Calder Hart

The police have begun probing the C.H. Development contract to build the Legal Towers building. But where is Canada-born Calder Hart and his family?

Prime Minister Patrick Manning’s blue-eyed boy Calder Hart is cooling his heels abroad while the cops today began probing corruption charges at UDECOTT during his tenure as chairman.

The police are doing this under instructions from newly appointed Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard who has acted on serious allegations contained in a letter from the Opposition Congress of the People (COP) dealing with family links between Hart’s wife, Sherinne and C.H.Development of Malyasia which was awarded a $368 million construction contract by UDECOTT.

The allegations have been circulating since 2008 when former Attorney General Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj first brought up the matter and last year Sherinne’s former husband Carl Khan swore to an affidavit confirming the rumours. The affidavit was placed before the Professor Uff Commission of Enquiry into UDECOTT and the construction sector unchallenged.

Significantly Hart’s lawyers did not take issue with the damaging affidavit and earlier Hart could not explain why C.H. Development had his personal fax number on its letterhead.

The calls for an investigation into the matter have been mounting and it was felt that the police, the Attorney General or the DPP could have taken action.

The DPP had earlier intimated that he was awaiting Professor Uff’s report but has, obviously, changed his mind.

The report is overdue and should be presented to President Max Richards before the end of March now that High Court Judge Mira Dean-Amorer cleared the way on Friday.

Hart, who was repeatedly stoutly defended and praised by Manning, was suddenly sacked on Saturday as Chairman of UDECOTT, The National Insurance Board, the National Insurance Property Development Company Ltd, The Home Mortgage Bank and the Trinidad and Tobago Mortgage Finance Company.

Hart immediately flew out of the country with hus wife and young daughter.

His whereabouts are unknown.

Sunderland….Read more from the U.K.Guardian.

Steve Bruce has said it would take a “mind-blowing” offer to prise Kenwyne Jones
from Sunderland and doubts if the clubs who want to buy him would prove able –
or willing – to meet the necessary price.
Birmingham, Stoke, Liverpool and Spurs are believed to be interested in the
Trinidad & Tobago striker, who has scored six goals for Sunderland this season.
“We all know in football that everybody’s got their price, whether you’re Steven
Gerrard or Cristiano Ronaldo,” Bruce said. “But the one thing I want to do here
is try and build a squad. If something out there blows our brains … but with
no disrespect to Stoke or Birmingham, can they afford him? I very much doubt it.
It’s not just the transfer fee but wages, all the rest of it. I just can’t see
it.”
Sunderland’s manager admits he has found working with the talented but laid-back
striker a frustrating experience. Signed by Roy Keane from Southampton for £6m
Jones was once described as “the most difficult” Premier League forward to mark
by Chelsea’s John Terry but has proved inconsistent this season.
“On his day I think you can look at Kenwyne and say he’s worth £40m, then on
another day you’ll think, ‘Come on you’,” Bruce said. “That’s Kenwyne. We’ve got
to get him to a level where with his ability, he could play in any team. The
thing with Kenwyne is for him to grasp the nettle.
“To be a Chelsea player, or a Man United player, or a Liverpool player, what
makes them stand out is they can perform at a level week in, week out. It’s a
level a lot of players find difficult to get to. They’re the demands of a huge
club and we’ve got to try and get Kenwyne like that, because when he is playing
at his best, he is a fantastic footballer.
“He tests you. He tests your skills as a manager. He’s a big, genuine, nice lad,
an easy-going, gentle boy. We know what it is – the challenge is to get the best
out of him. The ability is there.”
Sunderland have flown to the Algarve to prepare for Saturday’s game at Chelsea.
Although the weather in southern Portugal is hardly warm at least it will enable
the squad to work outside. “We’ve trained properly once in more than two and a
half weeks,” Bruce said. “We’ve done stuff indoors and in gyms but it’s been far
from ideal.”

He points out that in the 2007 general election the Congress of the People and the Congress of the People together gathered 56 per cent of the votes cast and technically could have won that election.

Winston Dookeran believes a united opposition will win the next

general election  but for the moment is keeping his Congress of the People (COP) a separate  entity.

In  a recent interview at the new COP offices on Tragarete Road, Port of Spain, Dookeran said his party had several new ideas on how to end the divisive racial politics of Trinidad and Tobago and impove the country’s  socio-economic condition.

He said the COP and the United National Congress (UNC) together won about 56 per cent of the votes cast in the November, 2007 general election, indicating they would have won if they were united then.

The COP, in fact, did not win a single seat although they got about 25 per cent of the votes cast-149,000 votes.

“That was a remarkable achievement for a new party,”  said Dookeran who set up the COP in 2006 after severing ties with then UNC leader Basdeo Panday.

Panday recently lost control of  the UNC  he founded more then 20 years ago and led to Government in 1995.

The UNC voters elected Kamla Persad- Bissessar mew leader of the UNC.

