the midst of these alarming conditions come good news.
01:39:27 Jesus Christ saves, keeps and satisfies.
01:39:32 This is the message of Daybreak.
01:39:36 [Music]
01:39:52 All right, and we are going to be speaking about that song, Love Makes the World Go Round.
01:39:57 And we do have the artist in studio this morning, Machel de Gazon, also known as Ja Guidance.
01:40:04 Ja Guidance, thank you very much for coming this morning.
01:40:06 Thanks for having me.
01:40:07 Yeah, and let me tell you something. This song, we need this right now, you know.
01:40:11 Most definitely.
01:40:12 Yeah, what inspired this song by you?
01:40:17 You know, there's so much negativity that plagues the world right now, right?
01:40:22 And in Trinidad itself has so much crime, right?
01:40:25 I think that I wanted to promote a message more of showing love, showing positivity.
01:40:32 Let's promote that kind of thing instead of all this negativity and violence, you know.
01:40:36 Yeah, and I think that you have stepped out of the box there because we do have a lot of artists in Trinidad and Tobago.
01:40:43 They're speaking about the violence and the guns and the whatever.
01:40:46 So you have really taken a risk there, but I suspect it's a message that has to be heard.
01:40:51 Of course.
01:40:52 Yeah.
01:40:53 Right.
01:40:54 When did you pen this song?
01:40:56 This song was penned approximately a month ago.
01:41:00 Yeah, yeah.
01:41:02 And you felt that things were kind of spiraling out of control.
01:41:06 So that's why you came up with this song.
01:41:09 Yes, I did.
01:41:10 Yeah.
01:41:11 Right. Because music is a very powerful, powerful tool.
01:41:14 And I realize a lot of people don't understand that if you don't put positive messages in your music, right,
01:41:19 that means you're going to be influencing the youth and influencing people in general in the wrong way.
01:41:25 Yeah.
01:41:26 How has the response been to the song?
01:41:29 It has actually been tremendous.
01:41:31 It has been really good.
01:41:32 Yeah.
01:41:33 You feel that maybe people were crying out for a song such as this because of all of the negativity and dark clouds all over the place?
01:41:41 Definitely.
01:41:42 Definitely.
01:41:43 Because just by the way that things are going now in the country and even in the world with all the wars and stuff,
01:41:49 I feel like they just needed that sense of love.
01:41:52 They need to hear that kind of message now, you know?
01:41:54 Yeah.
01:41:55 So the message is being accepted.
01:41:56 Most definitely, yes.
01:41:57 Let's talk a little bit about you and how long have you been an artist?
01:42:02 I have been an artist for 13 years and counting, yeah.
01:42:05 Yeah?
01:42:06 Yeah.
01:42:07 And has this, well, judging from your name, Jah Guidance, your songs, I suspect all of them would have to be of a positive nature.
01:42:18 Well, yes.
01:42:19 You can't be singing, you can't name Jah Guidance and you're talking about Uzi and Matic.
01:42:23 No, no way.
01:42:24 Right.
01:42:25 But when I started off in music, I started off doing soca music.
01:42:29 Right.
01:42:30 So my sub-requisite at that time was MDG.
01:42:32 Okay.
01:42:33 Right?
01:42:34 Due to the fact that so many kids in my community and just people I interacted with on a daily basis,
01:42:40 due to that fact that they looked up to me, I decided to just change the scope of things and to put more positive music.
01:42:48 Everything can't just be about wine and jam and as you say, well, all the gun stuff.
01:42:52 I'm not into that.
01:42:53 Yeah.
01:42:54 So I wanted to promote positive music and I gave the youth and them that kind of message in the music that I wanted them to just gravitate to
01:43:03 and something to motivate them, inspire them, that kind of way.
01:43:07 Yeah.
01:43:08 Now, we know about other artists, really, and I'm speaking about in Jamaica, who they are known for positive songs such as what you're singing.
01:43:21 But in the business, and I'm talking about promoters in Trinidad and Tobago, you also think that they want to hear songs such as yours
01:43:32 and you feel that they're gravitating towards that positive kind of message?
01:43:37 Yes, they are because to be honest with you, many different songs that I did, I didn't get on the radio as quickly as this one went there.
01:43:47 So this song has been in full rotation on numerous radio stations throughout Trinidad and Tobago.
01:43:52 Yeah.
01:43:53 So I guess that what we spoke about earlier, there's really a need for this type of message at this time.
01:44:03 Can we expect a lot more songs like this from you in the future?
01:44:08 Of course.
01:44:09 Jag Guidance represents positivity.
01:44:12 Jag Guidance represents love, peace.
01:44:15 Jag Guidance promotes inspiration, motivation.
01:44:17 That's so, of course.
01:44:19 Yeah.
01:44:20 I don't want to put Jag Guidance on the spot to sing a live version of it for us this morning, unless he wants to.
01:44:26 Right?
01:44:27 I just put it out there.
01:44:28 Yeah.
