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00:03Welcome back. A bill is soon to be brought to Parliament for income from pension fund plans
00:09and deferred annuity plans approved by the Board of Inland Revenue to exempt from income tax.
00:16As part of the upcoming finance bill that will be before this Parliament shortly,
00:22before the close of this session, my government is introducing a major reform to our tax system,
00:27one that will exempt from income tax. The pension payments received from approved pension fund plans
00:36and approved deferred annuity plans.
00:41The announcement by Prime Minister Kamala Passat-Basasa in the House of Representatives,
00:45which she said is in keeping with an announcement made by the Finance Minister
00:50in the 2026 budget presentation in October of last year.
00:55A pension is not a windfall. It is not a bonus. It is the result of years, sometimes decades,
01:03of sacrifice, discipline and commitment.
01:06And Prime Minister Passat-Basasa told the lower house on Friday,
01:09The exemption will take effect, very important, Mr. Speaker, will take effect on income earned on or after January 1,
01:182026.
01:22At the same time, the measure applies to plans that already exist.
01:26Therefore, Mr. Speaker, individuals who have been contributing to an approved pension plan
01:31or deferred annuity plan for years, even decades prior, will benefit from this exemption going forward from January 1, 2026.
01:40And how many people stand to benefit?
01:43Based on past income tax return filings and TD1 declarations for income years previously,
01:49to date, 39,063 taxpayers made claims for annuity contributions.
01:56So, about 39,000, over 39,000 individuals will benefit from this provision.
02:03Further details were provided to the lower house.
02:06This measure will therefore benefit, let's make it very clear, workers in the private sector
02:11who have contributed to approved pension plans.
02:15Individuals who have invested and approved deferred annuity plans as part of the retirement strategy.
02:20Middle-income earners who rely on these plans as a key source of income after retirement.
02:27And future retirees who are currently building their savings and will now do so with greater confidence.
02:33The Prime Minister said her administration was also focused on the integrity of the tax system.
02:39If an approved pension plan or deferred annuity plan is surrendered before the appropriate time,
02:45that is to say before retirement opportunity,
02:47then those sums received will remain subject to tax.
02:51So, this is clearly for retirement.
02:54House Speaker Jagdao Singh later allowed a question from Opposition MP, Colm Imbert.
02:59Can the Prime Minister state why, since in the UNC Manifesto and on the political platform,
03:06the Prime Minister said this measure would be applicable to both public and private pensions,
03:12why have you left out public servants and other recipients of public pensions?
03:19In her response, Prime Minister Pasad-Bissessa made reference to Mr. Imbert's tenure as finance minister
03:25under the former PNM-led government.
03:28Mr. Speaker, what I can say is that we have demonstrated we have the will to dwell on our promises.
03:35It is no secret that we inherited a broken system from that former member,
03:43former minister, or former former minister of finance,
03:47the member for former Lago Martin Northeast.
03:50And we have sought to enrich, they have sought to enrich friends and family and finances.
03:59What we are doing is trying to enrich our workers, our taxpayers,
04:03and those who contribute to their lives.
04:08Although the date is yet to be announced,
04:10the House of Representatives is expected to begin its debate
04:14of the media review of the 2026 budget soon.
04:19Jewel Brown, TV6 News.
04:22Switching gears, two former PNM ministers lodged a formal complaint
04:26with the Office of Procurement Regulation,
04:28calling for an investigation into the Housing Development Corporation's
04:33multi-billion dollar housing contracts.
04:36Here's more.
04:37A major housing project valued at $3.4 billion is facing scrutiny.
04:42On Monday, April 13th, former housing minister Camille Robinson-Rachis
04:46raised the matter questioning the project's process, timeline, and transparency.
04:51The Office of Procurement Regulator released a statement on Thursday, 16th April,
04:58saying one day after Robinson-Rachis' statement,
05:01on April 14th, it formally instructed HTC to not proceed with the said contracts
05:07until the OPR completed its compliance checks.
05:11And on Thursday, a formal complaint was filed by former housing minister Randall Mitchell
05:17and senior counsel, former Prime Minister Stuart Young,
05:20on behalf of private citizen Wendell Eversley.
05:23The complaint questioned the integrity of the procurement process undertaken by the HDC.
