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00:00:00Come on studio, give us a little more.
00:00:23A very special good morning Trinidad and Tobago and the rest of the world, I'm Marlon Hopkinson
00:00:26and welcome to the Morning Edition.
00:00:28It's Friday, 16th August and thank you very much.
00:00:31And let me tell you, I specifically asked for that song.
00:00:36You know why?
00:00:37Because what a week it has been.
00:00:39A very busy week, a number of things happening this week in Trinidad and Tobago, it would
00:00:44seem like we were just speeding this week, alright?
00:00:48So it was a good opportunity this morning to remind you that there are a lot of good
00:00:54things happening in Trinidad and Tobago when we think of our culture and when we think
00:00:58about our food and when we think about everything, you know?
00:01:01I think that sometimes we are bogged down by the bad news, alright?
00:01:07So we are a work in progress.
00:01:09Hey, at the end of this month it's independence, you know?
00:01:13Yeah?
00:01:14You know what we're going to do?
00:01:15We're going to have to get some prominent persons in Trinidad and Tobago over the next
00:01:19few weeks, you know?
00:01:20Let's try to create a segment here where they can speak about independence and reflecting
00:01:28on our country since 1962 over the years and where we are now, you know?
00:01:32So that's an idea I have for you out there.
00:01:35So that's what we're going to do, alright?
00:01:37So how was your night?
00:01:38I hope it was good and that you're safe and sound with us this morning.
00:01:41We do appreciate it, alright?
00:01:43Let's check out to see what's happening in the Daily Express today.
00:01:47Sons of men killed by cops call on parents.
00:01:53Talk to your children, dad.
00:01:56Keep a closer eye on all your children, if all you could, and try and shine some light
00:02:02in the dark eras where we don't know where they does be, alright?
00:02:07So that's the father speaking there.
00:02:09My sons are good boys.
00:02:10Senator John speaks to a police officer outside his Claxton Bay home yesterday about the police
00:02:15shooting of two of his sons, Kadeem and Salim John, below in Freeport on Wednesday.
00:02:21So you have Jovan Simon, you have Salim John, and you have Kadeem John, alright?
00:02:28Let's get a little bit into this story.
00:02:32So just a little bit.
00:02:34Relatives upset over police's use of force in killing six.
00:02:37They is nice, loving fellas.
00:02:40Relatives of two of the six people killed by police in Freeport on Wednesday are upset
00:02:44about the level of force used by the officers.
00:02:47So father of Kadeem and Salim John said yesterday police did not have to kill his sons.
00:02:52Senator John said, if you don't need to kill people's children, don't kill them because
00:02:56it's a life still.
00:02:58It have jail for that.
00:03:00It have thing for that.
00:03:01As it pertained to his children, he said, it was not necessary.
00:03:04They didn't have to kill the boy and them.
00:03:08He however said, as you saw in that clip just now, the situation could not be changed.
00:03:14It done happen already.
00:03:15So we can't do nothing.
00:03:16The law is the law.
00:03:17The law is the law, alright?
00:03:20Okay.
00:03:21So we're moving on.
00:03:22Alright.
00:03:23So we're moving to the back page now.
00:03:25Alright.
00:03:26So there's the Prime Minister.
00:03:27Agriculture is profitable if done properly, says Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley.
00:03:30He was speaking to a group of students at the launch of the Tucker Valley Shade House
00:03:34project in Tucker Valley, Chagoramas yesterday.
00:03:37Alright.
00:03:38So we do have some support for you also.
00:03:41So wickets galore on day one, Joseph takes five for West Indies.
00:03:47The perfect start to his first test match at home was spoiled somewhat for Shemar Joseph
00:03:51by his team's batters, but Guyanese fast bowlers third five wicket hole in tests helped to
00:03:57send South Africa crashing to 160 all out on the first day of the second and final test
00:04:02match at the Guyana National Stadium.
00:04:05The first day still ended with the visitors holding the upper hand after West Indies slid
00:04:10to 97 for seven.
00:04:12Alright.
00:04:13Some of the stories in the Daily Express for you today.
00:04:15Alright.
00:04:16So it's time to remind you of a train bagel, your nice feature.
00:04:19Yeah.
00:04:20Remember that's the email address so you can send your videos.
00:04:24You can send your photographs to us because we do appreciate it.
00:04:28Alright.
00:04:29Okay.
00:04:30So we do.
00:04:31Yes, we do have that for you this morning.
00:04:32Anjali boy, our good friend Anjali, she continues to send beautiful pictures to us and we do
00:04:38appreciate it.
00:04:40Alright.
00:04:41Okay.
00:04:42So you have your coffee, your tea.
00:04:43There's something to eat.
00:04:44We do have a very interesting program for you today as always, right?
00:04:48It's Friday.
00:04:49So you take them out to the break with some more Superblue.
00:04:52Good morning, Superblue.
00:04:55We are best by the best.
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00:06:00One of the main reasons I
00:06:01One of the main reasons I
00:06:01One of the main reasons I also communicate that I do is
00:06:03also communicate that I do is
00:06:03also communicate that I do is because of traffic.
00:06:16Slavery, a terrible time in our history.
00:06:20The kidnapping, buying and selling of people for profit.
00:06:23The exploitation of another human being.
00:06:26It still exists today.
00:06:28It has a new name, human trafficking.
00:06:32Anyone can be a victim.
00:06:34There is forced labor, sexual exploitation and domestic servitude.
00:06:42Human trafficking is a worldwide problem and an emerging concern for us here in Trinidad and Tobago.
00:06:50If you know of or suspect human trafficking activity, call the counter-trafficking hotline at 800-4CTU or 800-4288.
00:07:00Human trafficking is a crime.
00:07:02Identify it, report it, stop it.
00:07:06A message from the counter-trafficking unit of the Ministry of National Security.
00:07:13And welcome back everyone.
00:07:27Thank you very much for the energy in the studio this morning.
00:07:30All right, we do appreciate it.
00:07:31So as you know, we are in the middle of the rainy season and every year it brings with it heavy rains and flooding.
00:07:36For this week alone, residents all across the country have been affected.
00:07:40this morning we look at our preparedness for the season and joining us this morning is Works and
00:07:45Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan. Minister, it's always good to see you and speak with you. Thank
00:07:49you very much for joining us this morning. We do appreciate it. Good morning, Marlon. Good morning
00:07:54to everyone in the studio. Good morning to Trinidad and Tobago and those joining on your
00:07:58worldwide web. It's always a pleasure to join you this morning. Yeah, Minister, over the past few
00:08:03weeks we have been seeing you everywhere. We've been seeing you touring areas in Trinidad and
00:08:08Tobago in an attempt to provide assistance to residents of certain areas that have been
00:08:14affected. But Minister, as we look at, as I said, the rainy season and you look what has happened
00:08:20thus far and the ministry's preparedness thus far, what's your assessment this morning?
00:08:27Okay, so Marlon, we are at a point in time here where we knew the effects of global warming. We
00:08:35knew what we had to expect. I mean, I've been saying this for the last couple of years that
00:08:40it is going to be more challenging as we go further on. What we see happening this time around,
00:08:48and it's not just unique to Trinidad and Tobago, it's around the world, what we're seeing is a dry
00:08:56season that was very hot and then an early rainy season where early during the rainy season,
00:09:03we saw any sort of downpour that we normally get in October, November of the year. If you look at
00:09:09the hurricane season, I mean, everyone was shocked that we got so much hurricane so early in the
00:09:13season. This is just the new norm and it is something that we have to learn to cope with.
00:09:20In terms of the infrastructure to handle this sort of change, it is going to be challenging
00:09:24for any country to try to, you know, provide infrastructure that can handle these changes,
00:09:30because every year it changes. So, what we have embarked on here in Trinidad, we started our
00:09:37National Drainage Plan a couple of years ago. So, we finally have a National Drainage Plan,
00:09:42which has a lot of projects in it that has to be rolled out over the next couple of years.
00:09:47That has started. And then we have our normal maintenance program, which we start actually
00:09:53at beginning of January, the start of the dry season. That program is ongoing still.
00:09:59We would have accomplished about 90% of it and it is actually running the plan. What that allows
00:10:06us to do is to have a quick runoff. And basically, we have seen the benefits of that. Yes, we would
00:10:11have had a significant amount of rainfall. We would have had flash flooding so far in several areas,
00:10:18but the water would have receded very fast. And that is basically the short-term plan. The
00:10:24medium-term plan is, as I said, what we have happening right now. We have four rivers where
00:10:28we are actually cleaning the mouth, desilting the mouth. We have several major projects going on.
00:10:34And the long term is to implement all the programs from that National Drainage Plan
00:10:39that we have worked so hard on with the international agencies and so.
00:10:45Minister, is there any answer to specifically in Port of Spain? I believe yesterday morning when I
00:10:51was coming to work, I saw that workers of the corporation that they were cleaning the drains
00:10:57and removing debris and plastic and so on. But up to yesterday on Wrights Road, there was
00:11:04major gridlock on Wrights Road for motorists who were using that particular pathway there
00:11:13in the vicinity of, let's say, the fire station and licensing. It would seem,
00:11:19Minister, it looks sometime like a bowl and water always gathers there.