Panday was Prime Minister until December 2001 when the PNM was returned to power amid allegations of high level corruption. Similar allegations caused the PNM to lose the 1986 election.

Kamla is now the official leader of the Opposition.

Both Kamla and Dookeran had differences with the strong-willed Panday who is arguably Trinidad and Tobago’s most experienced politician.

The charismatic Panday has been a political warrior since the 1960s when he contested a seat under the Workers and Farmers Party.

Over the past decade or so, he has come into conflict with some leading UNC officials who labelled him an obstacle to opposition unity.

Panday, in turn, accused his detractors of being the obstacles.Kamla’s victory has galvanized the political environment.

Prime Minister Patrick Manning’s popularity has waned, especially after PNM colleague, Dr Keith Rowley, openly accused him of condoning corruption.

Some analysts believe that disenchanted PNM supporters will vote for Kamla’s UNC  if  Manning leads the PNM into the next election.

She is widely seen as the front runner, bur some analysts doubt

she can prevail in a notoriously macho field.

Kamla seems to have the edge at present, but as Britain’s wartime leader Winston Churchill once opined: “A week is a long time in politics.”.

People of African descent generally support the PNM while East Indians generally back the UNC.

The COP has been trying to present a multi- cultural and multi ethnic image but some see the party as UNC number two since Dookeran is an East Indian Hindu.

Dookeran, an economist, has an avuncular image.

A former Head of the Central Bank, Dookeran served as a minister in the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) Government of former Prime Minister ANR Robinson.

The NAR won by a landslide in 1986 but the PNM was returned to power in 1991.

Ideology has never played a major part in Trinidad and Tobago racial politics.

But the country’s growing middle class is beginning to call  for more attention to issues.

Ironically, the PNM can take much credit for the relatively large growth of the middle class since independence in 1962.

But it is also being blamed for its inability to curb the escalating crime rate, the poor state of the public services, rampnnt corruption and other social ills.

When dealing with issues, the new COP seems to have an edge over the UNC.

The COP is widely seen as a middle class conservative party,  but it does enjoy some “grass roots” support.

Dokeran has expounded some new ideas on social and political changes, but the three political parties are all essentially centrist parties.

Dookeran said that the COP favours a “synthesis of the free market with social welfare reforms”.

This comes across as social democracy, a platform supported by the two other political parties.

The so called free market is a myth in Trinidad and Tobago where monopolies abound and consumers have little or no protection.

The trade unions are mainly ineffective and employers can keep wages down with little opposition and earn massive profits.

Dookeran said that he has a programme to correct some social ills and one of his priorities will be to end “ethnic insecurity.”

Under a COP administration “TrinTobagonians” of all ethnic backgrounds will receive equal treatment, he said.

The COP has attracted support from mixed race Trinis who tend to believe that their non African inputs make them politically and socially suspect.

About six of every 10 Trinis is now of  mixed race although for statistical purposes many of  them are considered black.

This stereotyping is the norm in Anglo- Saxon countries and lumps together people who have vast cultural differences.

Trinidad and Tobago is a very complex society and some dark complexion citizens might be more culturally white than many of much lighter complexion.

Education is the key to eradicating social differences and Dookeran said that the COP will play a major role in this regard.

“We plan to empower young people by educatng them.” Dookeran said

Since independence in 1962, Trinidad and Tobago has failed to forge a nation united by a single vision, according to a COP document entitled “The Politics of  Nationhood.”

“Instead, we have institutionalized colonialism and allowed our politicians to create a dependency syndrome as a tool of  patronage ….” it added.

The present system of winner takes all means that those not aligned to the rulmg party are relegated to second class status, the document said.

The document also charged that “the growth of the criminal industry is intermingled with politics.”

“An election agenda can get a party into power, but the political agenda will sustain your power. ” it said.

An intense policial battle has already begun and Trin-Tobagonians will give their verdict before the end of  2012.

United Opposition will win next election-Dookeran

He points out that in the 2007 general election the Congress of the People and the Congress of the People together gathered 56 per cent of the votes cast and technically could have won that election.

Winston Dookeran believes a united opposition will win the next

general election  but for the moment is keeping his Congress of the People (COP) a separate  entity.

In  a recent interview at the new COP offices on Tragarete Road, Port of Spain, Dookeran said his party had several new ideas on how to end the divisive racial politics of Trinidad and Tobago and impove the country’s  socio-economic condition.

He said the COP and the United National Congress (UNC) together won about 56 per cent of the votes cast in the November, 2007 general election, indicating they would have won if they were united then.

The COP, in fact, did not win a single seat although they got about 25 per cent of the votes cast-149,000 votes.

“That was a remarkable achievement for a new party,”  said Dookeran who set up the COP in 2006 after severing ties with then UNC leader Basdeo Panday.

Panday recently lost control of  the UNC  he founded more then 20 years ago and led to Government in 1995.

The UNC voters elected Kamla Persad- Bissessar mew leader of the UNC.