05:29In the letter, the attorney said the matter is one of public interest, saying,
05:33quote,
05:33This complaint is made on my client's behalf, in his capacity as a member of the public,
05:39concerned with the legality, propriety, and integrity of a procurement exercise
05:45involving a substantial quantum of public funds, end quote.
05:50The contracts are to be awarded across 11 packages,
05:53with concerns not about a single issue, but what is described as a pattern.
05:59The letter reads, quote,
06:15Among the key allegations is that the process may have involved selective tendering,
06:21potentially limiting participation by qualified contractors.
06:25Mitchell says, quote,
06:26There is a real question as to whether participation in the procurement
06:30was restricted through a process of selective tendering.
06:34If so, the office may wish to examine whether the requirements of Section 28
06:39were complied with, including whether any limitation was properly declared and justified, end quote.
06:46The complaint also raises concerns about transparency, saying, quote,
06:50In the absence of publicly available information regarding evaluation criteria,
06:54scoring methodology and project details raises a legitimate concern as to whether the procurement
07:02satisfies transparency requirements, end quote.
07:05There are also questions about whether all successful contractors have the capacity to execute projects
07:10of this scale and whether proper due diligence was conducted.
07:15The letter ultimately calls on the procurement regulator to act.
07:19The OPR is now being urged to launch a full investigation, obtain all relevant documents,
07:25and determine whether the process complied with the law.
07:30Ravishi Tuwari Rupnarein, TV6 News.
07:33But one housing minister staunchly defended the selection process for the issuance of the billion-dollar housing contracts.
07:42Minister Philip Edward Alexander is doubling down on his defense of the government's housing program,
07:48describing the opposition's allegations of corruption as baseless.
07:53The first thing that needs to be debunked here is this mad call for a criminal investigation.
07:58Any two-by-four lawyer working out of law school today will tell you,
08:01we need an actual crime to take place and evidence of a crime to take to the police to say,
08:05this is what we want the investigation.
08:07He says the process remains within the law, pointing to procurement rules that allow time for contract review.
08:14Some contracts have been granted through the procurement legislation that requires a stand-down period
08:21so that you can investigate all of the contracts to make sure everything is above both.
08:28So that's what we had.
08:29Commissioner Robertson-Rage is saying that the 10 days of the stand-down is too short.
08:32It's disingenuous because 10 days were standard practice under hold.
08:36On the issue of financing, Alexander pushed back against claims the state is funding the program.
08:42The issue of the $3.4 billion, $3.4 billion, not one of those billions is coming from the Treasury.
08:53In fact, not one cent.
08:55Under this government, the contractors who are awarded contracts are financing the development of the projects.
09:03He adds that private financial institutions, not government, will handle mortgages.
09:09The contractors have, and the government is not financing the mortgages.
09:14The mortgage finance companies have, like TTMF and the public bank and Royal Bank and Pursuitence Bank and GMMB.
09:20So all of it is nonsense.
09:22All, all of everything that the PNM and their trolls are saying.
09:26The minister also took aim at the former administration, accusing it of failing to adequately address housing demand.
09:33The PNM, full people, 215,000 people on our list trying to get houses.
09:38And they built 4,700 houses for their friends, family and finances to benefit from.
09:43Under the PNM, they built houses in excess of a million dollars.
09:47For who?
09:48The purpose of the housing development corporation is to make housing available to people who can't afford million dollar houses.
09:53The opposition has maintained that the public deserves greater clarity on how these contracts are being awarded.
10:01Ravishita Wari Rupnarain, TV6 News.
10:04This is The Past, seven days on 6.
10:14Thanks for staying with us.
10:16Prime Minister Kamala Passat-Bissessa launched another scathing attack on CARICOM last week, calling it a corrupt backroom operation.
10:26Prime Minister Kamala Passat-Bissessa did not mince her words with the very title of her latest statement about the
10:33Caribbean community.
10:33As she declared, quote, CARICOM cannot continue to hide a corrupt backroom operation that rots the organization to the detriment
10:41of Caribbean people, end quote.
10:44The Prime Minister said in a statement that, quote, CARICOM's ideals towards integration, integrity and inclusion are just a smoke
10:51screen,
10:52masking a backroom operation to maintain the decades-old business elite status quo and dominance of sister political parties with
11:00the region, end quote.
11:02Prime Minister Passat-Bissessa was responding to the statement by CARICOM's chairman, St. Kitsa Nevis Prime Minister, Dr. Terence Drew,
11:10on April 11th,
11:11seeking to dismiss the issues raised by Trinidad and Tobago regarding the process that led to the reappointment of CARICOM
11:17Secretary General Dr. Carla Barnett.