00:11:26Well, it is actually a bowl. It is actually a bowl. And that is why we are doing right now
00:11:32some studies and we're working again with the international consultants and so to come up with
00:11:39a plan, a program for us for Port of Spain. There was a study done and I have said there
00:11:45was no study. At the Ministry, we have no studies for Port of Spain. We have studies
00:11:48for the entire country except the Port of Spain area. Recently, a plan that was done 40 years ago
00:11:56was presented. Obviously, a 40-year-old plan can't work today. But we have actually engaged
00:12:03consultants with that plan to upgrade that plan and come up with a program for the St. Ann's,
00:12:09Port of Spain and the Western Peninsula. Those are the only areas that we really have no updated,
00:12:15completed program for. We have, I had meetings with the Bodega Martin operation and the Port
00:12:23of Spain operation this week and we have embarked on a program to try to minimize the flood and
00:12:29again to get a quick runoff. We are looking at the 12 outfall drains in Port of Spain that takes
00:12:35the water all the way from St. Ann's, St. James, Woodbrook area out to the sea. We are looking at
00:12:43all those to see where we can get some additional space and so to have that quick runoff when we get
00:12:49these major downpours. Now, the downpours we are talking about just this week on two occasions.
00:12:54We had almost one quarter of the monthly rainfall within an hour and a half to two hours. No matter
00:13:02what infrastructure you have in place, you will get flash flooding when that happens. The whole
00:13:07idea is to have a quick runoff because that downtown Port of Spain area is really like a basin
00:13:12and you have water coming all the way from St. Ann's, Cascade, the Savannah, everything coming
00:13:18all the way down to Port of Spain to actually to get out into the ocean. So, it's a challenge
00:13:23area but there are plans in place for a more middle to long-term solution to solve that problem.
00:13:30Yeah, a few days ago also there was massive flooding in the Bamboo area and I was reading
00:13:38a particular report and it was talking about that it would seem that people are still tinkering with
00:13:44the river bank down there. They complain of certain people who have blocked certain water
00:13:51courses which is contributing to the buildup of water in the area. And you know, Minister,
00:13:56sometimes you hear these claims and it would seem sometimes it's a repeat of the year before
00:14:03that some people are just, you know, they're doing what they're not supposed to be doing
00:14:09and really contributing to the situation. Well, and that is a problem that we're faced with all
00:14:16the time. A lot of work went into the Bamboo area within the last year and a half and a lot of work
00:14:22is still going on in the area. But the area is a flood-prone area. The level of Bamboo
00:14:30and there's a part of Valencia in the south down to the end is really part of the Carine Plain
00:14:37and it's a low-lying area just next to the bank of the Carine River. Water again,
00:14:43it's a natural ponding area for water and that is why we have pumps and so in that area because
00:14:48once the water gets down there, it is almost impossible to get over the Carine banks into
00:14:54the Carine River. So you have to pump the water. Once people contribute to blocking water courses,
00:14:59interfering with the banks, all they do is that they contribute to the problem. But it is not
00:15:04a problem prone only to Bamboo. We are seeing that problem around Trinidad, especially in the
00:15:10low-lying areas that is expected to flood. They utilize areas to help block the water from coming
00:15:17to them, move the water in a different direction, but that actually contributes more to other areas.
00:15:22So it's something that we're dealing with. It has been around for years. It's really a culture
00:15:29change that we have to understand that look, the weather is not going to be as kind to us
00:15:35going forward because we are living in a time where, you know, the weather pattern
00:15:39have drastically changed in a very short space of time. Yeah. Is any work being done in Woodland?
00:15:46Because recently on the news, I did see that certain parts of the river bank down there,
00:15:53it has really collapsed. And I know that residents in the area, they have been putting these sandbags
00:15:59trying to repair the river bank. And they have been complaining that look, if this is not fixed,
00:16:06there's going to be severe flooding for another year in places such as Woodland.
00:16:12Right. So again, Woodland is a part of the wetland. It's a very low-lying area. Actually,
00:16:18we did a lot of work there. But yes, we do have some bank failures. And we are actually doing
00:16:23some geotechnical studies now to find out exactly why the bank is failing so fast. It has a lot to
00:16:30do with the quality of the soil and so there. Because once you load the banks, obviously,
00:16:36the weight keeps spreading and sinking. So we are looking at solutions. But again, if you
00:16:42understand the Woodland area, it's really a big marshland. And water is expected to go into those
00:16:52areas. How we get the water out in a short space of time is where the challenge is. Because the
00:16:56water goes into certain watercourses down there. If you have a high tide and during the rainy seas,
00:17:02we have so much water meeting on the land, meeting the different tides, it will always be a challenge
00:17:09to get the water out. Once the water can go out, it will breach in certain areas there. Because
00:17:14that area is really where the breaching really takes place. So work is going on in Woodland. But
00:17:21again, these are low-lying areas that every year you will get a level of breach happening.
00:17:31Yeah. And you know, every year, Minister, from time immemorial, there has been the claim, well,
00:17:38the ministry needed to do more. They needed to do more dredging during the dry season.
00:17:45And they have allowed bushes and debris to gather in certain waterways and watercourses. And that's
00:17:52what would have contributed to the situation. Can you say this morning that you think that
00:17:56your ministry would have done everything possible, re-preparedness to deal with the rainy season?
00:18:04Okay. We operate, Marlon, as you are aware, with a budget. Based on the budget that is
00:18:11allocated to the ministry, I think the ministry, you know, the technical people, does a good work
00:18:17in assessing how much work can be done in any financial year. All right? There are several
00:18:23challenges with that in terms of, you see, some people may think you just go in and dredge a
00:18:28river. You can't dredge a river beyond a certain level, because then you create more problem
00:18:35upstream, downstream as well. So the ministry would have done, in my opinion, a lot of work
00:18:41based on the resources available. And when I say resources, I don't only mean the financial
00:18:46resources. There are capacity challenges. We have a lot of watercourses that we can't get into
00:18:53because of indiscriminate building codes, and so that people would have built on the bank. There
00:18:59are some areas if you interfere with it, again, because of soil types, and so you could create
00:19:03more problems. But I am, I mean, there's always more work that can be done, but it all has a lot
00:19:10of factors that has to be taken into consideration. As I said, we have a program. We are working on
00:19:16the silting of the watercourses. We are working on river moats. We are looking at widening
00:19:21and getting additional space in certain areas, but all these are basically will have its own
00:19:26challenges that comes with it. Yeah. Minister, if you'd allow me, just getting back to Port of
00:19:30Spain, there was a claim recently by DOMA that some of the runoff from buildings in Port of Spain,
00:19:36they have been channeled into the sewer system, and this was one of the main culprits, if I can
00:19:43put it that way, to contributing to flooding in Port of Spain. Have you heard of these claims at
00:19:48all? No, I have not heard of those claims, but if it is that buildings runoff going to the sewer
00:19:56system, then I think that has to be taken up with WASA. I really don't have much information on
00:20:02that. Yeah. All right. Minister, if, as I have you this morning, if I could channel you into
00:20:08another direction. Of course, recently there was some concern, some controversy concerning a
00:20:15collapsed bridge in a particular part of the country, and the argument, the claim at that time
00:20:22is that the residents wanted the ministry to intervene and fix that, and of course the ministry
00:20:29has said this is private property. Has there been any new development on that, Minister?
00:20:35I think you're talking about the bridge down south side. My information on that, and Samir,
00:20:45I'm working with the Minister of Local Government with, it's information that I have, it's a bridge
00:20:51on private property, but not necessarily the corporation, so they are looking at how they can
00:20:56have that sorted out. The Ministry of Works, basically, we understand that we assist the
00:21:01corporations, but there's a process for it. If a councillor or a corporation doesn't have
00:21:08resources to do something, there's a process where they go to their council, their council,
00:21:13if they can't handle it, will go to the Ministry of Local Government. The Ministry of Local
00:21:17Government has resources available to them. They have state enterprises that work with them, like
00:21:22local government that have RBC, then they have the head office itself, and if they can't handle it,
00:21:27then they reach out to the ministry, and then we give them whatever assistance that we can.
00:21:33At this point in time, my information is that that is still being sorted out in local government as
00:21:38to how they move forward with it, because it is, the information I have is that it's on private
00:21:43land, and it's not normal for government to go and invest in resources on private land,
00:21:49because there is a liability factor that has to be considered. Yeah, as I said to you earlier,
00:21:56I know that you have been in and about communities over the past few weeks. We have seen you, but
00:22:04you know, that's your normal way, Minister, if I could put it that way, right? But your ministry
00:22:10has come in for some criticisms recently, and it really followed a number of road deaths in
00:22:17Trinidad and Tobago, and the allegation, the claim, the argument at that time was, look,
00:22:24if there were certain barriers being put on the nation's highways and byways, that these accidents
00:22:32could have been prevented. Of course, they're again speaking about these cables that were meant
00:22:38to protect motorists. How do you feel about, well, have you been hearing those complaints, and has
00:22:46the ministry moved to address any of these concerns? Well, okay, firstly, let me say my
00:22:54condolences go out to the families who would have lost relatives or any loved one in any accident,
00:23:00fatal accidents. I mean, I have been working with the different agencies, all right, but like, we
00:23:04at the ministry, we have focused significantly on accidents and so on. That is why Trinidad,
00:23:11for one of the few countries, if not the only country in the western hemisphere, that had a 50%
00:23:16reduction in road fatalities up to 2021. The goals that we would have set, we were one of the few
00:23:25countries to achieve it. We have seen a spike after that, and we are really trying to do as much
00:23:34we can for road safety here in Trinidad and Tobago. In terms of the cable barriers, I remember coming
00:23:41into office and meeting a bill for over $20 million for repairs. Most of the barriers were
00:23:48done. What we realized is that the cable barriers are, they are good, but for Trinidad and Tobago,
00:23:57they pose a big challenge. Maintenance costs on it is significantly high, because once you touch
00:24:04the barriers, it falls for a long distance, and that has been the challenge with cable barriers.
