LIFE IN TRINI WONDERLAND

Sometimes it feels as though we are living in an "Alice In Wonderland" type of novel. Nothing seems real and those whom we seek to rely on (both sides) simply don't tell us the truth about what is really going on.

Let's take just two examples (though, unfortunately, there are many more): first the Corona Virus situation. Throughout the western world efforts to re-open are being met with mixed success. It is failing spectacularly in the United States where the virus is re-surging with a strength that is positively frightening. Over in Europe there  seems to be a slight lessening of infections, but the jury is still out over there as to how successful they will be in containing it. In the Far East the various countries (with the exception of India) seem to have got things under control. But it is absolutely clear that unless and until a vaccine is found that we are going to be living with this very serious health threat.

Which brings us back to good old T&T. I am already on record as saying that I simply don't believe that we have been told the truth about how many cases or deaths we have had down here. But, (thank God) it does seem that for the time being at any rate the virus seems to be under control here and a cautious re-opening of the country is certainly possible! And that is the good news!

But, (and it is a big 'but') a general election is due sometime before or by the end of this year. A little birdie has told me that the date is set for either August 10th or August 24th with the savvy money betting on the first date. When I asked about how exactly was campaigning going to be done I was told that the plan is that they will not open up the country or allow election meetings until about two weeks before the set date. As the virus has a 14 day incubation period the expected spike won't take place until after the elections are concluded.

Is this true? Because if it is it would be one of the most cynical things that I have ever heard of in my time on the planet. Frankly, I cannot honestly see how electioneering as we knew it in the past can possibly take place now ... even if the August dates are wrong and the elections aren't held until December!  It's just going to be too dangerous!

Then let's go back to this "Fuelgate" affair. Yesterday the erstwhile Energy Minister said in the Senate that there was going to be no investigation of the matter and that the relevant authorities had done everything right. In essence, he said that how the 150,000 barrels of gasoline ended up in Venezuela had nothing to do with us! Let's hope that he is right. But I have the most uneasy feeling that he is not. And the problem is that if somebody somewhere on our side was complicit in helping the Donkey (aka Maduro) evade US sanctions then the Americans will find out and will deal with us. So?  Wouldn't it be wise if indeed we have nothing to be worried about, to have an open probe into the affair and let the whole world and the Americans see that we are indeed innocent? But instead we are being met with rather obvious stonewalling. We are innocent, the Government says! 'Punto final' (full stop) as the Venezuelans would say! And only the most rabid supporters of the present regime would accept their word as final on this. Most thinking and unbiased observers, though, would agree that those who have nothing to hide do not oppose inquiries aimed at discovering the truth of something that has happened.

But life in Trini Wonderland goes on with the hard questions being studiously avoided and with the two sides of the political divide basically saying to each other "all yuh, t'ief" and the other side saying "all yuh t'ief more"! And we, the electorate are left in the middle like the proverbial cheese.

WHAT WE KNOW vs. WHAT WE DON'T KNOW

Okay. Here is what we do know:
1) We know that Delcy Rodriguez, the executive Vice President of Venezuela,  came here with a delegation that included some high ranking petrochemical executives. Among them was one Adrubal Chavez who was later named/appointed as the head of Venezuela's major oil company PDVSA.
2) The Prime Minister said that this delegation came across to discuss a joint response between Trinidad & Tobago and Venezuela to the COVID-19 epidemic. He was backed up on this by the Minister of National Security who said that Ms. Rodriguez's visit had been planned and postponed because she had a cold.
3) No health professionals were at this meeting between the executives of the two countries ... not even T&T's Health Minister.
4) The Prime Minister said that he never met the other members of the Venezuelan delegation and that nobody told him who Mr. Chavez was. He said that he only met with Ms. Rodriguez.
5) The Venezuelans arrived on an aircraft that was subject to American sanctions.
6) A few days later, after the visit a ship laden with 150,000 barrels of gasoline left ostensibly for Aruba but ended up in Venezuela. The T&T Government says it doesn't know anything about how the ship ended up in Venezuela!
6) A few days after Ms. Rodriguez left there was major police  activity in Independence Square just outside the Central Bank.
7) That on Wednesday 3rd June, 2020 a Venezuelan aircraft was spotted at Piarco Airport outside the police station
8) That the Ministry of Health has reported eight deaths from the Corona virus and that it has conducted less than two thousand tests.
9) That the symptoms of Corona virus are very similar to those of pneumonia.
10) That in the whole 12 months of 2018 there were less than half the number of reported deaths from pneumonia than in the first two months of 2020.
11) The Minister of Finance boasted that six billion dollars was being earmarked for COVID relief of which some $900,000 has already been paid out.
12) The Minister of Finance has boasted that recently some US$500 million has been put back into the Heritage and Stabilization fund (HSF).

Now, here is what we don't know:
1) Why exactly did Delcy Rodriguez & Co. come over to T&T? Clearly it wasn't to discuss the COVID-19 epidemic and a joint response to it from T&T and Venezuela. If that had been the purpose then surely both sides would have had their health care experts present ... and nether of them did!  So? What exactly was she doing here?
2) Who exactly was in the meeting and what exactly was discussed. You see, there are very ugly and most unnecessary suspicions arising over this lack of credible information about the whole purpose of the meeting.
3) Who exactly did the Prime Minister meet. The names and occupations/positions of all those in the Venezuelan V.P.'s party are known. But the Prime Minister says that he only met with Delcy Rodriguez. Is this true? If so, why did she bring them along? What purpose was served by having these very important men sitting outside in a waiting room while the two leaders discussed whatever they were discussing?
4) Assuming that the Prime Minister did in fact meet with the other members of the Venezuelan delegation who all attended the meeting, why would the Prime Minister lie about this? Why should we (the citizenry) not be told what our leaders are doing in our name?
5) What was the big security operation in Independence Square outside the Central Bank a few days after Delcy left all about?
6) What exactly is the story behind this 150,000 barrels of gasoline. Where did it come from? Because we ain't making gasoline anymore. How much did we pay for it and how much did we sell it for? When did we buy it? Did we buy it "on spec"? To whom exactly did we sell it? When were the deals to buy and sell it made? Can we see the appropriate purchase and sale contracts? If not, why not? When did we take delivery of it?
7) What was the mystery Venezuelan aircraft spotted at Piarco doing here? Who did it bring? There is a rumour that it brought in some Venezuelan Central Bankers. Is this true? If so, who were they, what were they doing here and who (names) did they meet?
8) Does the Ministry of Health really believe that conducting less than two thousand tests is a good thing? Shouldn't there have been a lot, lot more?
9) Are we being given "a six for a nine" on this Corona virus business? Have we been given ALL the facts?
10) What is the exact number of Corona virus cases in the country?
11) Who exactly is receiving the relief monies and why is it taking so long to be paid out?
12) Where exactly did the US$500 million come from that was put back into the HSF?