11:19Prime Minister Passat-Bissessa called that reappointment, quote, surreptitious, corrupted and flawed, end quote.
11:26Prime Minister Passat-Bissessa also claimed that CARICOM's statement was crafted by the Secretary General.
11:33The statement issued by CARICOM's chairman on April 11th said that the heads of government met on the 10th of
11:39April 2026 to discuss the issues in relation to governance of the community
11:44that have been raised by Trinidad and Tobago, especially including the reappointment of the Secretary General of the community
11:51and that neither the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago nor any representative from Trinidad and Tobago attended the meeting.
11:58Prime Minister Passat-Bissessa said that nowhere in that statement was the WhatsApp message sent on the CARICOM WhatsApp group
12:05to all CARICOM foreign ministers at 8.55 a.m. on the relevant day addressed.
12:12The government of Trinidad and Tobago maintains that CARICOM's chairman stated that in that message in the CARICOM group
12:18that the retreat in St. Kitts and Nevis, during which Dr. Barnett was reappointed last month,
12:23was a heads-only meeting and that ministers should remain for the community council meeting.
12:28The Prime Minister attached photos of that which identified the Secretary General and other members of the group
12:35and which also showed the message was seen by Foreign and CARICOM Affairs Minister Sobers at 8.55 a.m.
12:43Prime Minister Passat-Bissessa said on Wednesday that to date, not a single member of the CARICOM secretariat,
12:48who she identified as a CARICOM foreign minister, who is also a participant of that WhatsApp group,
12:53has shown, quote, the decency, honesty, or courage to acknowledge that Minister Sobers is being truthful, end quote.
13:01Prime Minister Passat-Bissessa said she continues to await the documentation that she has requested
13:06in her letter to CARICOM's chairman.
13:08The Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago declared,
13:10this is not a game. The future of her citizens' lives and livelihoods are directly connected to CARICOM.
13:17As she further said, therefore, this matter will continue to be ruthlessly and relentlessly publicly escalated
13:24and prosecuted until persons are held accountable.
13:27However, Prime Minister Passat-Bissessa emphasized,
13:31Trinidad and Tobago has invested billions of dollars over the past 52 years into CARICOM
13:35and will not be exiting the organization.
13:39The Prime Minister added that Trinidad and Tobago helped to build this organization
13:43and will be a part of fixing it to benefit all the people of CARICOM.
13:48Jewel Brown, TV6 News.
13:51In other news, a parliamentary committee had cause to recommend
13:55that the conduct of a sitting PNM senator be formally considered by both houses.
14:01A high-level parliamentary inquiry examining how Trinidad and Tobago procures
14:06and distributes pharmaceuticals is now facing serious internal challenges.
14:10The committee launched the probe to assess the effectiveness of procurement systems,
14:15the management of healthcare supply chain,
14:18and factors impacting foreign exchange allocation for medicine.
14:22But the focus has now shifted from systems to conduct.
14:26At the center of the controversy is former Health Minister Terence D'Alsing,
14:30who was invited to submit written evidence before appearing before the committee.
14:34Concerns emerged during an April 13th meeting after it was discovered
14:39that his submission contained tracked changes allegedly made by sitting committee member
14:45Senator Janelle John Bates.
14:48Metadata reviewed by the committee suggested the senator may have assisted
14:52in preparing the document prior to its formal submission.
14:56The committee described the development as troubling,
14:58raising questions about impartiality and the integrity of the inquiry.
15:03Senator John Bates later admitted to making material changes
15:07and indicated she would seek advice on her position.
15:10But by April 16th, the committee was informed that steps were being taken to remove her,
15:16with correspondence sent by leader of opposition business in the Senate confirming the move.
15:21Further compounding concerns was the apparent leak of confidential in-camera proceedings to the public,
15:28impossible breach of parliamentary standing orders.
15:30An emergency meeting was convened to address both the alleged bias and the disclosure of sensitive information.
15:38While the committee says investigations into the leak will continue,
15:42it has now issued a special report describing the senator's conduct
15:46as serious enough to warrant consideration by parliament.
15:50The report stops short of making final conclusions on the wider inquiry,
15:55noting that evidence-gathering is still ongoing.