00:24:10So what we started to do is to, while we repair some of the cable barriers, we started to put in
00:24:15guardrails. Guardrails are much more economical for maintenance, and we have been working on that.
00:24:21We have just issued three additional contracts to cover certain, all the hot spots on the highway.
00:24:29We would have started on that at different stages. Very soon, people will see the, it would be rolled
00:24:35out on the ground. So we are conscious of it. However, there is nothing more important than
00:24:41personal responsibility in driving, because we have seen some of the accidents, and we still feel that,
00:24:49you know, with due care and attention, some of these fatalities could have been avoided.
00:24:55So we will continue to do our part. We will continue to try to make the roads as safe as
00:25:00possible, but what we are asking is for personal responsibility, especially driving at night,
00:25:08speed that you drive at, and things like that, because we have, there's a pattern with some of
00:25:13the road fatalities, the time it happens, and things like that, where people are coming from
00:25:19or going to. So we are going to do what we have to do, but road fatalities, road accidents,
00:25:26a lot of personal responsibility must take precedence on it. I know at the rollout of the
00:25:34demerit point system some time ago, that you had spoken about cameras being placed on the
00:25:42nation's highways and byways to monitor motorists, and I believe at that time you spoke about
00:25:49cameras being placed that would take pictures of speeding vehicles, and that there would be a
00:25:57system where these pictures would be sent to the addresses of these errant motorists, and they
00:26:05could be asked to pay a fine, and so on. I remember there was some time ago you had spoken about that.
00:26:12Has there been any movement on that? Yes, so you're speaking about the
00:26:17spot speed cameras, and we do have some test spots right now. They have not started any
00:26:23enforcement on them, because we're going to put in some more cameras. So what you're speaking about
00:26:27is the red light camera enforcement, where when you break the red light, you have that now. The
00:26:33pilot project, again, at the eye of that light there, revealed something like 36,000 infringements
00:26:41in a few months. That is the level that we're talking about. So yes, that program is being
00:26:46rolled out now, and that will all form part of the road safety campaign again, and I just want
00:26:52to reiterate this. Whenever the ministry does something to the licensing officer, it has nothing
00:26:57to do with revenue earning. It has to do with road safety, and what we're trying to do with the
00:27:03trying to change the culture of how we utilize the road network intranet. That has nothing to do
00:27:09with raising revenues that some people try to sell it. It's all about road safety.
00:27:16Yeah, so that is meaningful. Yeah, well recently, Minister, you would have given
00:27:22errant motorists with dark tints a blight, really. A few weeks ago, you would have said you would
00:27:28have given them six weeks to address these dark tints on their vehicles. Any sort of information
00:27:35coming into the Ministry of Works and Transport that, hey, people are changing their tints,
00:27:40trying to change their ways? Has there been any sort of information like that?
00:27:47Yes. Now, let's go back to what the tint law in Trinidad was, because a lot of people are
00:27:54saying, why are we bringing this new law? We must understand there was a subjective way
00:27:59of assessing tints before. If I can't see as an officer, if I can't see in your vehicle,
00:28:06I'm going to charge you. I'll pull you on the side of the road and have you peel off the tint.
00:28:10And I could have also deregistered your car based on a subjective assessment, meaning I can't see
00:28:18in your car. It could be a problem with my eyes, but the fact that I can't see in your car, I will
00:28:23charge you. What we have done now is that we have given you the limits on tints that is acceptable.
00:28:29So it's not that tint is illegal. Below a certain level is illegal, but you can't tint your vehicle
00:28:37within the law. And an officer cannot charge you just because he can't see in your car.
00:28:42He has to use a meter. He cannot deregister your car, or most he can do is to give you a ticket,
00:28:50right, if you are below the qualifying level. So tints, you can't tint your car based on a certain
00:28:58level. And an officer has to use a meter to determine you are above or you are below that
00:29:03level, because the lower you go, the darker the tint. So that has been enforced in place for the
00:29:10last couple of years. It has not been enforced. And what the law agencies, the agencies are
00:29:17telling us, the security agencies, look, we have to enforce this based on a national security issue,
00:29:23because we see a lot of crime taking place where the vehicles that are being used are so dark,
00:29:29tinted. The tints are so dark that even the officers feel their lives are being threatened,
00:29:35especially when they're in a roadblock or they're stopping. You don't know when that glass goes
00:29:38down, what will be facing you. So this is a national security issue. It is not a new law
00:29:45that has been in place. It's just that the enforcement agencies have decided, look,
00:29:50because of the level of crime that is taking place, you know, we have to start to enforce this law.
00:29:55But I can tell you that I feel a lot more comfortable to know that you have to use a
00:30:02meter to test the car. It's not subjective anymore. You can't deregister my vehicle, you can charge me.
00:30:08So the law works both ways for the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. And it's all in keeping with
00:30:14to make a safer society. All right, Minister, could you please stay with us
00:30:18for just a few more minutes? We must go to a very short break. We're coming back.
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00:31:41All right. So welcome back, everyone. So we are continuing our discussion this morning with
00:32:03Minister of Works and Transport, Rohan Sinanan. Minister, thank you for staying with us. We do
00:32:07appreciate it. But Minister, recently there was some concern about a collapsed bridge
00:32:13at Perseverance. Any update on that, sir? Yes, yes, Marlon. We have done the assessment of the
00:32:22bridge. The bridge is a very important bridge because it does move a lot of traffic into and
00:32:29out of the Chagonas area. With the collapse of that bridge, the traffic have actually backed
00:32:34up all the way to Cuva. And it has brought a lot more people onto the highway where we do have some
00:32:40major roadworks taking place. It is expected to have the contractor have been mobilized.
00:32:48Work would have started yesterday on that bridge. And we are hoping to have that bridge back in
00:32:54operations before the opening of the school term. So yes, the contractor have mobilized
00:33:00and would have started on that bridge. There's also another bridge
00:33:05on the other end of the Chagonas area, which again, infrastructure construction comes with
00:33:11some level of inconvenience. We are hoping to have that bridge also, if not completed,
00:33:18been put in use before the school term and as a bridle road bridge. So those two bridges will
00:33:25bring a lot of, you know, extra comfort for commuters in that area. There was also a recent
00:33:35controversy. Again, the ministry would have been raked over the coals, Minister,
00:33:40about this sinkhole that occurred a few days ago.
00:33:45Okay. So again, I mean, a sinkhole is something that sometimes you would not see this until it
00:33:51actually happened. What took place there was a field culvert. Now these culverts would have been
00:33:58over 20 years old. And things like that happen from time to time. So there was a field culvert
00:34:05there. The ministry would have moved in once we became aware of it. We did some temporary work,
00:34:11because what we tried to do is to repair these in the night. The temporary work would have been done
00:34:16the same day within hours. The road was reopened. We are monitoring it, because you will get some
00:34:22slippage from time to time. We will top it back up. And we're expecting, maybe from tonight,
00:34:28that the full construction will start to replace the entire culvert. It's a culvert that has to
00:34:35be replaced across the highway. So it will take some doing. We will actually start it in the night
00:34:41from maybe nine to four in the morning, nine in the night to four in the morning, to make sure that
00:34:46we don't create any unnecessary inconvenience. But that work is expected to probably start,
00:34:51the permanent solution, maybe from tonight. Yeah. And that happens tonight, right?
00:34:57Yes. We are hoping that from tonight, we can start that work. But the way the road is opened up,
00:35:02I mean, the road, after we did the temporary work, there was a slight slippage. We had to just close
00:35:09it, top it back up. It was opened immediately. So the road is open. But we know that we will
00:35:14continuously get the slippage. And we have to go in and do the permanent work immediately,
00:35:19because the slippage could expand. And we can have the entire road being damaged. So we are working
00:35:26on trying to get the permanent solution starting from us in yesterday. Yeah. So the ministry, yes,
00:35:31we will have challenges. But we are on the job. Infrastructure challenges will always take place,
00:35:38especially when you have an infrastructure that is aged. Meaning, where we are actually
00:35:44getting the problems now, infrastructure is 40, 50, 60 years old. This culvert field is over 20
00:35:52years. A culvert could last more than that. But you will find from time to time things like this
00:35:56happening. The idea is to get in, solve the problem, and get out in the shortest possible time.
00:36:03But are you, in a general sense, are you satisfied with the quality of work that you get
00:36:11when millions and millions of dollars are expended for certain projects? Because you know,
00:36:17when you have situations such as this, such as a sinkhole, you know what the allegation is,
00:36:23or the claim is, well, you know, poor quality of work. So do you think you are getting the best
00:36:29quality of work, reroutes, bridges, and other infrastructure in Trinidad and Tobago?
00:36:36Well, Marlon, if I am to refer to this specific one, this culvert is over 20 years old.
00:36:42It's over 20 years old. So if you have a culvert that is over 20 years old,
00:36:46that was built for a certain infrastructure, we have a lot of changes taking place,
00:36:51and you have a failure on it. There is something called a defect liability period
00:36:57after a contract is finished, and that probably lasts a year or two. And if there's any bad work
00:37:01in that, it will show up within that time. During that period, you can always go back to the
00:37:06contract and they have to redo the work. We have a lot of that happening, because jobs fail for
00:37:12different reasons. I can tell you, if we're doing a repaving, all the material has to be checked
00:37:18before, before the job starts and is actually checked after. Sometimes we see a job and they
00:37:24just paved that six months ago, why is it being repaved? It's because it probably failed during
00:37:28the liability period, and the contractor has to go back and do it over. That happens very often,
00:37:36where major projects have to be redone at the expense of the contractor, but you will not know
00:37:42that in the public if it is not put out there. So everything that the Ministry does has a quality
00:37:50control on it. But there are certain things that will fail. Look at what happened on the creek
00:37:57recently. A lot of investigation would have had to go into it to find out why it failed.