There are many other things that we don't know, but the above will do for starters.
 But there is too much that we don't know and too much that we aren't being given proper explanations for. My father used to say that when a man tells you something that you don't understand, 98 percent of the time it is because he doesn't WANT you to understand; two percent of the time it is because he is a fool and doesn't understand what he is saying. Well, whatever you might think of Dr. Rowley, Mr. Young & Co. one thing is clear: you can't say that they are fools. So? What is it that they don't want us to know about and why don't they want us to know?

OUR BIGGEST PROBLEM

It is always difficult to separate personal leadership shortcomings from politics. But the shortcomings of our political leaders are not the main problem facing us. We need to be aware that there has been a fundamental shift in the politics of this country in which both of the two main parties have grown more homogeneous and the mix of national concerns increasingly has turned towards issues of identity, or  - if you prefer to call a spade a spade - race!

PNM voters are overwhelmingly black, conservative and christian.  UNC voters are overwhelmingly Hindu (which means Indian), Indian Muslim and generally better off. PNM funding comes largely from the Syrian and business communities while UNC funding comes almost exclusively from wealthy Indian businessmen.

The media is largely dominated by blacks and (in the case of the Guardian) the Syrians, and their reporting and editorials generally reflect their bias.  (Although thanks in no small part to the unforced errors on the part of the Rowley regime this has changed recently. It remains to be seen what will happen when the election bell is rung.)

The attitude on both sides is not just that the other side (whoever the "other side" might be) is wrong and misguided, but that the other side is actually evil. In these circumstances compromise and moving forward is all but impossible.

Both parties are hurling themselves off the proverbial cliff in resisting a genuine reaching out to the other side, although, from where I sit Mrs. Persad-Bissessar appears to be more amenable to reaching out than Dr. Rowley. I say this partly because I found both the Prime Minister's and Stuart Young's comments about treason and quislings to be offensive in the extreme. I have not observed any similar statements from either Mrs. Persad-Bissessar or any of her lieutenants.

No. Our country is more divided politically than ever before. There is a distinct lack of trust in the bona fides of "the other side" ... and THAT is probably our biggest problem

FAKE NEWS?

Fake news can come in all shapes and sizes as well as from even so-called "official" sources. You have only got to watch American television, for example, and see the reports of their President's various tweets to know that these days you can't even trust our duly elected leaders to tell the truth. It is with this in mind that we all need to be very aware of any attempts by politicians (both local as well as foreign) to try and manipulate their respective electorates. And with an election due sometime later this year we here in good old T&T will not be spared attempts by our local politicians to spread fake news in order to persuade us to vote for them.

That is why I read a piece on social media that said in essence (my words) that the Rowley led PNM was trying to get either CNN or  the BBC to interview our erstwhile Prime Minister  about how Trinidad & Tobago had such success in dealing with COVID-19 that it ranked Number One in the whole world!

Well, the problem here is that we really don't have enough information to be able to assess for ourselves whether that boast is really valid. For example, we don't really know how much testing has been done. The last time I looked (which was very recently) the number of tests was less than two thousand! (In a population of about 1.4 million that ain't a very good number!) Then, although there have only been eight reported COVID-19 deaths, there is a grave suspicion that this number is actually higher. Is this suspicion verifiable? No. There isn't enough information. Is the suspicion reasonable in all of the circumstances? Unfortunately, yes. You see, if you check the number of pneumonia related deaths in, say,  for the WHOLE of 2018, and then you check the number of pneumonia related deaths for the first three months of this year all of a sudden you will find that the number of pneumonia related deaths in the first three months of this year, you will find that this year in the first three months the death rate for pneumonia was more than double that for the whole of 2018!

Hmmm! Suspicious? Very! Especially when reports say that the COVID-19 symptoms are very similar to those of pneumonia.

So? Back to CNN and the BBC. Question: will their reporters care enough to check on what I've just said above and ask the appropriate questions? Or because this will not be a very big international story and will probably get about three minutes of airtime (if that) they will just let the Prime Minister speak, not question him with anything difficult  ... in other words, give him a free pass ... and then report how well T&T has done.

This has relevance, because both CNN and the BBC have very good reputations and if one (or both) report that T&T has done very well you can just imagine how this will play out on the political hustings! And the poor CNN/BBC reporters will have been unwitting stooges who have been cleverly duped by the Government and who will never understand that the real purpose of their being invited to make this interview was to change the narrative of the real problems that we face with the Delcy Rodriguez/Fuelgate fiasco. 

But , of course, the whole purpose of fake news is to try and change the narrative, deflection,  and it always sounds so much better when the fake news comes from a supposedly reliable source. You have to hand it to the PNM strategists, because if they have indeed thought this one up it's brilliant! But then , nobody ever said they were stupid! They might be a lot of other things, but stupid is definitely not one of them.

DO WE REALLY SUBSCRIBE TO DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES?