15:58However, it warns that the actions of the member may have compromised the duty of impartiality
16:05and could amount to contempt of parliament.
16:08The committee is now recommending that both the House of Representatives and the Senate examine the matter,
16:14even as the broader probe into the country's pharmaceutical procurement system continues.
16:23And as the ruling United National Congress prepares to celebrate one year in office,
16:29President of the National Nurses Association, Edie Stewart,
16:32is calling on citizens to treat the milestone as a moment of reflection on the government's performance.
16:38This as nurses plan to intensify protest action in the coming weeks.
16:44We know you were only trained in nursing school to deal with one to four.
16:51You were trained for that.
16:53We know the nursing council covers you for one to four.
16:57But we are asking you to go up to one to six.
17:02But you see when you reach that six, there a cutoff must be made and not a patient more you
17:11must see about, not a patient more.
17:14With the public health care system already under pressure amid an ongoing impasse with nurses and the government,
17:21according to the National Nurses Association, nurses are preparing to further escalate their action.
17:28President Edie Stewart says the move will allow nurses to deliver industry-standard total patient care.
17:36If it's one nurse, like what goes on in NCRH under Dr. Tim Gopi Singh,
17:42then one nurse in about six patients, one registered nurse in about six.
17:47And everybody else, right, will be sending out prescriptive letters
17:55where you will just fill out the patient-to-nurse ratio and send it in to the nursing supervisor
18:02and let the nursing supervisor...
18:06Let the nursing supervisor, let the CO, let the general manager of nursing service,
18:14let the chairman find staff for the remaining patients.
18:20We will no longer, we will no longer compromise patient care.
18:27The action is due to comments April 28th,
18:30the one-year anniversary of the UNC taking office.
18:35April 28th is a date that the UNC will be celebrating their one-year anniversary of having won the national
18:43elections,
18:44and we commend them for that.
18:45But it also will signal the one-year anniversary where citizens of Trinan-Tobago,
18:54who listened attentively, who bought into the philosophy of the UNC,
19:03who agreed to give the UNC a chance to do better than the last government.
19:11I will also signal a year anniversary that the promise made in the UNC manifesto
19:19to address healthcare workers' salaries has gone unfulfilled.
19:27The association is also planning another protest march following last week's demonstration,
19:33which drew hundreds of nurses.
19:36We need to come closer to Parliament for our next street demonstration.
19:44That street demonstration will culminate and terminate on the steps of Parliament
19:50where the policy makers would be.
19:54So we're not going to announce the date for our next street demonstration as yet,
19:58but it would be in due course, and it would be within a two-month time frame.
20:06Sport is up next. Keep it here.
20:15In sport, we take a look back at TNT's junior netballers,
20:19who are celebrating not one, not two, but three victories.
20:25Colleen Lara has been a tier-away star for the TNT junior netballers,
20:29and she continued her dominant form against Dominica.
20:33The two teams were tied at one point each,
20:35but the lead just kept stretching for the national team.
20:39One of the schools is the...
20:43We have one of the students here, Legacy Fraser.
20:46Did I say it right?
20:48And she's here with us.
20:49It was a team effort, and the energy was clearly present throughout the match.
20:54They were playing with intent and moving like a team with two wins on their back on home turf.
21:00All was going well until this moment.
21:02In front of the rim, and Dominica will bring it the other way.
21:06Two Trinidad and Tobago players clash and go down.
21:09Is it a clash of heads?
21:11It is.
21:11Oh, there's a player down.
21:12She's under extreme pressure here.
21:15They're calling for the mess.
21:18Something's absolutely wrong here.
21:19She's been hit in the chest.
21:28Well, the medical staff are on very quickly here, and the doctor's on.
21:32The player was hit in the chest, and she went down.
21:36Two TNT players clashing.
21:43However, play must go on, and it did not stop the charge from the home team.
21:48They went on to win the match, a dominant 44-9.
21:52Trinidad and Tobago crowd going absolutely wild here.
21:58Full time here with U.S.
22:02Sergio DeFort, TV6 Port.
22:05And that's a wrap on the past seven days on 6.
22:08I am Renessa Cutting.
22:10If you didn't catch this segment in its entirety,
22:12you can find it on our website, www.tv6tnt.com.
22:18And you can find all these stories and more on the TV6 mobile app.
22:23Thanks for choosing TV6, and do have a great evening.
22:54We'll see you next time.
