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Acting CoP McDonald Jacob. File photo/Angelo Marcelle

The UNC is calling on acting Commissioner of Police Mc Donald Jacob to produce statistics on arrests being made in the US in places where guns shipped to TT originated.

Speaking at a mid-week media conference at the Office of the Opposition Leader on Thursday, UNC political and strategy analyst attorney Sean Sobers criticised Jacob for attributing the rise in crime to illegal guns coming through legal points of entry.

“He indicated there was some collating of data and a task force to be formed to collate information with the alcohol, tobacco, and firearms unit in the US. He also spoke about arrests being made in these originating states within the US.

“Where’s the statistical information on that? How can we trust what you are saying? Because we would have heard this song and dance many times before.”

Naparima MP Rodney Charles called on Jacob to insist that the scanners at ports are functioning. He also criticised the police for the abysmal detection rate and the lack of trust in them.

Referring to the US State Department’s report on human trafficking which said TT had not done enough work to fight the issue, Sobers said under the UNC, the counter-trafficking unit had been fully resourced.

“It has now been partially dismantled, and has to rely on other parts of the service to have strike capabilities. That’s why the US can say there is inefficiency.

“We need to improve the detection rate. Some people know the criminal elements in their areas but don’t trust the police. The social services and programmes in place under the People’s Partnership, which we knew would contribute to a reduction in the crime rate, have been gutted or stopped.”

Naparima MP Rodney Charles. File photo/Sureash Cholai

Charles called on government to write to the US State Department to demand clarification ofthe names of the high-ranking officials who the report said were involved in human trafficking.He called on the PM to fire National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds and take his place. He said prison officers and lifeguards had expressed a loss of confidence in Hinds.

Charles said he would be writing to Denmark’s Minister of Taxation Morten Bodskov to find out why he had said TT existed in a nook of shame.

“As we speak, TT remains on an EU negative blacklist for being a tax haven linked to such crimes as money laundering. Why are we alone among Caricom states on an EU watchlist? Something is amiss, and that EU minister clearly knows something of which we are unaware.”I therefore intend to write to him to find out what caused him to utter such pejorative remarks against my country.”

Charles said the UNC had supported every bit of legislation which would have enabled TT to be removed from the blacklist.

“Whether it was the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) – we made amendments. but we supported it. The Income Tax Amendment Bill in 2019: we supported that. The Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters Bill in 2018: we supported that; and the Tax Information Exchange Agreement Bill, 2018, we supported, because the instructions we had from our leader were to support any bill that would get us off the blacklist, although we would try to make any improvements we could.”

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by Neval Auguste

Miss Jassie Thomas, winner of the Ministry of Tourism’s TikTok video challenge, and her family were welcomed on August 12 at the Ministry of Tourism.

Tourism Minister, Hon. Dr. Ernest Hilaire, spoke briefly about tourism as an avenue for career development and creating livelihoods. He also expressed that young people should be selected to be ministers throughout all portfolios.

Miss Nathania Augier, Operations Manager at the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority (SLTA) presented a cheque of EC $1500 and a complementary bag of tokens to the new Junior Minister.

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Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism, Ms Donalyn Vittet, presented the winner with a new laptop, whilst the Hon. Dr. Ernest Hilaire awarded her a plaque. Miss Thomas will also receive a day pass for two to the Anse Chastanet Hotel.

Miss Thomas expressed gratitude for the opportunity: “I would like to thank the Ministry of Tourism for giving me this opportunity to join the competition, along with my school, the Vieux Fort Comprehensive Secondary School, the Cadet Corps and my family members. I look forward to working with everyone and I am proud to be your Junior Minister of Tourism 2022/2023.”

The new Junior Minister called the process of putting together the video for the competition a rewarding experience.

Source: Government Information Service

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Dans un « courrier commun des élus d’Outre-Mer », les députés de la Martinique, la Guadeloupe, la Guyane, la Réunion, de Mayotte et de la Nouvelle-Calédonie demandent une baisse du taux de location des films.

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Listed company Caribbean Flavours and Fragrances (CFF) is encouraging enterprising young people to partner with them and other established companies to build their businesses.

CFF director Anand James urged potential entrepreneurs to network with the right people and organisations to be successful.

“Register your company, register with the NIS (National Insurance Scheme) get used to the bodies and organisations that can help you, and get used to us if you are into drinks, juices, syrups – those kinds of businesses”, said James, a former general manager of the multinational company which became CFF.

Speaking at the open day at the CFF’s facilities on Wednesday (August 17), James said high production standards, well-trained staff and good networking are key to success in business.

“I’m really sad to see young people wasting their energy, their enthusiasm and their skill sets. If you have an idea (for a business) and you are working with somebody, don’t just sit down on it”, James said.

CFF has been on the Junior Stock Exchange since 2013.

The open day at the company’s Kingston plant was held under the theme: “Build a drink, improve yuh ting”. A highlight of the day was the demonstration of making drinks and syrups from the flavours manufactured by CFF.

The company also introduced three new flavours to its portfolio – mixed berry, yaad blend (mango, pineapple and ginger) and tropical surprise (orange, pineapple and banana).

Joddian Howard, Product Development Officer at Caribbean Flavours and Fragrances demonstrates the making of a drink at the Open Day at the company’s plant in Kingston.

Addressing yesterday’s open day, Akenio Patterson of the Bureau of Standards of Jamaica (BSJ) encouraged small businesses to utilise the BSJ’s services such as testing, calibration of equipment, training of staff, business advice and access to international markets.

Patterson noted that the regulatory function of the BSJ has been shifted to the National Compliance and Regulatory Authority.

“What we focus on is business development and trade and supporting your strategic objectives”, he said.

Meanwhile, Sheneecia Salmon, senior trade policy officer at the Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association, invited businesses of all sizes to join the JMEA.

These she said, included: assistance in meeting the requirements of export markets, networking with JMEA members, advocacy, stakeholder workshops, mentoring, advertising in the association’s publications, and access to loans and grants from the DBJ and EXIM Bank.

“More than 70 per cent of our membership is micro, small and medium-sized companies”, Salmon disclosed. She said being a JMEA member makes it easier for companies to tap into overseas markets.

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