With so much going on right now, sometimes it is possible to lose track of everything that has happened over the last almost five years and forget things that were upsetting or hadn't properly been answered or explained away. So, in an effort to keep things in perspective, and in no particular order, here is a list of ten things that have been in the news since the last general election. This list is by no means a complete list, nor is it meant to be a list of the ten most important things that have been questioned and not answered satisfactorily. It's just a list of things which have never been satisfactorily answered with the understanding that there are many other matters that could classify for this listing:

  - the $143,000 cash deposit by Camille Robinson-Regis into her bank account
  - the Delcy Rodriguez visit ostensibly to discuss COVID-19 with no health officials present
  - the 150,000 barrels of gasoline that supposedly went to Aruba but where the tanker mysteriously
     disappeared  for four weeks with the gasoline
  - the Prime Minister calling the Leader of the Opposition a traitor because she wrote to the
    American Embassy about this fuel deal
  - not allowing the stranded cruise ship passengers in Barbados to return home while allowing Delcy
    Rodriguez and her party to come in
  - the lack of clear and credible information about COVID-19 and the lack of testing
  - the covering up of the Daryll Smith matter involving $150,000 of public money and a claim of
    sexual harassment
  - the $500 million repair bill for the Red House
  - the closing down of Petrotrin
  - the lack of transparency concerning the country's finances (e.g., how much has been taken ... and
    put back into the Heritage and Stabilization Fund?)

I could go on, but hopefully, you've got the point. Any one of the above matters requires a complete answer. And while there may be complete answers to all of them, we have never been given those answers.

Now, it is either we live in a democracy or we don't. And it is either that a democracy requires that the people are told the WHOLE truth about everything or it doesn't. And if the whole truth is to be hidden from the people then can we really call what we have a democracy?

BLOWS, MORE BLOWS, FAKE NEWS AND WHETHER STUART YOUNG WILL RESIGN

There is an old Chinese curse: may you live in interesting times. Well, it's hard to see how things could get any more interesting as they are right now. Let's start from the beginning of this week, Sunday 17th May: the Trinidad Express newspaper publishes a front page editorial calling on Stuart Young, the Minister of National Security, to resign. Then the next day the newspaper headlines are screaming about the resignation from the Cabinet of Robert Le Hunte, a former banker and the Vice Chairman of the ruling PNM.  Then on Tuesday comes the extraordinary statement from the American Ambassador where he says that it is not true that he didn't discuss the breaching of the Rio Treaty with Mr. Young. The Ambassador says that he did! This is, of course, basically calling Mr. Young a liar. Guess who the country believes is lying? Mr. Young has since come out with an explanation that can't be repeated here because it simply doesn't make sense. Basically, he seems to be saying that while the Rio Treaty was mentioned in his conversation with the Ambassador it was not mentioned in the context that he meant that it was not mentioned and so he didn't lie or mislead anybody. And if you can understand that you are better than I am!

And today Aruba has said that they didn't purchase any gasoline from Trinidad!

But it is absolutely clear that the Rowley regime has been dealt some very, very serious blows over the last few days. You can't help but wonder what will happen next?

Then social media is full of stories ... most of them fake. One such story that gained prominence over the weekend was that Dr. Rowley's daughter were being deported from the United States. It took about three days for this story to die (it was fake news) but up to today, Wednesday, there were still those asking whether or not there was any truth to it!

It is a measure of how little faith people have in the statements emanating from those at the head of the Government that people were willing to believe that this piece of fake news was indeed real. It was only the fact that the girls have simply not turned up in T&T that finally convinced many that the story was not true. Because most people do realize now that we have not only been consistently lied to by members of the Rowley regime, but that their collective actions have led us into dangerous waters putting us squarely in the cross hairs of the United States.

Nobody believes, for example, that Mr. Le Hunte resigned over a disagreement about WASA. There are stories circulating that there are other, more sinister, reasons as to why Mr. Le Hunte resigned. But your guess is as good as mine as to what the real reasons might be. Certainly, the WASA story is not very credible.

Take yet another story making the rounds right now: it is an established fact that Iran has loaded five tankers with fuel from its refineries and that these tankers are heading for Venezuela. There is intense international speculation as to whether or not the United States will allow the tankers through or whether or not the USA will use its powerful navy to stop the ships from getting through. I definitely (and most unfortunately) do not have a crystal ball so I can't say what will happen, but if I had to bet I'd bet one dollar to one doughnut (we'll decide later who pays the dollar and who pays the doughnut) that the USA will stop the Iranian tankers from getting through.  So far so good! B-u-t there is a report that I have seen that the Iranian tankers are diverting to Trinidad! To which I can only say : they've got to be crazy if this is true!

Iran is subject to American sanctions as is Venezuela. As the old people used to say, 'cockroach have no right in fowl business', and in this case we definitely would be the proverbial cockroach! And if we were so stupid as to allow Iranian sanction busting ships to enter our waters ... well, I shouldn't have to spell that out!

I can only pray that this latest story is also fake news, and that if there is any truth whatsoever to it that the powers-that-be think again and do not allow these tankers into our waters. And if you really have to ask why, then perhaps you need to go back to kindergarten. It will simply take too long to explain.

And I have another bet with the same stakes (one dollar to one doughnut): my bet is that Dr. Rowley will NOT accept Stuart Young's resignation but will call an election instead.

THE AMBITIOUS ANT WHO TRIED TO RAPE THE ELEPHANT

Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary Of The English Language (to give the work it's full name )1989 edition defines the word "traitor" at page 1503 as 'one who betrays a person'; or 'one who betrays his country by violating his allegiance'; or 'one guilty of treason'.  We could go on and look up the definitions of 'treason', 'sedition' and 'disloyalty', but I'm sure that you get the point. It is the very height of 'boldfacedness' and deflection to call Mrs. Persad Bissessar a traitor when she has done nothing except to bring to the country's (and the world's) attention the reckless actions of a Prime Minister and his cabal that have put Trinidad & Tobago squarely in the cross hairs of the huge gun that our neighbour to the north (the United States) has. The former Prime Minister has NOT betrayed her country!

And to make matters even worse I have heard supporters of the Prime Minister say words to the effect that we are an independent country and the United States is 'fars' and out of place to even contemplate telling us what to do. We will do what we like and be friends with whomsoever we like. So, take that!!