00:38:06And this thing happens from time to time. So there are quality controls in place,
00:38:11there are defect liability periods, and there's also retention of money. That if something is
00:38:16not done the way that it has to be done, then the retention and so is withheld until it is redone.
00:38:24So there are quality controls, but I'm not going to put my head in the sand and say no,
00:38:30everything is 100%. There are several challenges, but you have to work with the contractors,
00:38:35you have to work along with the problem to find a proper solution for it.
00:38:38Yeah. And what about the quality of work re, the work that has been done on the route to Mayaro?
00:38:46Which collapsed under floodwaters a few years ago, I believe. Every now and then,
00:38:55users of that roadway, they complain, whether it's maxi taxi drivers or other motorists,
00:39:01they do complain sometimes about the quality of work on that roadway.
00:39:05Has that project been completed as yet? Yes, Marlon, and I will encourage you to take a drive
00:39:13to see what the new road looks like. It has been completed, but as we said, this is a work in
00:39:18progress. We want to continue that standard all the way to Mayaro on a phased basis. We are actually
00:39:26now in the second phase. The part that was washed away have been repaired and reopened. We are
00:39:31continuing up to the bridge, but we must bear one thing in mind. This goes through the Nariva
00:39:36wetlands, and there are certain limits as to how far we can go for engineering to redesign.
00:39:44We can't raise the road because it's an area that is, it's a protected area, and we have to work
00:39:50with the different agencies, the EMA, the IME, all the stakeholders to make sure we don't change
00:39:56the whole, the area from what it is supposed to be, to make it into maybe a highway, because
00:40:04the ideal solution up there would be to raise the road at a certain level, put it on silt or
00:40:09whatever, but that is not allowed in that area. So, we have to work within the parameters that
00:40:15we are given, and again, it's a challenging area because you have the sea on one side,
00:40:21you have the swamp on the other side, and both sides are pushing against each other,
00:40:26and there are certain times of the year, the October, November, when you have, you know, that
00:40:31major downpour, so the swamp is filled, overflowing, then you have the ocean
00:40:39pushing back into the land, and that is where you're at a challenge, but I am fairly comfortable
00:40:46that unless we get some drastic change again in the weather, that, you know, the road should hold
00:40:52the way we have, because this is about the fourth or fifth time the road would have given away,
00:40:56coming back from the 50s all the way to now. I remember as a child growing up in Sandy Grande,
00:41:03the famous cutaway was created, and what the cutaway was is just that the swamp and the sea
00:41:08joined at that point, and moved the entire roadway, and that we're talking about a long time
00:41:14ago, and it had happened previous to that. So, it's a challenged area, but a lot of work would
00:41:19have gone in to try to make sure that, you know, we can keep connectivity between Sandy Grande,
00:41:25Mayaro, and use it as an alternative route, because we do have the energy sector in Mayaro,
00:41:32and it's a very important road. It's not just a road to go to the beach or anything like that,
00:41:37it's a connection that allows the energy sector in Mayaro to be connected to
00:41:43Port of Spain, where most of the head offices are, and so there's a lot of commuting that goes on
00:41:48on a daily basis. Minister, I won't detain you any longer. Thank you very much for your time
00:41:53this morning. We do appreciate it. As I said, I know that you're a busy man, right? We do
00:41:58appreciate you spending so much time with us this morning. It's always good to speak with you.
00:42:03I want to use this opportunity to invite Trinidad and Tobago to the AGREX exhibition that is taking
00:42:09place, put on by the Ministry of Agriculture. It would be very nice if, you know, the entire
00:42:15Trinidad could go and see and visit this exhibition that is taking place at the Queen's Park Savannah
00:42:20from this morning. So I take this opportunity on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of Culture,
00:42:26to invite Trinidad and Tobago to come down to the AGREX exhibition that is taking place
00:42:31from this morning at the Queen's Park Savannah. All right, Minister, thank you very much again.
00:42:35Bye for now. All right, so we are going to a very short break, but here's what, we are coming back
00:42:39with some of your calls. You're calling us on 623-1711, the extension, it's 1995.
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00:43:33Slavery, a terrible time in our history. The kidnapping, buying and selling of people for
00:43:40profit, the exploitation of another human being. It still exists today. It has a new name,
00:43:47human trafficking. Anyone can be a victim. There is forced labor, sexual exploitation,
00:43:55and domestic servitude. Human trafficking is a worldwide problem and an emerging concern
00:44:03for us here in Trinidad and Tobago. If you know of or suspect human trafficking activity,
00:44:10call the counter-trafficking hotline at 800-4CTU or 800-4288. Human trafficking is a crime.
00:44:20Identify it. Report it. Stop it. A message from the
00:44:24counter-trafficking unit of the Ministry of National Security.
00:44:49Hallelujah. So I celebrate in Jesus.
00:45:05All right. So welcome back, everyone. So you're calling us on 623-1711. The extension, it's 1995.
00:45:21We just have about eight minutes to take your calls here in Aulia. Listen to this story,
00:45:26and I'm sure that you would have heard about it on the news last evening, all right?
00:45:29So man dresses like priest to evade police, but held. In a desperate bid to escape the police,
00:45:36one suspect ran into the Holy Rosary Church in Port of Spain and even put on an alb for a priest,
00:45:43which is a traditional gown. However, despite his best efforts, he was held.
00:45:48Now, the incident began around 9.45 a.m. yesterday when officers from the Port of
00:45:51Spain Division were alerted to a report of an armed robbery in Maraval. Police were told three
00:45:57masked men stole a gray Nissan Frontier at gunpoint. Let me tell you, this is so serious,
00:46:03but it's so comical too, right? So this gentleman walk into the, run into the church and put on the
00:46:10traditional gown, pretending to be a priest. This is amazing. What would have made him think
00:46:17that people would think that he's a priest? We have a caller. Oh, Port of Spain is on the line.
00:46:24Port of Spain, good morning. Morning Marlon. Morning. How are you going? I good. Marlon, I want to speak
00:46:31about this crime that you're speaking about with the children. I will add it to the children because
00:46:35they're young. I was watching an interview with a young girl and this young girl come from a good
00:46:41home, you know Marlon? It's just her father passed away during the COVID season. She come from a good
00:46:46house, a big house. The mother sit down there. Sorry for the mother. Good upbringing, everything.
00:46:52She said she don't know where this girl went with these fellas and them, you know, and end up,
00:46:58you know, I, and then the father, that would be the other two fellas. The only one there,
00:47:03that thing is the fella from Maribor. He looked like he was involved in ganging and he
00:47:09encouraged the rest to go on that beach and carry them and that's how these end up getting their
00:47:15debt and so on. So I don't know if some program could be put in place through the parents and
00:47:20the government or something to try to prevent these children from going with these youngsters
00:47:26and then they get involved in these things and end up getting their debt. Have a good day and a
00:47:30good weekend. You too, sir. Thank you very much. Yenaman, we have to, there has to be a plan to
00:47:36make people feel like they belong because there are some people out there that feel that they
00:47:40just don't belong. There are some people feel that there's a level of hopelessness in this country
00:47:48and, you know, all sorts of things that they are feeling and that's why they are gravitating
00:47:53towards the gangs and so on. But as I said earlier, a few weeks ago, I was shocked to see that young
00:48:00girls, they were involved in this video and they have guns and they're singing and they're dancing
00:48:05and so on. So they, they are attracted to this lifestyle too. Who do we have? Shogunas, good
00:48:11morning. Good morning, Marlon. How are you? I'm good, sir. Nice. These young people, Marlon, I
00:48:20don't like to hear people argue that one person influenced the rest of them. All of them are
00:48:30involved in it, Marlon. I don't believe that one person could, no, so nobody brain functioning,
00:48:36nobody have no common sense to say, hey, well, this is nonsense. We can't do this.
00:48:42And when all of them get together and get involved in this particular time or any crime,
00:48:48I don't like to lean on the thing of influence. One person influenced the other. Yeah. Everybody
00:48:55have a brain for themselves and everybody could think for themselves. Everybody decided to do
00:49:00that. Yeah. Right. Yes. Four or five of them jump out of a car to shoot up somebody's house
00:49:06or to shoot up somebody. There's no influence. All of them could think for themselves.
00:49:12And I blame every one of them individually. And, and, and the last call I said, there's
00:49:17a, there's a element in that you have to consider when they, when they're using the argument,
00:49:22poverty begets crime because some of these criminals come from very good homes. They're
00:49:27not poor at all. Yeah. So that is the argument that we can use to act when the people suggest
00:49:36that poverty begets crime. Thank you. Thank you. I do agree with you, but you know what?
00:49:42Let me also put on the table. And there is also that argument that some people need the sense of
00:49:48belonging. They need that because, you know, sometimes when you are on an independent road,
00:49:54you don't have a lot of friends and so on, you know, it could be sometimes very, very lonely.
00:49:59So they don't like to be lonely. And, you know, we in Trinidad and Tobago, we love to meet people
00:50:02and we love friends and so on. Arima, good morning. Hi, Marlon. Good morning. Yes. I,
00:50:10I, I would not be able to get the answer, but in future, should you have the
00:50:15commissioner of Gleiton or if you should have the minister of works again, since Chuck Warner
00:50:21was in charge, when he was in charge of the ministry of works, he had a project to turn
00:50:27all licensing plates into digital. Right. Whereby no one can go by a side shop and make a license.