01:44:29 But let's speak, because you're a young man, let's speak about what is happening, what you see happening in the communities.
01:44:39 And I'm sure that there are young people out there who are looking at you right now, and you have gone a particular path, a positive path.
01:44:49 They have gone into a next direction.
01:44:52 If you had to speak to them about the path that they have taken, what would you say?
01:44:58 You know, I would say it's important to be a leader and not be a follower.
01:45:02 Sometimes it's okay to go against the grain.
01:45:05 You know?
01:45:06 Yeah.
01:45:07 But you can't choose to just jump and follow whatever anybody is trying to influence you to do and do something different.
01:45:12 Yeah.
01:45:13 Right?
01:45:14 Because we are all here for a purpose, and I'm very certain that a lot of things that they're doing right now, that's not their purpose.
01:45:19 Yeah.
01:45:20 You know?
01:45:21 Yeah.
01:45:22 But, you know, I guess it's kind of difficult for them, eh?
01:45:27 Well, it is, due to either peer pressure or for whatever reasons.
01:45:31 I grew up amongst many of these certain individuals, and I did not follow that path.
01:45:36 Yeah.
01:45:37 Because I didn't want to, you know, shame my family.
01:45:40 I didn't want to end up in a police station or end up in a cell somewhere, you know?
01:45:43 Yeah.
01:45:44 That was never the goal.
01:45:45 And let me tell you, that's a very good point that you're making.
01:45:47 Don't shame yourself and your family.
01:45:49 Correct.
01:45:50 Yeah?
01:45:51 Turn up the volume, let's say, a little bit of jaw guidance now.
01:45:53 And let's see if he'll bless us this morning with some singing.
01:46:00 So love makes the world go round, love makes the world go round.
01:46:06 Don't you dare change up that smile to a frown.
01:46:09 Once you show love it comes right back around.
01:46:12 So love makes the world go round, love makes the world go round.
01:46:18 Don't you dare change up that smile to a frown.
01:46:21 We need to show love.
01:46:23 We need to find the love again.
01:46:26 From where we can unite and we all come friends.
01:46:29 To fight against your sisters and your brothers.
01:46:31 Then the world needs love.
01:46:33 Bring back the love again.
01:46:35 Back to a time when we used to help each other win.
01:46:38 A brother fall and we would pick him up again.
01:46:41 Hold a vibe, spring go times, fund a block again.
01:46:43 The world needs love.
01:46:45 Bring back the love again.
01:46:47 So love, so love makes the world go round.
01:46:51 Love makes the world go round.
01:46:54 Don't you dare change up that smile to a frown.
01:46:57 Once you show love it comes right back around.
01:47:00 Jagaidans, where can people hear more of your music?
01:47:03 Your social media platform?
01:47:05 Jagaidans music 868, that's my YouTube channel.
01:47:09 Jagaidans music on IG as well.
01:47:12 Jagaidans on Facebook.
01:47:14 Is there anywhere that we can see you anytime soon?
01:47:18 Promoters.
01:47:20 Exactly.
01:47:22 Jagaidans, respect.
01:47:24 Thank you very much for your positive message here this morning.
01:47:26 We wish you all the best.
01:47:28 We are going to a very short break.
01:47:30 We are coming back.
01:47:32 [Music]
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01:48:24 Attention viewers in Trinidad.
01:48:25 Join Pastor Gino Jennings for the First Holy Convocation in Trinidad Tobago
01:48:28 at the Center of Excellence, Tarinia Hall, 17A McCoyer Road, Tunapuna, Trinidad.
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01:49:54 [music]
01:50:03 Shifting gears now, the 2023 NGC Bocas Youth Fest recently launched its program of fun and interactive activities
01:50:11 for young people between the ages of 13 and 25 years.
01:50:14 With us now are Alet Liz-Williams, Marketing and Media Manager, and Joelle Philip, PRO, DPO, Public Speaking,
01:50:22 and second-time semifinalist for Citizens National Poetry Slam.
01:50:28 Good morning.
01:50:31 Good morning, good morning.
01:50:32 Yeah.
01:50:33 Alet, let's speak a little bit about the Bocas Youth Fest.
01:50:37 Why was there a need for it?
01:50:42 Well, if I could take it.
01:50:43 Yes.
01:50:44 This was a really good organization and event sponsored by the Bocas Youth Fest.
01:50:49 And this is really an event where young people could show all the talents that they may have,
01:50:54 whether it may be through spoken word, whether it be through writing, whether it be through debating,
01:50:58 which is something that I have a heavy, heavy interest in.
01:51:01 It's something where everybody could learn from and actually get to experience what they may not be able to get in other places,
01:51:10 in other organizations. So this is a really good event for that.
01:51:13 Yeah. And Joelle?
01:51:15 And it is a niche version, the youth version of the annual NGC Bocas Lit Fest,
01:51:21 which is the adult festival that happens in April every year.
01:51:25 So, I mean, it's for youth 13 to 25.