Well, that might sound as ambitious as the ant who crawled up the hind leg of an elephant with the intent of rape! But just as the elephant can safely swat the ant away with a swish of its tail, so can the USA do the same to us! Do you really believe that Venezuela, Cuba and Iran can save us? Or even that they will try?

 I don't get it. I really don't! In what universe is the traitor, the treacherous one, guilty of treason by saying 'hey, you who are in charge! You have possibly created a huge problem for us by dealing with these people who are effectively declared enemies of our largest and most powerful neighbour? So, please tell us exactly what you did and why you did it!' In most other people's world the possibly treasonous or traitorous one would be the one who did the act! But that is not the case here! If the Prime Minister is to be believed, the traitor is the one who has called everybody's attention to HIS actions!  Dr. Rowley and his supporters obviously either believe that the best defence is offense, or that their deflecting answering legitimate questions is a good way to run a democracy and that the only time that legitimate questions can be asked of a government is when they are not in power. And what is so awful is that there are many who are buying into this rubbish! And the mainstream media has either been bought off or is so cowed that they are allowing this terrible behaviour to pass with the merest or slightest criticism. Reading the papers and listening to the questioning by reporters of Mrs. Persad Bissessar after her virtual press conference one could not help but get the impression that either the reporters were really stupid and didn't understand how serious the situation is, or the reporters were desperately trying to find something to deflect from what the erstwhile Leader of the Opposition was saying. And this morning one newspaper runs a headline where Dr. Rowley called Mrs. Persad Bissessar a traitor! They pretend to achieve 'balance' by actually reporting in the body of the story what happened and what was actually said, but guess what will make the stronger impression? The headline or the actual story? Get the point?

It really doesn't make sense, and as Hitler's Nazi Minister of Propaganda, Josef Goebbels, used to say, 'the bigger the lie and the more often it is repeated the more people will believe it'.

No. This Government has not told us the truth about anything from COVID -19 to Delcy Rodriguez and everything in between. And they clearly aren't going to tell us now. But we should pay attention: all the signs point to an early general election ... possibly in June or July. And with a couple hundred million dollars in advertising revenues from the coming election jumping up, guess why the mainstream media will not rock Dr. Rowley's boat? The COVID-19 restrictions are going to be lifted and before things can get out of hand the election will be upon us. Further, it is a given that the Americans will not take this attempt by our ant to rape their elephant lying down. Therefore, before whatever they do to us can 'bite' it makes sense to call an election early. Watch!

CONNECTING THE DOTS ... RUDY MOONILAL AND HIS CRITICS

In the light of all the negative comments about Rudy Moonilal's letter to the American Ambassador, I was going to write a satirical article showing just how silly the criticisms were and how every criticism that I have read about this imbroglio is simply a  (not so clever) deflection of the real issues. However, somebody sent me this message below and I decided to copy it as if it was my own. I agree with every word in the article:


"CONNECT THE DOTS...
This is bigger than some may want to believe

DATELINES & EVENTS

●Thursday March 26, 2020: United States of America indicts Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro and his inner circles on charges of Narco Terrorism.

●Friday March 27, 2020: TT Prime Minister Keith Rowley met with Maduro's vice president Delcy Rodriguez at the Prime Minister's Residence in an impromptu urgent private meeting.
Prior to that meeting TT borders were closed from all incoming and out going flights except for those pertaining to Cargo.
Even TT citizens were prevented from returning home.

●Prior to the meeting with PM Rowley and National Security Minister Stuart Young, the Maduro proxy Delcy Rodriguez (who is under heavy EU sanctions) also held secret talks with Spain's Foreign Minister Jose Abalos.
The Spanish Minister has since been at the receiving end of intense rebukes from members of his own government and the Opposition party, as well as from several EU countries.
The Spanish Minister was gave no less than five (5) different reasons/versons for why he met with Delcy Rodriguez.

●Sunday April 12, 2020: Venezuelan journalist Simon Bolivar tweeted that a ship name "Throne" came into Trinidad borders in and around Chaguaramas then departed to Venezuela.
He described it as another example of (drug) smuggling actions.

 ●Wednesday April 21, 2020: Reuters news reported Venezuela has received a 150,000-barrel shipment of gasoline from a company owned by Maduro's friend, Venezuelan shipping magnate Wilmer Ruperti.
The "Aldan" tanker loaded in neighboring Trinidad and Tobago, Refinitiv Eikon data shows.

●Wednesday April 29, 2020: US intelligence alerted and prompted an operation by TT Coast Guard, which intercepted the ship "Throne" with cocaine valued US$160m (TT$663.4m).
US Naval Intelligence was closely monitoring the "Throne" as it sailed from Venezuela to Trinidad and Tobago coast.

●Friday May 1, 2020: International news reported another US Naval Intelligence alerted its EU counterparts, which intercepted another ship off Spain's coast with cocaine valued at US$165m.
An international maritime security site stated the vessel was loaded somewhere in the Caribbean.

●Saturday May 2  2020: The New York Post reported that the US$165m cocaine seizure off the coast of Spain was traced to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

 CRITICAL QUESTIONS
●1. Is it a coincidence that the two countries Delcy Rodriguez visited had intercepted cargo ships with cocaine  due to US-led intelligence?

●2. Is it a coincidence that the value of the two cocaine seizures was approximately the same value (US$160m off the TT coast and US$165m off the coast of Spain)?

●3. How come the Trinidad and Tobago radar system did not detect the first ship name Throne that came into and left Chaguaramas?
Or was it willfully allowed into our borders?

●4. How come National Security Minister Staurt Young did not hold press conference to discuss the seizure of such a huge drug bust?
Why Minister Young so silent on this big issue?
(A seizure of that magnitude certainly warrants bragging rights which he typically would have done).

●5. Apart from gasoline and oil dealings with Maduro proxies, how deep is PM Keith Rowley and National Security Stuart Young otherwise involved in or contaminated with US-indicted narco terrorist dictator Maduro?