00:50:36Recently, I need a license plate and I put up and get my license. You understand where I'm going?
00:50:41Yes. When you want to say about crime, you have to attack it at all levels. You can't take up
00:50:46somebody's vehicle, change the number plate and, and go on to your crime. I heard some a while
00:50:53ago, the commissioner of, of, I think said they will put it back in, in, in, in, in gale. Yes.
00:51:00But I think I would have grandchildren before that happens. When you need to see about crime,
00:51:06you have to pick what you're putting up all over. You have a central control and somebody steals
00:51:13somebody's car. And when it passed, there is no form of identifying red alert that this car was
00:51:20stolen. It is high time. It is past time that all cars should be licensed with a digital plate
00:51:28and their connection to the licensing office and the commanding control. That is my little
00:51:34idea that I would love to see implemented in this country. Have a good day, Marlon. You and your
00:51:40Thank you very much, ma'am. And you know what people making license plates in Trinidad and
00:51:45Tobago, like sweet bread, you know, you know, like bread, you know, if you, if you want a number plate,
00:51:50you just go to an organization, you say, look, this is the number, make a number plate for me.
00:51:55And that's how easy it is. Right. And there has to be a way where maybe you may have to,
00:52:03and a lot of people may not agree with this, but maybe you need to have one agency
00:52:08making number plates now, you know, and you have to have a way to measure the, even the materials
00:52:14that you're using for number plates. So, you know, if, if there, you see an increase in material
00:52:19being used, you have to question that. Right. Who do we have? Shogwanas. Shogwanas, good morning.
00:52:25Good morning, Marlon. Good morning, children of Tobago.
00:52:27Morning.
00:52:28I listened to you say, the children, or what people need to be needed, or what, or what. I
00:52:34agree to your point, Marlon. That begins at home, though the government,
00:52:43I realize the guilt there, our father died. I understand she has a mother, but she still has
00:52:48some big brother, cousin. It begins at home, at home, at home. And according to the call,
00:52:56all of them agree to do certain things. If me and you want to go and rob a man, Marlon,
00:53:00I have to know, I say, hey, you on your own, I go on. All elements to be blamed, Marlon,
00:53:05but that is life. God bless me.
00:53:08You too, sir. And my argument has been, well, some families would say, well,
00:53:14the individual didn't have a mother or a father, but what about your aunt? What about the neighbor
00:53:19across the road? What about the lady up by the, the, the supermarket, or the market,
00:53:24or your teacher, or someone in your church group? So we have a lot of people who could assist in
00:53:32guiding our young people, right? On to the straight and narrow path. All right? So thank you
00:53:38to all of our callers. We are going to a very short break. We are coming back. We have some
00:53:43news for you too.
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00:55:15Slavery, a terrible time in our history. The kidnapping, buying and selling of people for
00:55:21profit. The exploitation of another human being. It still exists today. It has a new name,
00:55:29human trafficking. Anyone can be a victim. There is forced labor, sexual exploitation,
00:55:37and domestic servitude.
00:55:41Human trafficking is a worldwide problem and an emerging concern for us here in Trinidad and
00:55:46Tobago. If you know of or suspect human trafficking activity, call the counter
00:55:53trafficking hotline at 800- The TV6 daily health tip is brought to you by Omega XL.
00:56:01Did you know chronic inflammation can lead to insulin resistance and diabetes?
00:56:06That's right. Chronic inflammation, a long-term physiological response to harmful stimuli,
00:56:13is not just a minor annoyance. It's a potential precursor to a host of serious health issues,
00:56:19including insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and pancreas-related problems.
00:56:25Chronic inflammation, as the name suggests, is not an acute, short-term response to injury or
00:56:31infection. Instead, it's a slow, insidious process that can persist for months, even years.
00:56:39This ongoing inflammation can wreak havoc on your body's systems,
00:56:42including the intricate mechanisms that regulate blood sugar.
00:56:46Now, let's shed some light on how chronic inflammation can lead to insulin resistance.
00:56:52Under normal circumstances, insulin, a hormone produced by your pancreas,
00:56:57helps transport glucose into your cells, providing them with the energy they need.
00:57:02However, chronic inflammation can interfere with this process. It can make your cells more
00:57:08resistant to insulin, making it harder for glucose to enter your cells. As a result,
00:57:13blood sugar levels in your bloodstream can rise, setting the stage for diabetes.
00:57:18But that's not all. Chronic inflammation can also directly impact your pancreas,
00:57:23the organ responsible for producing insulin. Prolonged inflammation in the pancreas
00:57:28can damage the insulin-producing beta cells. This damage can reduce insulin production,
00:57:34exacerbating the problem of high blood sugar, and worsening the state of diabetes.
00:57:39Moreover, chronic inflammation can contribute to what's known as pancreatic beta cell exhaustion.
00:57:45This condition leads to impaired insulin secretion and further disrupts glucose regulation,
00:57:51pushing the body further down the path towards diabetes.
00:57:55Chronic inflammation can also increase the risk of pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas.
00:58:01This condition can damage pancreatic tissue, disrupt insulin production,
00:58:06and further compound the problems associated with diabetes.
00:58:10Understanding the connection between chronic inflammation and diabetes
00:58:14underscores the importance of managing inflammation.
00:58:18Lifestyle changes such as adopting a balanced diet, engaging in regular exercise,
00:58:23and managing stress can all play a crucial role in reducing chronic inflammation.
00:58:28And in some cases, medication may be necessary. Of course, if you have any concerns about chronic
00:58:35inflammation, insulin resistance or diabetes, it's important to consult a healthcare professional.
00:58:42They can provide personalized guidance and help you take steps to protect your health.
00:58:48In conclusion, chronic inflammation is more than just a persistent annoyance.
00:58:53It's a potential catalyst for insulin resistance, diabetes, and a host of pancreas-related issues.
00:59:00By understanding this connection and taking steps to manage inflammation,
00:59:04you can help safeguard your health against these serious conditions.
00:59:08The TV6 Daily Health Tip was brought to you by OmegaXL.
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01:01:13All right, so welcome back, everyone. So we are going to be talking about the
01:01:18holistic view of food security and all of the issues associated with it.
01:01:26So we do have in studio this morning, we do have Mr. Mario Lubetkin, Assistant Director General
01:01:32and FAO Regional Representative for Latin America and the Caribbean. He's also a journalist with
01:01:37over 40 years of experience in international communications and cooperation for development
01:01:43issues. So I have to be on my Ps and Qs this morning. Mr. Assistant Director General,
01:01:48it's a pleasure having you here this morning. It's a pleasure for me to be with you today.
01:01:53What's the message here this morning from you?
01:01:58Look, it's not easy to summarize in one message. I think that we have different messages all
01:02:05together going the same way. First of all, I'm very happy to be here in Trinidad.
01:02:13And to sign it yesterday, a very strategic document called CPF between the government
01:02:21of Trinidad and FAO. And this is one of the messages. Why is one of the messages? Because
01:02:28this agreement is for a year. It's not only for a few days or a few weeks, because we need to
01:02:35raise this or that about food security. Food security, like climate change, all these issues
01:02:40that affected a lot of our life, it's something like we cannot solve in a few time. We want it,
01:02:49but it's not possible because this type of issue comes from many, many years to try to arrive today
01:02:57where we are in food security, where we are in climate change. So we need time. We need capacity.
01:03:03We need intelligence. We need participation to try to do. And the agreement that we signed is
01:03:08four years. And that is very important. Why? Because, in fact, you transform this
01:03:16joint document between the government and FAO like a state document. The point is who will
01:03:23be in charge in the government will follow that. And this issue about continuity and this issue to
01:03:30think in middle term, it's very important for the country. It's the only way in which we can
01:03:37think seriously like we're working with the technician of the government to try to concrete
01:03:43this document. This is a big message. It's another way in which we Caribbean and Latins work. We work
01:03:50to solve the issues tomorrow, after tomorrow. But it's not enough. I don't say that we don't
01:03:56need to resolve all the climate change problem. I don't need that we need to resolve the most
01:04:02dramatic scenario about hunger, these people in the city. But that is part. It's the emergency.
01:04:09But we need to combine emergency with resilience and perspective. If not, we will not resolve
01:04:14the problem. This is the first message. When we speak about food security, sometimes we speak
01:04:20about it in a sort of vague way. So if we, what are you trying to achieve when we speak about
01:04:28food security, and more so this country programming framework, this agreement,
01:04:36if I can put it that way, with the government, what is this trying to achieve? To say in a most
01:04:42popular way, we need to guarantee that the people can take breakfast, lunch and dinner. It's so easy
01:04:50and so complicated. At the same time, we need to guarantee for all the population. But at the same
01:04:56time, we need to guarantee quality, so nutrition of what they will eat. The challenge now, it's
01:05:05eat and eat well. Eat and eat well. In the past, we fight to try to resolve to eat anyway. But if
01:05:14we are not eating well, the problem back to us in one way or other. Just for you, we say food
01:05:21security and nutrition. And that are the fears. You know that we are the most important international
01:05:29organization and the lead about this issue of food security and development of agriculture.
