A large number of Trini expressions are well known to predict the outcome of certain deviant behaviours with a great degree of accuracy. Take this one, for example: Every hog have their Saturday.
Commonly used by mothers when giving a stern warning to recalcitrant boy children, these admonitions eventually end up with the nonchalant delinquent receiving a good cut tail which, like friends with benefits, he would nurse as a helpful lesson on how to stay on the straight road for the rest of his life. So the formula worked.
Or, as another saying goes: Good things come to those who wait.
That’s how we can explain the sense of quiet satisfaction felt deep down inside by the happy T&T men finally collecting their Olympic gold medals won 14 years ago? T&T’s 2008 4x100m relay team comprised Keston Bledman, Marc Burns, Emmanuel Callender and Richard Thompson, as well as Aaron Armstrong.
The team originally was awarded silver medals after placing second in the Beijing Olympic Games. With the elimination of Jamaica which was first awarded the Gold medal, the TT team was adjudged First.A matter of similar nature came to the fore in the Media recently, bravely taken up by Newsday writer Paolo Kernahan who bought the fight on behalf on his colleague Darren Bahaw against TT Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley – whose growling voice and rock so manner could not shake either of these two men.
Kernahan observed that “Darren Bahaw was determined (at a recent news conference)to get an answer out of the PM on whether due diligence was done before the appointment of Reginald Armour as Attorney General and whether Armour had declared his potential conflict in the Piarco Airport matter before accepting the appointment”.
“I’m not going down that road with you,” thundered the PM. In fact, it was Bahaw who wasn’t going down Rowley’s road of long-winded rants with no bearing on questions asked.
When TV6 reporter Urvashi Tewarie-Roopnarine asked (at the same news conference) if the PM believed the AG brought the country into disrepute when he was disqualified in the Piarco matter in a Miami court, Dr Rowley gave his typical non-answer answer.
As Kernahan put it: “He swapped recusal for disqualification like he was choosing ties and then resorted to his usual interminable monologue – UNC works conspiring to destabilise and embarrass the country and other yarns of opposition villainy”.
This is a well-worn strategy deployed by the PM to ascribe any legitimate concerns about his government to the machinations of the Opposition. No other citizens or groups are perturbed by failures of governance, Kernahan added.
It’s apparently the same zig-zag behaviour pattern which was displayed by former Prime Minister Basdeo Panday, his wife Oma and others. He appeared last week in Court in a 14-year corruption case for which a number of their American-based counterparts have already pleaded guilty and finished serving their time.
Among other cases surrounding this matter, Panday is accused of receiving of Panday is accused of corruptly receiving £25,000 Sterling from then Works Minister Carlos John and businessman Ish Galbaransingh.
This particular indictment states:
“On or about the 24th of December 1998, in the island of Trinidad and Tobago and elsewhere, (Carlos John and Ishwar Galbaransingh) being an agent, did corruptly give the sum of 25,000 pounds sterling to Basdeo Panday, an agent, as an inducement or reward for the said Basdeo Panday favouring or forbearing to disfavour the interest of Northern Construction Ltd in relation to its principal business, namely Construction Package 3 at the new terminal development project at Piarco Airport, a matter in which a public body, namely the Airports Authority of Trinidad and Tobago was concerned, contrary to Section 4 (b) of the Prevention of Corruption Act Number 11 of 1987”..
As if the Panday and other situations were not enough, then came the statement by the Police Services Association that it had done “an appraisal of former commissioner of police (CoP) Gary Griffith’s performance from January-August 2021”. It says it hopes to complete the process for the appointment of a new commissioner by the end of the year.
In a statement, the PSC said the Constitution mandated it to appoint a commissioner and deputy commissioner, and do an annual performance appraisal on these office holders.
“With respect to its responsibility for the preparation of performance appraisal reports, the PSC is now involved in the finalisation of the performance appraisal report for the past commissioner of police, Mr Gary Griffith.
“In accordance with the established procedure, the commission is required to meet with Mr Griffith in this regard.”
The appraisal was done on June 28.
This was another case of Wheel and Come Again as Gary Griffith who was hounded out of office, seems to be making a Tack Back for his old job which, many believe – especially in the way he publicly shat upon and disappointed PM Rowley while in office – is now a case of : Dat and God Face!
In this connection therefore, it is left to be seen how he will deal with President Paula-Mae Weeks who also suffered collateral damage from GG’s close encounters of the political kind.
All this drama shows is that, no matter how you twist and turn in your attempts to escape the legal TT system you can often feels you’re swimming in like molasses.
But have no fear, as former government People’s National Movement (PNM) Minister Ken Valley warned House Speaker Occah Seepaul:
You can run but you can’t hide!
And then Ken suddenly died.