STAY TUNED
●More Dots To Connect...
Coming Soonorning an article asking questions and making comments"

And although the article doesn't deal directly with what I call "the Moonilal issue" I would just like to say that in my opinion those who are criticizing the Opposition M.P. should answer the following questions:

- Do you believe that the Americans did NOT know about the ship that delivered 150,000 gallons of gasoline from Trinidad to Aruba BEFORE Mr. Moonilal wrote to them?
- Given that you think that Mr. Moonilal was somehow wrong to write to them would you change your mind if the Americans instead of putting sanctions on the whole country only put them on P.M. Rowley and a few other Cabinet members as a result of Mr. Moonilal telling them 'hey! We didn't know and don't agree with selling gas to Maburro! We aren't going to break your sanctions!'
- What exactly would you have done if you were in Mr. Moonilal's position? Just keep quiet?
- What do you think is the role of the Opposition in a democracy?
- Are you satisfied or are you of the belief that the Prime Minister really had no idea that the gasoline would end up in Venezuela? Really
- Do you think that the visit of the Venezuelan Vice president had anything to do with this/ Or do you think that she really just came to discuss COVID -19?
- Who do you think is more important to us? A country that sells us 70 percent of our food and buys 60 percent of our exports (the USA)? Or a country that bearly trades with us except to supply us wuth drugs and illegal arms (Venezuela)?

You see, I really don't want to argue with anybody about the above matters. All I ask is that those who support the Government of Dr. Rowley simply answer all of the above questions as clearly as possible. I am not interested in your personal opinions of me. They are irrelevant to the questions. Just give the answers!

WE ARE BEING LIED TO ABOUT EVERYTHING

In a conversation with a friend of mine this morning I discovered that he and his circle believe
that what is happening in T&T and whether or not the Government is telling us the truth about how the virus is being handled in T&T, is that we are being told the truth and that the Government is not lying to us about anything.

I found this to be very interesting because it means that the Government propaganda has been very effective and that most people simply do not question what they are told by the authorities. It also means (unfortunately) that those in my friend's circle are not as well informed as they should or could be. As to whether this is the fault of their inherent biases or that of the fact that they simply don't read or question anything, I obviously cannot say, though my money would be more on the fact that most people simply accept unquestioningly what they are told by the authorities and simply don't bother to read or question anything.

Let me give you a small example of what I mean: Yesterday the Prime Minister stood up in Parliament and said that he knew nothing about any tanker with gasoline from Trinidad going to Venezuela. Well, as I explained to my friend, a half truth is often more dangerous than a lie. Taken at face value Dr. Rowley's statement that he knows or knew nothing about the matter in question is clear and unambiguous. But if we dig a little more we discover that Dr. Rowley's Minister of Energy, Franklin Khan,  is reported as acknowledging that a large shipment of gasoline went to a refinery in Aruba. Now, that refinery in Aruba is owned by a company called Citgo which is owned by the Venezuelan oil company PDVSA.

Now, if the gasoline went to PVSA's subsidiary in  Aruba, and Venezuela is experiencing an extreme shortage of gasoline right now with very, very long lines at every gas station in that poor country, and the fact that PDVSA is one hundred percent owned by the Venezuelan Government how much would you like to bet that the gasoline from Trinidad did NOT go to Venezuela? Nothing? Neither would I! And given that the Government through its Minister of Energy knew that the gasoline went to Aruba, how much would you like to bet that the erstwhile Minister did NOT tell his boss (the Prime Minister) that this was going on or had gone on? Nothing? Neither would I! And how much do you want to bet that the Americans are NOT aware of this and are planning right now on how they are going to deal with this sanction busting exercise? Nothing? Neither would I!

That Dr. Rowley clearly told a half truth in Parliament and thus to the country is rather obvious. He can easily say that it is true that he doesn't know of any shipment of gasoline from Trinidad to Venezuela because there was none. But the whole truth is that he knew or ought to have known about the shipment to Aruba and is not so stupid as to be unable to connect the dots from there. Whatever you might think of the Prime Minister 'stupid' is definitely not one of his faults!

Which brings me back to the central point of this post: we are not being told the truth about anything ranging from the coronavirus to the gasoline to Venezuela and everything in between. It is clear to all but the most blind or biased that things are going on and that we are in it  so deeply that it ain't funny! And to those blind supporters of Dr. Rowley & Co., please don't try and deflect from the issues by calling me names or telling me about how wicked and evil the other side is. Give me the straight answers to the straight questions that are being asked about the economy, the %^&*&^%# virus and the gasoline sale (amongst other things). 

If (as appears strongly to be the case) the Government has engaged in a sanctions busting exercise then the whole country is going to pay dearly for it. But let's see what happens next. Certainly, things seem to be unraveling fast and who knows? By next week there may be something else on our minds. But, we should worry. We are not being told the whole truth about anything. And the question is why?

SOME SIMPLE QUESTIONS THAT BEG SIMPLE ANSWERS

Oh gosh! Is it too much to ask the politicians on ALL sides to just give us the facts and tell us the truth? I've just listened to a rant in Parliament by the erstwhile Minister of Health who did a very good job of attacking the Opposition UNC but failed miserably to answer any of the real questions that plague those of us who would like to know the answers. So, in the (possibly forlorn) hope that maybe ... just maybe ... straight answers could be forthcoming with simple 'yeses" or "nos" wherever applicable, and without obfuscation for the rest, here goes with a list of these questions again:

- Does the Minister of Health acknowledge that testing for the COVID-19 virus is most important?
- If the answer to this question is 'yes', then can the Minister of Health say exactly how many persons have been tested since 1st March, 2020. (And for the record, the question is NOT how many tests have been carried out, but how many persons have been tested? There is a difference.)
- Will the Minister of Health give the exact figures for how many people are reported to have died from pneumonia and other respiratory ailments for the whole of 2019 and 2018?
- Will the Minister of Health say exactly how many people are reported to have died from pneumonia and other respiratory ailments for the period  1st January, 2020 to 31st March, 2020?
- Is the Minister satisfied that sufficient testing for the virus to date has been done?
- Will the Minister of Health say what happened to the reported 4,000 testing kits supposedly sent from China some time ago? Did they arrive? Were they satisfactory? Was/is there any problem with them? Are they ALL in use?
- Does the Minister of Health believe that we have "flattened the curve"? If so, when does the Minister believe that the quarantine can be lifted?
- Does the Minister of Health have any plans for lifting the quarantine?
- If so, what exactly are those plans? (Will it be a gradual lifting or an immediate one?  What exactly are the plans for getting us all back to work?)
- There has been talk of a "second wave" of the virus. Does the Minister of Health consider that this might be a problem? If yes. then what and how exactly does the Minister propose to deal with it?
- Is it true that patients in Couva and Caura suspected of having the virus are being kept in rooms with others? Is this considered best practice?