01:05:37There are many projects that we work with the government of this country. But the point is to
01:05:44understand fears, to understand where we are in the region, where we are in the world, to understand
01:05:50which type of policy we need in the future. Part of that are in the document that we signed
01:05:57yesterday together in a public ceremony with the government of this country. If we are
01:06:05thinking about the fears that just we launched a few weeks ago, because we prepared an annual report
01:06:13that are the global fears and is the trends. In general, we present this in New York
01:06:19before the United Nations meeting. But this year, we present before the G20 meeting in Rio de Janeiro.
01:06:26It was emblematically our decision to be there with the most important powerful people, from
01:06:32the president of IMF to the president of the World Bank, from the treasurer of the United States
01:06:40to many ministers of economy and so on, to discuss exactly this issue. The theory that is a part of
01:06:47the means of agriculture. But in reality, it's a big problem for more. Have you looked specifically
01:06:53re-food security in Trinidad and Tobago? And if you have, what have been our successes?
01:07:01What have been our challenges? And this new document that you would have signed yesterday
01:07:08with the government, what does it aim to address if there are deficiencies? I think that it's not
01:07:15easy to focus and isolate the scenario in one specific country. First of all, you can understand
01:07:21that I follow more the global and the regional than a specific local data here and there.
01:07:28First of all, if we are talking, when we are talking about global trend, global trend is
01:07:32something that during all this year, the trend are not going well. So we have in the world more than
01:07:39733 million people with hunger. It's a huge figure. And in the last three years, four years,
01:07:50practically the figure didn't change. If we are thinking in Latin America, that is good news.
01:07:57Latin America and the Caribbean was the only region in the last two years of this report
01:08:01in which we reduce hunger. Mean, only region in the world, only region in the world.
01:08:08Mean, we push off x million people that suffer hunger and now they are part of the other side,
01:08:18so from other side. If you are thinking in figures, it's very few. So now with the last report,
01:08:28we have around 4 million, 4.3 million people that are out of the scenario of hunger.
01:08:36We need to be happy. We need to understand that perhaps we are working well,
01:08:42because we continue to have 41 million people with hunger in the region.
01:08:48And now, if we want to be coherent about the figures, obviously that we have,
01:08:56that is the people with hunger. But we have people with hunger and there are people that
01:09:00don't eat well. That is another category. If you put together this, that means around 200 million
01:09:07in the region. And in the world, it's around 3 billion that are in this, but that is
01:09:15other part of the same picture. The third part of the same picture that we need to
01:09:20take in consideration, perhaps it's contradictory, is obesity. It's considered eat and eat well.
01:09:28We have in the region an increasingly process about this. We pass, you know, last year we
01:09:36have around 24% of the population of Latin America and the Caribbean obesity. Now we are 29%
01:09:47of the population, in which the most are in South America, after that Central America,
01:09:54and beyond that Caribbean. This is good news for the Caribbean, but we have bad news for the Caribbean.
01:10:00Caribbean, in the framework of the region, is the region that continues to increase people with hunger.
01:10:08Now we have in the region, and this is a risky point, one region, one big region,
01:10:15nice region, incredible region, that is Latin America and the Caribbean. But in that,
01:10:21we have three sub-regions in which not all are going the same way. And this is something that
01:10:27we didn't see in the past. Why? Because in these good figures, I'm not talking about trend, trend,
01:10:34you need to be in the same line for many years, three years minimum. So we say good news.
01:10:40We don't say this is a trend that will happen, because it's only two years in which we have good
01:10:46news, not three years. If in 2025 the figures and the trend will be there, we can say, oh, finally
01:10:53we have a trend in Latin America and the Caribbean that hunger are going down, but we cannot say that.
01:10:59Hunger are going down, but we cannot say that. But specifically about hunger, we have South
01:11:05America that are going better than the others. Obviously that region produce a lot of food.
01:11:11Yes. And are working. We have Central America that are putting a lot of effort, but climate change
01:11:18affected them, terrible. So they couldn't go ahead and they maintain the fears. And we have the
01:11:25Caribbean that continue to go down for all the reasons that we know, economic scenario, post-COVID,
01:11:31war. There are a lot of reasons why we are where we are. OK. And if you ask to me, I think that the
01:11:42most sensible area in which we need to focus our effort better is in the Caribbean. Yes. If we want
01:11:50to be coherent with these fears, and just for this I'm here today, just for this I was in Suriname a few days
01:11:57ago, just for this I was in Guyana, just for this I'm FIO, I reinforce in the framework of our capacity
01:12:05to work with you. Because here there are a lot of projects, but we need to increase
01:12:10projects. We need to raise money. It's not part of the policy of FIO to finance projects, but to
01:12:17create projects with the government in the framework of what the government requests us. Yes.
01:12:22So in that sense, one of my personal positions is to reinforce our capacity and the CPF. So the
01:12:31document that we signed yesterday, there are some chapters that are very clever to think future,
01:12:40to think future in this region, in this country. Yes. And you feel, Mr. Lubetkin, I just have about
01:12:50one minute again. Is there anything else that you'd like to tell us during that time that we
01:12:57have not discussed as yet? Yes, but logically we need to increase digitalization. We need to
01:13:03increase innovation. We need to support better youth, because this is the idea that women,
01:13:10the best way. We need to strengthen data, good information. They are confused about information
01:13:15with good data. We happen to think about. We need to preserve biodiversity, all the biodiversity
01:13:23that is in this region. We need to connect different players that play around. I'm
01:13:28talking about the government, that is our counterpart, but we need to talk more and
01:13:32better with civil society. We need to talk more and better with the private sector. We need to
01:13:36work more and better with academia. The academia need to support us better in innovation issues.
01:13:43We need to work this combination between public and private to think in projects in which it's
01:13:49a win-win for all. So we need to think in a new way to try to rise solution of all problems,
01:13:57but more and more put a lot of pressure if any government want to develop their capacity
01:14:04and to increase their level of the society. Mr. Assistant Director General, thank you very
01:14:09much for coming this morning. We do appreciate your message and we do appreciate you coming
01:14:13here. Thank you very much again, sir. Thanks a lot. All right, so we are going to a very
01:14:16short break, everybody. We're coming back.
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01:15:46All right. So welcome back, everyone. So for many, the Olympics might be over. For some
01:16:10and for others, it may have only just begun as Team TTO will be taking part in the Paralympic
01:16:16Games in Paris. But we'll kick off on Wednesday, 28th August to September 8th. Joining us on set
01:16:23now is Mickey Rubin, Paralympic chef de, or chief de mission, chef de mission, right? Yeah. So Mickey,
01:16:30thank you very much for coming this morning. Good morning. Good morning. It's a pleasure to be here.
01:16:34Yeah. So Mickey, am I seeing right? Because I'm hearing that we are only sending one representative.
01:16:41Yes, we are. How has that happened, Mickey? Okay, because over the last couple of years,
01:16:47some of our artists has retired to be able to take care of family, right? So Nyosha Kane,
01:16:53who is a previous Paralympic medalist, has retired from the sport because she has to work to
01:16:58assist in supporting family, stuff, things like that. So we have put together a plan for
01:17:042032. So which means most of what we're doing is recruiting. So over the last year,
01:17:09we have recruited probably six new athletes, new coaches, new administration. So we're putting a
01:17:13long-term plan to avoid having a lull where we just have one athlete or two athletes going to
01:17:18a competition. But Mickey, you are saying that we, or that you all have recruited six people.
01:17:25I think, Mickey, and I'm sure that other people are looking at us and wondering, we do have so
01:17:31much athletes in Trinidad and Tobago. Yeah. Why are they not coming to participate? Is it that
01:17:40the infrastructure is not in place? Is it that the funding is not in place? Is it that people
01:17:44are just not interested? Why do we have, as you tried to explain, we only have one athlete there
01:17:52this year? Right. So what you would have find happening is that when you approach clubs and
01:17:59coaches to coach a para-athlete, it's the information is kind of lost to them. So they
01:18:04don't know if I can coach somebody like that. Even me who was coaching in para-athletics,
01:18:08I didn't have an idea of what to expect when coaching a para-athlete. So right now, together
01:18:13with LE and the IDB, we are also having training for coaches. So we have gotten people like even
01:18:18J. Hugh Gordon is coaching para-athletes now, Map Track Club in San Fernando. So it was the
01:18:25coaches, we didn't know where to send athletes when we find them. And then the next thing with
01:18:29people who have disabilities, they've been taught and told for so long that they can't do this and
01:18:36can't do that. And we're now showing you that that is not the way it is. So that's where we are now.
01:18:42So trying to educate people through these programs so that they know that you want to compete,
01:18:48you can come out and compete. Yeah. So I think we can agree, Mickey, that a lot more needs to be
01:18:53done. Yes, definitely. A lot more needs to be done and a lot more is being done. Right. So it's just
01:18:59the unfolding of it. Right. For the general public to see. So most of the work is always done behind
01:19:05scenes and the public doesn't see it until it comes out. And even though you're talking that
01:19:11we have one quality. Yeah. Yes. Quality. Yeah. But as I said, and I maintain my point, to me, there
01:19:21are much more para-athletes out there. And to me, we have to get to the bottom of the problem,
01:19:29the crux of the matter. Why are they not coming to the fore? So again, is it an issue of support?