01:51:30 So we're talking secondary school to tertiary level students.
01:51:34 We can all come and be part of this festival, which is entirely free and participate in workshops and everything that Joelle mentioned,
01:51:42 so that they can get a love for all the different ways that writing and reading can propel your life, your career, your personality,
01:51:50 who you are as an individual in society and so much more.
01:51:55 So, yeah.
01:51:56 So, Ale, there's still room for registration?
01:51:58 For registration, it's possible.
01:52:00 There's still room for people, for persons between the ages of 13 and 25 to register?
01:52:06 Well, Friday is oversubscribed, unfortunately.
01:52:10 But Saturday in particular, it's all day from 10 till the evening where we have the award for the Youth Writer of the Year,
01:52:20 which happens annually. So that one is more open to youths coming to.
01:52:28 Yeah. All right. Ale, here's what I want you to do.
01:52:32 You're speaking about Saturday. How is this going to roll out on Saturday?
01:52:40 Oh, OK. So on Saturday, we start with a career fair at 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
01:52:48 And then we have a Moko Jambi sort of workshop. Yes. Food blogging workshop, sign painting workshop for persons who like art.
01:53:01 A standard sort of lunchtime jam where people who have work that they have not been able to perform or they've written and have not shared with the world.
01:53:10 Little open mic session that they can come and perform, they can come to. We have tales of root, stick and bone.
01:53:18 And of course, we have the youth debate, which is a big hit.
01:53:22 So this is something that Joel is involved in. So he knows how serious it could be.
01:53:27 We have graphic storytelling and then we have writing for TV with Daniel Defintala.
01:53:34 And of course, the money at the end. So it's packed with a lot of very diverse programs.
01:53:41 Yeah. Joel, let's speak about the impact that this has had on you personally by you being a participant in this exercise.
01:53:55 It would start from last year when I was actually a participant in that same debates.
01:54:00 And yeah, that was definitely a very big learning experience in understanding what it takes to be a debater,
01:54:06 to be a good debater in front of a crowd and such an audience such as Brokers Lit Fest would provide.
01:54:13 And once again, it's always about understanding what's hidden potential you have and all the hidden talents you have.
01:54:19 And as Alec said, you have writing for TV, you have the stick fighting workshop, the stand and deliver open mic.
01:54:25 It's giving you a lot of opportunities to actually be able to come out of yourself,
01:54:31 break out of your shell and be able to really capture everything that makes you, well, you.
01:54:37 Yeah. Sometimes when you break out of your shell, they had to put you back in your shell, you know.
01:54:42 Alec, so is it that that people can just come down and give us the venue for the event?
01:54:51 So the venue is UWE St. Augustine, but in particular, the Department for Creative and Festival Arts on Gordon Street, well known as DCFA.
01:55:02 So students could come. Yes, it's open.
01:55:05 You can just come down and just it will turn into an entire festival village, right, for youth.
01:55:12 So once you're there, you could just you will follow the signage. Our signage will be everywhere.
01:55:17 So it's no way to miss it. And once you get in, you'll have everything there to participate in and enjoy and learn from.
01:55:24 And just interact with all of the facilitators who will be more than willing to facilitate any form of questioning from our youth.
01:55:33 All right. And give us the time again, Alec. Alec, if you could just give us the time again.
01:55:41 Time. OK, so again, it's Friday from 10 a.m. Saturday, which is an open day from 10 a.m.
01:55:54 It will be at UWE, the Department for Creative and Festival Arts.
01:55:58 If you can find out all the information that you need on our website, Booker's Lit Fest, or follow us on social media at Booker's Lit Fest.
01:56:07 You'll get everything there. You can check the entire program, choose which ones you're interested in, come out in your droves and just support, have fun and learn.
01:56:17 That's all we want. It's about impact, not profit, as you know, because we are an NGO that loves anything literature and in the literature arts.
01:56:26 Yeah. Alec, it's always a pleasure speaking with you. Joel, we wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
01:56:31 Yeah. OK. Thank you very much. Bye for now. Thank you. So we are going to a very short break.
01:56:36 We're coming back. One good thing has led to another.
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01:57:58 Calling steel pan enthusiasts from around the globe. The Patrons of the Arts Foundation, in collaboration with the University of Trinidad and Tobago, presents the 13th edition of its artistic bursary 2023.
01:58:13 This is your opportunity to pursue tertiary level study in the steel pan at the world's premier steel pan academy, the University of Trinidad and Tobago.
01:58:23 The top three finalists will share the US $10,000 in prize money that will go towards accommodation, course materials, travel and other related expenses of the Pan Fellowship diploma or bachelor of fine arts degree.
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01:59:05 And that's going to do it for our program for today. Thank you to everyone. Remember to tune in for the Emmy Prime at 830 p.m.
01:59:12 In the meantime, we leave you with this image, a fiery sunset from one of our viewers. See you tomorrow, everybody. Bye for now.
01:59:19 The. Trials and testings does come before blessings, but we have to be patient. We've been.
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