And for the Minister of National Security:
- Is it true that there was a ship at Pointe-A-Pierre which loaded thousands of gallons of gasoline and took the cargo to Venezuela?
- If it is true, then when did you learn about it?
- Are you aware that the United States has imposed sanctions not only on Venezuela but on any countries that help Venezuela evade those sanctions?
- Is it true that the Chairman of Paria Fuel  is the husband of the Speaker in Trinidad & Tobago? (FYI, that company would have been the one to have provided the gasoline, the subject of this question).
- Did you go out to tender for the two million dollar security contract to three security companies which contract was rescinded after it was announced?
- Did the cancellation of those contracts cost T&T any money?
- Would you kindly explain the thinking behind the awarding of those contracts in the first place and tell us why you felt or believed that it was not appropriate to use the army?
- Is it true that the contracts were only cancelled because of the public furore that arose after they were announced? Or was there another reason for the cancellation? If there was another reason, then what exactly was the reason?

And for the Minister of Finance:
- Have you been dipping or have you dipped into the Heritage and Stabilization Fund? And if so, exactly how much have you taken out?
- Please note that the question is 'have you dipped...'. If you have dipped into the Fund, when did you do so?
- If you have dipped into the Fund how much have you replaced? If you have replaced anything at all, where did you get the replacement monies from?
-Have you put any monies borrowed from anywhere into the Fund? If so, how much, when and where exactly did these funds come from?
- If you did put monies into the Fund, where and how did you get these monies?
- People have been complaining that the financial relief promised to the population has been either very slow in coming or non-existent. How much has been paid out since the announcement? And if it is very little, the why?

There are many other questions, but it would be really, really nice if we could at least be trusted to get answers. It would be even nicer if the answers came down showing that we have absolutely no reason not to trust the Government and that in truth and in fact they are really doing the job which we elected them to do.




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WHAT IS REALLY GOING ON IN T&T?

I don't know about you, but I'm getting more than a little fed up with not knowing exactly what is going on in Trinidad & Tobago ... OUR country! I feel that we are not being told the truth about anything ranging from how many tests ... exactly ... are being conducted (and if it is really only a little more than 1,400 since the very beginning of this crisis, then why has there been so few?) to was there really a tanker here in Pointe-a-Pierre  collecting gasoline bound for Venezuela?

On this latter point, you do realize that if the story is true (and it was first reported by a very, very respected Venezuelan journalist) then why has our mainstream media soft-pedaled the story and not checked it out thoroughly? This story (if true) could have disastrous consequences for us as it would represent a clear attempt by the Rowley Government to assist Venezuela in defeating the sanctions imposed on the Maburro ... I'm sorry ... Maduro regime by the Americans. And the Yankees ain't gonna be too happy with that one little bit! And if you are so stupid as to ask what can the Americans do to us? The answer in two words is A LOT!

Look, I'll  be the first to admit that I don't like Maburro. I think that he is a crook! A big crook! He deals in drugs and is a murderer and a bloody dictator, amongst other things. His policies and the rape of his country have left millions of Venezuelans impoverished. (More than 4 million of them have fled as refugees!) And if he wants to sue me for defamation  I would welcome that for he will have to go into the witness box here in Trinidad and my lawyers will get a most welcome chance to cross-examine him.  My defence is justification. Everything that I have said here is  the truth.

But the real point here is that countries don't have friends, they have interests. In a thousand years it canNOT be in our best interests to be friendly with such a corrupt regime as is The Donkey's. And it HAS to be in our best interests to side with the Americans against him. (Again, if you are so stupid as to ask why then I really can't help you.)

But back to the point: the daily (or almost daily) briefings by the Government are absolutely pathetic.  I have been watching these daily briefings with mounting horror. The briefings (if you can call them that) are the exact opposite of what we need right now. We need, in one word, leadership. Our leaders have to be calm, they have to be factual, and above all they have to be honest!

I mean, look: there are so many things going on and rumours are rife. For example, the Prime Minister called a press conference this afternoon for 2pm. At a time when the mainstream media was focused on the Head of Government a rumour surfaced on social media that two flights from Florida (NETJETS FL# N134QS and FL#160QS) were scheduled to arrive at Piarco. So, first question: Is this true? Yes or no? We don't need a long meandering explanation that explains nothing.

Second question: if it is true, then who were the individuals on these private jets? What were they coming here for and who were they coming to see?

The country is crying out for leadership  ... honest leadership. If things are bad, then tell us how bad they really are and back it up with facts ... facts that can be verified. And please, let's stop all the politicking. I'm sure that we are all at that stage where we really don't care about scoring political points. That may work well with the respective bases of the two main parties, but the rest of us don't care. Just give us the facts ... and make sure that we have all of them.

And please, don't tell us that you are going to do only a mere 700 "random" tests between now and the 15th May. We sit somewhere near the bottom of the testing scale worldwide and it ought to be obvious that much, much more testing is required.  And while we are at it, can you tell us how many people have been reported as dying from pneumonia since this whole thing started? You see, there are rumours going around that a lot of COVID-19 deaths have been misreported as pneumonia. Is this true? You have a responsibility to separate fact from fiction and, yes, it is most important that you answer everyone of these rumours, uncomfortable though it may be.