01:19:38And I suspect the answer would be yes, that there has to be a more rigid approach to make our
01:19:48para-athletes feel that here's what they do have the support and that they can contribute and that
01:19:54there is the infrastructure in place. Right. Well, in terms of infrastructure for most of what we
01:20:01we focus on in para track and field now is will be track and field. We try to introduce some of
01:20:09the other events that table tennis, swimming, these kind of events. You don't need a lot of
01:20:14infrastructure in some cases. When we talk about support, it's we look at that support
01:20:19financially, of course, but the support that you need to get it started is family support,
01:20:24because you can't I can't run in somebody's house and say, hey, tell your child come out and I don't
01:20:28know the child exists. Right. So it's stuff like that. That's the kind of support we're looking
01:20:32for. So like on programs like these, where we get a chance to for people to hear that there's a place
01:20:37that your child could come and become an athlete. That is the kind of support we're looking for to
01:20:43start. And tell us about that place you're speaking about. All right. So I can be contacted
01:20:49and the Paralympic Association through Sude Ramasar, the president and the board, they can
01:20:54be contacted and we'll send people to assess to see if you are because not everybody with a
01:20:59disability is eligible for Paris for Paris sport. Right. So that is one of the key things. And we
01:21:06have we have started moving about between Trinidad and Tobago, finding and assessing these athletes.
01:21:11Right. So we can always leave contact information. So like myself, it's 771-6983. If you have an
01:21:18athlete that you're not sure if or a child that you're not sure or an adult, if you're not sure,
01:21:22you can call me and I will come and look at them and let you know, send somebody to do so.
01:21:25Yeah. Are you looking for a particular age and a particular sport?
01:21:31All right. So no particular age, no particular sport per se, because
01:21:37para sport is wide encompassing. Yes. Right. It's it's more of a it's more of an issue of
01:21:46probably location. In some cases, as we increase the cadre of coaches, then the locations would be
01:21:51more suitable. But even and we did touch on it, but even if someone does have within their family
01:22:02a para athlete, what is the training like to get to the standard so that they can participate
01:22:13at the Olympics, at the Paralympics, Paralympics? All right. So the process is same whether you're
01:22:20a para athlete looking to go to Paralympics or an athlete competing in the Olympics.
01:22:27Yeah. The training regimen is the same, just like each person is individually individualized
01:22:32a program for them. But it's similar. A couple of days a week training programs. It's exactly
01:22:38the same because an athlete is an athlete. There's no para athlete and Olympic athlete
01:22:44otherwise. What sport are we participating in for a lone athlete? Okay. So I can sort of be doing
01:22:51the discus. Yeah. Right. F64. Go ahead. Yeah. I think we're getting a medal, but go ahead.
01:22:58Well, because regardless of the information I will get out of camps or what I would see for myself
01:23:03or knowing the quality of the athlete, because the guy is dedicated. Yes. Right. And he's a
01:23:09competitor. Right. But I don't try to do anything like predictions in terms of medals or distances,
01:23:16even though I might have that little feeling down there because that only serves to put pressure
01:23:20on the athletes. Right. And it affects when they come home, how they are treated. Yes. Because
01:23:26even like with the Olympics that are just nobody have seemed to really comprehend what Jereme
01:23:32and Kishan has done. Jereme is the 16th fastest man in the history of the world.
01:23:37You understand? But it's because they have a medal attached to it. Yes. People were looking at medal.
01:23:41They lost focus of what has been accomplished. Yeah. Mikkel, give us your contact number again
01:23:46for persons who may want to contact you. Yes. So my number is 771-6983. Yeah. Mickey, it was a pleasure
01:23:55speaking with you. And the next time you come here, Mickey, I want you to tell me we have so much
01:23:59athletes now we don't know what to do. Right. I have a whole lot more to tell you. But apparently
01:24:03right now we don't have enough time. Yeah. When we do have time. Yeah. You'll get to realize the
01:24:07great things that's going on within the Trinidad and Tobago Paralympic Committee. Thanks. Thanks
01:24:10again, Mickey. All right. And we will take you up on that on that offer. All right. So we are going
01:24:14to very short break. Everybody be coming back. Get extra value with the Express Classified.
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01:25:29It's man versus man versus machine in the TV6 VR Cricket Challenge. Face off against a virtual
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01:26:07Republic Bank, title sponsor and official bank of the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League.
01:26:13All right. So welcome back, everyone. So it's time now to discuss our CPL. And of course,
01:26:28with the women's CPL starting next week, we are focusing on the women's game. So if you cast your
01:26:33mind back to yesterday when we spoke to a guy in his cricket broadcaster, John Ram Singh,
01:26:38he would have tipped right arm spin bowler Karishma Ramharak to be one of the players to
01:26:43look out for during the WCPL. Well, this morning we are joined by the lady herself, Trinidad and
01:26:49Tobago's very own Karishma Ramharak. Karishma, thank you very much for speaking with us this
01:26:55morning. We do appreciate it. Thank you for having me. Yeah, excited. Well, Karishma,
01:27:03your name is being called, you know, and I think that people are expecting great things
01:27:08from you. How do you feel about that? I'm really happy to hear that. I'm really happy to be,
01:27:15you know, one of the players to be looked out for. I hope I can keep up with the expectations.
01:27:22Yeah. Karishma is being quite modest this morning. Right. But Karishma, let's talk about a little bit
01:27:31about your journey into cricket. How did that happen?
01:27:38I started at a really young age, just to rainbow. So one of my uncles,
01:27:43he was actually a cricketer. And from there, I just developed the talent. Yes, he taught me some
01:27:51small stuff about bowling, you know, batting. And I fell in love with the game from there.
01:27:56And I just tried out for like my school teams. And one of my teachers saw me and she introduced
01:28:03me to the national team. And there was no turning back from there. Yeah. But what age were you
01:28:08introduced to cricket? At five. I actually represented my primary school at the age of six.
01:28:17Yeah, because I think, Karishma, I think that parents sometimes there is a dilemma
01:28:24if they feel that their child may have a talent. There is the view, well, here's what. Maybe we
01:28:30need to wait until, let's say, 11, 12 to introduce them to the game, because I think that sometimes
01:28:37they feel, well, if you introduce a child to the game at five or six, there may be, you know,
01:28:44the child could be a little bit confused. But you feel that around that age, that if there's the
01:28:52view that your child may have a gift, you should be exposing your child to the game at about that
01:28:58age, five or six? You think that you can grasp it at that time? I mean, no. I think no. It's
01:29:06definitely yes. I would say yes. But at that point, I was actually only playing for fun.
01:29:12I had no idea where cricket could be. At that point, as I said, I was just helping my uncle
01:29:17throw a ball or, you know, like, do throw rounds for him. And I just started to like the game,
01:29:23because it was something I started to do every day for him. I don't think my parents were
01:29:29even close to thinking that I would be a cricketer. So it just happened, really.
01:29:35Yeah. And as I said earlier, Karishma was being very modest, right? So, so far in her career,
01:29:40Karishma has played just short of 60 international matches for the West Indies
01:29:46women's team. And she's now said to be in the middle of your prime. You're in the middle of
01:29:52the prime of your prime, you know, Karishma. But tell me, how did you get in? Of course,
01:30:00there are many facets of the game. You are a right arm spin bowler. Tell us about your
01:30:07introduction into that aspect of the game. Yeah, well, I started off as a medium fast bowler
01:30:17at the start. And I felt like I was not effective as a fast bowler. But the minute I switched from
01:30:25bowling pace to spin, I was able to pick up wickets. I was able to, you know, outsmart
01:30:31batters. And for me, I was able to challenge that. And that really stood out for me. So I felt like,
01:30:37you know, this is something I could learn and continue to learn. And, you know, you know,
01:30:43make it a part of my game. And I really liked Sunil Narayan for a long time. And I felt like
01:30:48the way he carried about himself as a bowler. It really stood out for me as well. All right.
01:30:54And of course, you're putting your skills on full display for the Guyana Amazon Warriors women.
01:31:00What can we expect from from your team this time around, Karishma?
01:31:07I mean, obviously, we're looking to win the tournament. No team sets out to lose.
01:31:11So that's the first goal. The team itself, you know, has a really balanced team. It's a really
01:31:18balanced team. And I'm really happy to be with them again. You know, it's a great good culture
01:31:23that we have been there. And I really enjoy being a part of it. Yeah. So is it that that preparations
01:31:31are well on the way? You all have already met and there is a type of gelling happening
01:31:38within the team at this time?
01:31:42No, I'm wearing a West Indies badge right now. I'm on West Indies duty. But we're having a
01:31:48camp. We're having a camp at the moment in Antigua, where all of the girls are obviously
01:31:53putting their skills, you know, getting ready before that tournament. However, you know,
01:31:59the bigger picture is World Cup. So all of us are just trying to fine tune what we already
01:32:05have and learn some more things so that we could put it into play for CPL and obviously World Cup
01:32:10coming up. Yeah. But tell me something. How easy is it? Because we constantly speak about this
01:32:17gelling of the team, right? I mean, you all are coming from different countries, different
01:32:23backgrounds. You have different skills, different expertise. How easy or how difficult is that
01:32:31process to work as? Well, we have to forget the egos, too. How easy or difficult is it to work as
01:32:41a unit, a unified force into achieving what you want to achieve?
01:32:46I feel like being a professional cricketer, you know, the basics don't change. So I believe that
01:32:52once you have that, like you have that knowledge, you know, it's easy when good minds come together.
01:32:58So I think it's not a it's not really hard at all. I feel like the people that we have been around
01:33:05in ECPL and even like in other teams or other countries, as I would say, like when we play
01:33:12Western cricket, we're meeting girls from different countries. I feel like once we have
01:33:16that knowledge of the game, you know, we could share ideas, knock off ideas. And it's quite easy
01:33:22because, you know, you learn a lot from some of them, things that you don't even sit down and
01:33:27think about on your own. So it's really like a sharing knowledge of the game and learning.