22:59Good evening, and welcome to the past seven days on 6.
23:03I am Renessa Cutting.
23:04Here's what made the news this past week.
23:07Dozens of human bodies were recovered during an illegal burial.
23:12The prime minister announced that a bill will soon come to parliament
23:16to give effect to tax-free pensions,
23:19and nurses pledged to escalate action.
23:22As per usual, if it was happening, it was on 6.
23:26Let's get right into it.
23:28To the top story this past week,
23:31police officers recovered dozens of human bodies,
23:34including that of 50 babies,
23:36from a mass grave in the Komuto Cemetery.
23:39Here's more.
23:41Scenes straight out of a horror movie unfolded in Komuto today,
23:45where multiple human remains were recovered by police.
23:50According to the TTBS, acting on information,
23:54officers attached to the Komuto police station responded to the Komuto Cemetery,
23:58where they found 56 human bodies, comprising 50 infants,
24:04four adult males, one showing signs of a prior post-mortem,
24:08and two adult females, one also showing signs of a prior post-mortem.
24:15Police say most of the adult remains were tagged for identification,
24:19with the exception of one male.
24:21Preliminary findings suggest that this may be a case involving the unlawful disposal of unclaimed bodies.
24:29Further forensic analysis is underway to determine the origin of the remains.
24:35Police Commissioner Lester Guevara says the matter is being treated with urgency,
24:40and promises a thorough investigation.
24:43The nature of this discovery is deeply troubling,
24:46and we understand the emotional impact it will have on families and the wider national community.
24:54The TTPS is approaching this matter with urgency, sensitivity,
24:58and unwavering commitment to uncovering the truth.
25:02Every cadaver must be handled with dignity and lawful care.
25:08Any individual or institution found to have violated that duty
25:14will be held fully accountable.
25:18Meantime, unofficial reports suggest that the burials may have been carried out
25:22by employees of a funeral home,
25:25contracted by a hospital to dispose of unclaimed bodies.
25:30Meantime, the Edinburgh 500 community was sent into mourning
25:34with the shooting death of a 32-year-old woman at Balmoral Park.
25:39There was a solemn disquiet over the Edinburgh 500 Recreation Ground in Chaguanas today.
25:46Following Friday's vicious gun attack a few streets away,
25:50which left the Secretary of the Sports and Dance Society dead
25:54and the group's founder, Kian Alexander, nursing injuries.
25:58At the grounds today, coaches of various football groups expressed shock
26:02and disbelief over the incident.
26:05Is she about community development?
26:07Yeah.
26:08She will always try to start sports.
26:12Well, the community is a place where it's always activities.
26:17When it's not football, it's cricket, it's basketball,
26:23it's our sports day, right?
26:27We have a lot of activities, and she has been all.
26:30She has been all.
26:32So she always trying to uplift the whole community, right?
26:37She tries, or tried.
26:40It was shocking.
26:41It was shocking.
26:43Another member of the group told TV6 News
26:46the attack was effectively not just against Morris
26:49and the group's founder, Kian Alexander,
26:52but against the entire community.
26:54As he says, the organization plays a central role in Edingburg 500,
27:00with dozens of children benefiting from the activities.
27:04He tells TV6 why he does not know the motive for the attack.
27:08He hopes it is not linked to the society's operations.
27:11He notes there is currently a Masters tournament in progress
27:14with three categories,
27:16the finals for which are set for June,
27:19with cash prizes up to $10,000 to be won.
27:23The future of the tournament
27:24and the community's sporting activities are now in limbo.
27:28According to a TTPS report,
27:31just after seven last night,
27:33a masked assailant exited a silver Nissan Silphi
27:37and opened fire on Morris, Alexander,
27:40and another man identified as a member of the Defense Force.
27:44Police recovered 16 casings,
27:47one of which carried official regiment markings,
27:51as well as seven projectiles.
27:53Alexander sustained only superficial wounds
27:56and refused to be taken for medical treatment.
28:00Morris' six-year-old son,
28:02who was seated in her vehicle,
28:04was physically unharmed.
28:06Meantime, police are said to be following a lead
28:09connected to the shooting death
28:11of Alexander's brother, Jelani Williams,
28:14also a soldier,
28:15who was shot and killed in Edinburgh 500 last month.
28:19Investigations continue into both incidents.
28:23We'll have more news when we return.
28:25Keep it here.
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