The bottom line is that we have not been told the truth about too many things. I, for one,  for example, simply do not believe that the Venezuelan Vice President came here to discuss COVID-19. Convince me that is all she came for and you can start by telling the country who was in her entourage. Is it true that the President of PDVSA (the Venezuelan equivalent of Petrotrin except many times bigger and hasn't been shut down) came with her? If it is, then was his visit tied to that mysterious gasoline tanker I spoke about above?

And as for the mainstream media I have only this to say: you fellows should be ashamed of yourselves. You are NOT doing a good job of reporting what is going on. Instead you are simply repeating everything that the Government chooses to hand down and you do not follow up or ask the hard questions. And you should be. Not only is it important for our democracy, but it is even more important for our lives!

WHY?

It is almost impossible to accept that our country is grinding to a halt and that there is absolutely no end in sight to this pandemic. Almost everything is shut or shutting down and people are slowly running out of money. Oh! Some people still have jobs and are still getting paid, but I would guess that at least three quarters of the working population just ain't working any more and are sitting at home twiddling their thumbs.

This might not be so bad if we had some idea as to what exactly was going on and how well we were doing in this 'war' against this terrible virus. The problem is that we simply don't know what is really happening and the mainstream media either have been bought out by the Government and its suppporters or are simply so incompetent that they simply don't ask the right questions and allow the Government ministers at the innumerable press conferences to"gallery", talk rubbish and tell us, the citizenry, nothing useful. For example, does anybody know why the Venezuelan Vice President came over here two days after her boss, President Maburro, was indicted for drug dealing? And, please; we all know it wasn't to discuss the corona virus. If it was, then why wasn't there a joint press release immediately after the meeting and the media given a chance to ask questions? (Questions such as why go through the expense of a plane ride to discuss the virus when a virtual conference could have sufficed? I thought Venezuela was strapped for cash?) And while we're at it, why was Independence Square near to the Central Bank swarming with armed police the Saturday after her arrival? Is there any truth to the rumour that she brought with her some Venezuelan gold and that was the reason for the police presence? But the mainstream media just will not ask these or any other questions. Why?

Let me give you another very serious question: what exactly is happening with testing for the corona virus? How many people have been tested since the beginning of March? How many have been found to be positive? How many test kits are in the country? Where are they? How many ventilators are in teh country? How many are actually working?

I could go on, but you should be getting the point by now. It is impossible to say whether or not the Government is really doing a good job because we simply don't have enough information. Why? Why, for example, was there  this business of a mix-up with Ian Alleyne? Was he really tested positive again? What exactly is going on in these quarantine centres? Is it true that when you go into quarantine that you are put in a room with four or five other people? If not, are you placed in a room by yourself? If not, why not and how can this be a good thing to be locked up with strangers?

Now, I don't exactly admire Mr. Alleyne, but after hearing his story, how many of you would be willing to submit yourself to the medical authorities and trust them to do the right thing by you? Or would you prefer to take your chances and stay at home? And if you would prefer to stay at home, do you think that you are in a minority or a majority who feel that way?

And that's my point. Frankly, I don't trust the erstwhile Minister of Health. I am not convinced that he has told us the either the truth nor the whole truth about what's going on. Maybe he has and simply has a most unfortunate manner about him that leads one to believe that he is covering up something, but if he is then what is he covering up and why?

And I haven't seen ANY journalist grill him about testing? Why? And by the way, if ... according to official reports ... there are so relatively few cases with approximately half of them coming from a single source ... the cruise ship ... then can we safely assume that we have dodged a bullet and that the Government has done a great job and that the country can re-open within the next two weeks? And if not, why not?

P.S. About the Venezuelan V.P., why could we let her and her entourage in, but we cannot let in our citizens stranded in Barbados?

THE TRUTH, THE WHOLE TRUTH AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH!

It is difficult, if not impossible to try and figure out when this emergency partial shut down of T&T will either end or be relaxed enough for life to resume some semblance of normality. One thing is certain, we aren't being given all of the facts, and again the question has to be why? Why does the government continue to hide things from us?

Look, although I recieved a personal benefit from Carnival being allowed to go on (my daughter and her husband who live in Australi and whom I hadn't seen for 6 years came for Carnival) I felt at the end of January (before they came) that at the very least Carnival should have been postponed. That it wasn't is now water under the bridge. That ugly and unnecessary suspicions have arisen as to why it wasn't at least postponed also will need to be addressed at some time in the future.

But I get the inescapable feeling that the Government's approach to this crisis is akin to trying to build a plane and to fly it at the same time! There are too many questionable decisions being made and then unmade ... the news about hiring and then unhiring the four security firms comes to mind. And while we are on that particular point, can anybody explain the rationale for that decision in the first place? Oh! I know that it was about security, but why use (and pay for) private security firms when you have an army that is just sitting there doing nothing? Doesn't this sound like a "job-for-the boys" kind of deal? And if not, then why do YOU think why not?

There are lots of questions that need to be asked and answered. Regretably, at this time of national crisis there is an absolute dearth of credible answers and so-called daily news conferences by the Government give us nothing except for a bare minimum of information.

And while we are on that, is our Prime Minister ill? I sincerely hope not, but I noticed on television a few days ago (which was the last time that I saw him) that he appeared to be slightly breathless. Unfortunately, I wasn't the only one who noticed that, which is why I'm asking the question now. You see, regardless of which side of the political divide you happen to fall on, Dr. Rowley IS our Prime Minister and his health ought to be of concern to all.

There is only one test for leadership: and that is to lead vigourously. And leadership at this time (inter alia) entails trusting us (the entire population of T&T) with the whole truth. And that just ain't happening right now!

IS THE GOVERNMENT DOING A GOOD JOB IN FIGHTING THE PANDEMIC?