01:33:34Yeah. Well, you know, Karishma, I don't have to tell you, you know, who Trinidad and Toronto
01:33:39was supporting, right, at the WCPL, right? So it is said that they're looking very strong
01:33:45on paper and people are questioning now how the Guyana-Amazon Warriors are going to match up.
01:33:54Yeah, cricket players only there and we'll see.
01:33:59That's a good answer, Karishma. Karishma, hold the line just for a little while longer for us.
01:34:05We are going to a very short break. We're coming back, everybody.
01:34:35We're all in. Republic Bank, title sponsor and official bank of the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League.
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01:38:51All right, so welcome back everyone. So we are continuing our discussion on the WCPL. Of course
01:38:56we are joined by Karishma Ramharak and she's going to be playing with the Guyana Amazon Warriors.
01:39:04Karishma, you know since yesterday, again we had a discussion yesterday, your name would have come up
01:39:14and any pressure at all for you because a discussion was yesterday that
01:39:22that you are being seen as the heir to the throne really when it comes to Anissa
01:39:30Mohammed because she has retired. So you're being seen as the next big thing
01:39:38on the scene. In that context, any pressure at all to perform?
01:39:42I don't think so. It's been being said for a long, long time ago and I think I've grown now
01:39:51to know that I'm my own person and I will never be Anissa Mohammed. I think she has achieved
01:39:57over the years. I'm not even close to doing that and I'm really happy to say that we're a really
01:40:04good friend. So she's very supportive of my career and I feel like I
01:40:11understand that I am next to be the next Anissa Mohammed but I'll never be the next Anissa Mohammed.
01:40:18I'll be who I am and I'm going to try my best to do what I can achieve in my career.
01:40:25Let's get deeper into the WCPL. When you, Karishma, look at the men's game and we look at the
01:40:37women's game, let's compare them a little bit because I think that when the women's game
01:40:44first came on the scene, I think people were maybe a bit hesitant to embrace it
01:40:52because I think that they were looking at the expertise of the women cricketers, the experience
01:41:00of the women cricketers. You think that perception has changed a little more and you think that
01:41:07you all are getting more and more fans? Yeah, of course. There was a big gap from
01:41:16the first CPL to the second one in terms of the quality of cricket that was played.
01:41:20I honestly believe that last year women's CPL was more exciting than the men's. I mean,
01:41:26many may beg to differ but I think that the games were really competitive.
01:41:31They were close games, especially when Guyana played Barbados. It was always,
01:41:37you don't know who's going to win this game. I think it's growing, obviously.
01:41:44I think the fan base is growing. A lot of my friends are looking forward to coming to support
01:41:49me, even though I'm playing for Guyana. I'm really appreciative of the support we've been
01:41:56gaining around this tournament. I'm thinking, and I wonder if you would agree with this,
01:42:05that over the past few days, as I said, we have been discussing WCPL a lot, a lot, a lot,
01:42:14and a number of names are being called. But, you know, I think that the names are not yet too
01:42:21familiar to us in the Caribbean and other parts of the world. Do you think the time is going to come
01:42:31where, when we say Karishma Ramharack, that it is going to be on the tip of everyone's tongue
01:42:41that we know who Karishma is, or we know who the other player is in the WCPL, so you have this
01:42:50sort of global exposure? You think that we are on that path?
01:42:58Yeah, I definitely think so. I mean, as long as you can make an impact on the game,
01:43:01your name will be out there. So I feel like as long as, you know, the girls are growing,
01:43:08developing, performing, that's where you'll get the recognition. And I do feel like the
01:43:14set of players that we have now, they are very capable of doing that. So I honestly believe the
01:43:20answer to your question is yes. But obviously, it's going to take some time to get there.
01:43:25Yeah. But how do you deal with when you're playing and playing before thousands of people?
01:43:36How do you operate in that environment? Of course, when we speak about WCPL, it is
01:43:43a party environment. I suspect people are going to be calling your names, or the names of players
01:43:51from the stands, and some of them may be trying to get you off your game. So how do you deal with
01:43:57that sort of pressure, that sort of environment, and playing before thousands of fans and so on?
01:44:06I think that's where behind the scenes comes about for us as players. We have a lot of
01:44:11sessions where we speak to either the media sessions, or the psychologists, or anyone who
01:44:19can help us in that area. And for me, I am very, very focused when I step on field. I do not care
01:44:28who is there. Okay, not that I don't care. I literally block out the factors that are not
01:44:37affecting me, or should not affect my game. And as much as I'm really supportive of the people,
01:44:43and I'm really happy to have them, I think it's an entertainment. And if I'm not able to entertain
01:44:49them, then we won't have the fun to start. So for me, it's being able to get the job done.
01:44:57And yeah, I'll participate in it. Yeah. But you know, what I've also realized is that
01:45:02this is a lot of preparation, a lot of work that you, people like you, and members of your team,
01:45:13and other teams, it's a lot of work, a lot of preparation. And I suspect sometimes you may feel,
01:45:20wow, this is a bit overwhelming. How do you stay committed?
01:45:29Yeah, that's a huge question. Because I feel like, you know, the older you get,
01:45:34you think like it's becoming too much. But that's where I guess, you kind of go back to
01:45:41remembering why you started. For me, I always wanted to, you know, from the time I knew that
01:45:47I could play cricket, I wanted to represent, you know, Westernies at the highest level. Now that
01:45:53I'm here, you know, I don't want to take it for granted. I try to improve in every aspect of the
01:45:59game, you know, try to be as effective as possible where I can. So for me, it's just about remembering
01:46:05why I started to play this game and the love that I've gotten throughout the years. You know,
01:46:11the support I've gotten, you know, I'm really thankful for my family and my friends. And all
01:46:16those who really supported me throughout my career. So as long as I can keep going, you know,
01:46:22doing it for them as well, I will try my best to do that because I know it makes them proud.
01:46:27Yeah. All right, Karishma, please stay with us for a few minutes more.
01:46:29We are going to a very short break, everybody. We're coming back.
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01:47:04antioxidant support. Take a step towards a healthier tomorrow and make the proactive switch
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01:49:55Same thing?
01:49:58Recognize that as a parent, you are one of the biggest influencers on your child's life.
01:50:05You have to acknowledge that your actions and choices can impact your child's development
01:50:10and growth. Take time to account for any consequences your actions may have on your
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01:50:42parenting. All right, everybody. So we're still speaking WCPL with Karishma Ramarak of the Guyana
01:50:57Amazon Warriors. Karishma, before we went to the break, you spoke about always wanting to play
01:51:04for the West Indies women team. How has that experience been for you?
01:51:12Yeah, I mean, it's like a dream come true, you know. There are days where, you know, it gets tiring, it gets long, but I feel like, you know, it shows the character. It brings out a different type of character in you as a person.
01:51:28And, you know, I'm able to tap into that sometimes. But I really like the journey that I've had so far. You know, I enjoy every moment of it. And I don't think I'll, you know, I could ever see myself being something else but playing for West Indies.
01:51:42Yeah. So I know that you have some obligations for the West Indies over the next few days before you move on to the WCPL. What does the next few days look like for you?
01:51:55Well, we've got some practice games here, you know, just getting ready to go into the WCPL tournament, playing some practice matches, T20s, obviously. And we have a couple of, well, I should say, a lot of the girls
01:52:10from the Caribbean. We split them into two teams and we're playing against each other so that we all, you know, get much practice before we head into the WCPL.
01:52:20Yeah. Karishma, as you look at your career, what are some of the things that you want to achieve in the future? So when you do retire and you look back on your career, you could say, yeah, boy, it was bad. I was one of the baddest. In a good way.
01:52:36I have not really set long-term goals. I kind of take them at stride. Obviously, I want to be one of the most economical bowlers as much as possible. As much as possible, I am trying to be one of the most economical bowlers. That's one thing that stands out in my game.
01:52:55It's something I'll have to continue working on because, obviously, once they start picking you, it's going to be easy for them to score runs off you. The more you play, the more you'll understand that it's not that easy. But it's something that I want to be able to do. And obviously, you know, by doing that, pick up a certain amount of wickets.
01:53:17My goals are usually like I would set out a yearly goal, but that's a futuristic goal. But yeah, so I'm trying to get to certain milestones, but in stride.
01:53:29Yeah. Well, someone said to me, mentioned to me your age. I'm not going to say it on air, Karishma, but they're saying to me, well, you're going to be involved in cricket for a very long time. So we'll leave it at that.
01:53:41But as you look at the WCPL and I want you to speak to the fans now, what can they expect?
01:53:50Yeah, obviously, I would really love the fans to show up for us, you know, being a home girl, but not only home team, I'm still expecting a certain amount of support.
01:54:01I obviously think that they will bring out a lot in the girls when if they show up or when they show up.
01:54:08So, you know, it's it's the motivation that really comes and the fans are definitely, you know, motivation for us.
01:54:16You know, it shows that the game is growing. And I really believe that, you know, once once they show up, we're going to put out our best game.
01:54:24You know, our A game is going to come out, our competitiveness is going to come out and I think that, you know, it's going to be a really, really good WCPL.
01:54:32There are some big, big names in the tournament. And I definitely think that it's going to be a great one.
01:54:37Yeah, Karishma, it was a pleasure speaking with you and we wish you all the best and we wish you all the success that is going to come for you in the future.
01:54:44Bye for now. Thank you very much.
01:54:48All right. And that's going to be our program for today. Everybody have a good weekend. See you on Monday. Bye for now.
01:54:53This segment was brought to you by Republic Bank, title sponsor and official bank of the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League.
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