The Ministry of Health and the Government seem to be saying that they are doing a good job with this coronavirus business. Certainly, that is the impression that I have from all of their pronouncements from the Prime Minister on down. But are they really? Are they handling this pandemic in a way that is beneficial to the country as a whole and which ought to give us the reasonable confidence that everything that ought to be done is in fact being done?

Let's start with the numbers. The last set that I saw from the Ministry of Health said that some 736 persons had been screened, some 103 persons had tested positive and there had been 6 deaths. 
So? What exactly do those numbers mean? As I read them they seem to be saying that less than 800 people have been screened and 'screened' doesn't mean tested.  Or does it? Let's assume that is what it means. So, a little less than 800 people have been screened and "only" a little more than 100 people have been found to be positive. Put another way, about one in seven people tested have been found to be positive.

But (and you knew there was going to be a "but", didn't you?) Trinidad & Tobago has a population of about 1.3 million people. So, if less than 800 people out of 1.3 million have been tested it kind of puts the "kibosh" on it, doesn't it? You don't think so? Well, the nearest country I could find with reported figures on testing that had a similar population to us was Bahrain. They have a population of some 1.7 million people and guess how many people they have tested? Almost 5,000!! And they have found a little less than 800 people out of those 5,000 to have tested positive for the virus!

You don't have to be a mathematical genius to work out that Bahrain's response as regards testing is way better than ours. So? Why have we tested so few people? Why was there no screening for the virus of incoming passengers before Carnival? Did Minister Deyalsingh lie to us when he said that incoming passengers would be screened? (He said that on 31st January.) Or was he lied to by staff in his Ministry? Because there was NO screening done before or after Carnival ... at least nobody that I have spoken with who came into the country since 31st January noticed any screening taking place. And if our screening/testing is inadequate what does that mean in our battle to fight this virus?

And while we're at it, perhaps now would be a good time for the Minister to explain the difference between screening and testing ... if there is one. Or are the terms interchangeable? In any case, shouldn't we be doing A LOT more testing?

The whole country is virtually shut down. We can't continue like this indefinitely. I certainly don't blame the Government for the virus coming here. That was inevitable. But I am beginning to get very worried that they are not doing everything that they should be doing in fighting to get it under control. Reports are coming out of gross incompetence at the hospitals which the main stream media seems to be ignoring. Now, either these reports are true or they are not. If they are, then the main stream media has a duty that borders on the sacred to tell us. And if the reports are gross exaggerations or are simply not true then their duty is also crystal clear.  Certainly, their reporting on our Government's handling of the virus can't hold a candle to the reporting by the main stream media in the big countries. We, the public, deserve to be told the raw unvarnished truth ... and we don't seem to be getting it from anywhere? Why?

P.S. Still think that the Government is doing a good job?  Why do you think so?

UNASWERED QUESTIONS

It is difficult in this trying time of the pandemic not to go blaming whoever may be in charge of the country for all that is going or has gone wrong. Certainly, there is (in my respectful view) an awful lot of criticism that can be levelled agaist the powers-that-be for their handling of the pandemic to date, but the truth is that criticizing ain't gonna change a thing.

What is preferable AT THE MOMENT (and I've deliberately put those words in capital letters because I want to try and get away as much as possible from criticisms that really do not help to solve aanything and simply serve to entrench everybody in their respective political positions) is that we all try to look at exactly where we are in this pandemic, exactly what we are doing and not doing, exactly what we should be doing and how should we be going about it.

To this end, I must say that I do have a criticism that is intended to try and help. My criticism is that I (along with a lot of other people) don't believe that we are being given the full story by the authorities. For example, the international media have made it clear that testing for the virus is critically important. So? Does anybody know how many testing kits are in the country? Does anybody know how many people have in fact been tested for the virus? Get the point? Incidentally, if you do, then please jump in and tell us.

There are may other matters that have not been properly explained. For example, Prime Minister Rowley and Minister Robert LeHunte went to Ghana recently. Neither of them have been reported as being quarantined after their return even though it was subsequently reported that their host, the President of Ghana tested positive for the deadly virus. So? Should we be worried about this? And if not, why not? Incidentally, late last week we were given the very sad news that Dr. Rowley's brother as well as Mr. Lehunte's mother had died but we weren't told the cause of their reespective deaths. Is this something that we should be concerned about?

You see, the problem that most people have is that we all have the very uneasy feeling that there is a lot going on that we simply don't know about. There are too many questions floating around ... like the dreaded virus ... in the air. This gives rise not only to great uneasiness but creates a lack of trust just at the time when we should be trusting and depending that those in charge know what they are doing. And whether it is through incompetence, arrogance or the fact that he doesn't want to tell us or a combination of all of the above, the pronouncements of the erstwhile Minister of Health  have done nothing to calm people's fears. One gets the very uneasy feeling that he really doesn't know what he is doing and/or is not telling us everything.

Take another example: the Vice President of Venezuela came here last week ostensibly to discuss the coronavirus epidemic. Really? Is that true? Because quite honestly it would have made more sense for cash strapped Venezuela not to send the good lady on an expensive flight but to save money by video conferencing. And if the coronavirus was not the real reason for the trip what was the reason? Could it have had anything to do with the Americans accusing President Maburro ... sorry, Maduro ... of narco trafficking? 

The media, who have a serious role to play, also seem bent on doing nothing but praising the Government for its handling of this crisis. I have seen absolutely no criticisms, for example, of either the Speaker of the House nor the President of the Senate who refused debate of this pandemic both ruling that it was neither urgent nor a matter of public importance. What could have come out of such a debate had it been allowed? Were they afraid to allow the debate? If so, why? But nobody is asking these questions.

Look, I am as concerned as any right thinking person ought to be over this whole situation.  Why, for example, is KFC allowed to stay open but not doubles vendors? Is this discrimination ... racial or otherwise?

 There are a lot of other questions, but hopefully you get the point. We, the public,  need to be dealt with openly and honestly.  Those of us over 21 should be adult enough to hear all of the facts. At the moment it really feels that we are not being given them. And that, if true, is worse than insulting. It borders on the criminal and is certainly dictatorial.