Panday was Prime Minister until December 2001 when the PNM was returned to power amid allegations of high level corruption. Similar allegations caused the PNM to lose the 1986 election.

Kamla is now the official leader of the Opposition.

Both Kamla and Dookeran had differences with the strong-willed Panday who is arguably Trinidad and Tobago’s most experienced politician.

The charismatic Panday has been a political warrior since the 1960s when he contested a seat under the Workers and Farmers Party.

Over the past decade or so, he has come into conflict with some leading UNC officials who labelled him an obstacle to opposition unity.

Panday, in turn, accused his detractors of being the obstacles.Kamla’s victory has galvanized the political environment.

Prime Minister Patrick Manning’s popularity has waned, especially after PNM colleague, Dr Keith Rowley, openly accused him of condoning corruption.

Some analysts believe that disenchanted PNM supporters will vote for Kamla’s UNC  if  Manning leads the PNM into the next election.

She is widely seen as the front runner, bur some analysts doubt

she can prevail in a notoriously macho field.

Kamla seems to have the edge at present, but as Britain’s wartime leader Winston Churchill once opined: “A week is a long time in politics.”.

People of African descent generally support the PNM while East Indians generally back the UNC.

The COP has been trying to present a multi- cultural and multi ethnic image but some see the party as UNC number two since Dookeran is an East Indian Hindu.

Dookeran, an economist, has an avuncular image.

A former Head of the Central Bank, Dookeran served as a minister in the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) Government of former Prime Minister ANR Robinson.

The NAR won by a landslide in 1986 but the PNM was returned to power in 1991.

Ideology has never played a major part in Trinidad and Tobago racial politics.

But the country’s growing middle class is beginning to call  for more attention to issues.

Ironically, the PNM can take much credit for the relatively large growth of the middle class since independence in 1962.

But it is also being blamed for its inability to curb the escalating crime rate, the poor state of the public services, rampnnt corruption and other social ills.

When dealing with issues, the new COP seems to have an edge over the UNC.

The COP is widely seen as a middle class conservative party,  but it does enjoy some “grass roots” support.

Dokeran has expounded some new ideas on social and political changes, but the three political parties are all essentially centrist parties.

Dookeran said that the COP favours a “synthesis of the free market with social welfare reforms”.

This comes across as social democracy, a platform supported by the two other political parties.

The so called free market is a myth in Trinidad and Tobago where monopolies abound and consumers have little or no protection.

The trade unions are mainly ineffective and employers can keep wages down with little opposition and earn massive profits.

Dookeran said that he has a programme to correct some social ills and one of his priorities will be to end “ethnic insecurity.”

Under a COP administration “TrinTobagonians” of all ethnic backgrounds will receive equal treatment, he said.

The COP has attracted support from mixed race Trinis who tend to believe that their non African inputs make them politically and socially suspect.

About six of every 10 Trinis is now of  mixed race although for statistical purposes many of  them are considered black.

This stereotyping is the norm in Anglo- Saxon countries and lumps together people who have vast cultural differences.

Trinidad and Tobago is a very complex society and some dark complexion citizens might be more culturally white than many of much lighter complexion.

Education is the key to eradicating social differences and Dookeran said that the COP will play a major role in this regard.

“We plan to empower young people by educatng them.” Dookeran said

Since independence in 1962, Trinidad and Tobago has failed to forge a nation united by a single vision, according to a COP document entitled “The Politics of  Nationhood.”

“Instead, we have institutionalized colonialism and allowed our politicians to create a dependency syndrome as a tool of  patronage ….” it added.

The present system of winner takes all means that those not aligned to the rulmg party are relegated to second class status, the document said.

The document also charged that “the growth of the criminal industry is intermingled with politics.”

“An election agenda can get a party into power, but the political agenda will sustain your power. ” it said.

An intense policial battle has already begun and Trin-Tobagonians will give their verdict before the end of  2012.

.

.

A West Indies 245 for 9 (Chanderpaul 58, Barath 35, Chigumbura
2-43). Read more….

Shivnarine Chanderpaul led a much-improved West Indian response to Zimbabwe’s
spin attack to help the hosts reach a competitive 245 for 9. A cursory glance at
the scorecard points towards useful contributions from the bulk of the line-up
with eight batsmen reaching double-figures. Chris Gayle and Adrian Barath played
steady knocks, Chanderpaul provided solidity in the middle overs and the middle
order provided a surge at the death – 98 came off the last ten overs – to lift
West Indies to a score they will back themselves to defend.
Full report to follow
25 overs West Indies 84 for 1 (Barath 33*, Chanderpaul 14*) v Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe’s one-dimensional attack didn’t let West Indies accelerate, making the
hosts labour to 84 for 1 by the halfway mark at Arnos Vale. With spin from the
second over of the innings, it was clear that Zimbabwe’s strategy was to
strangle the batsmen by bowling a restrictive line, with the pitch offering
enough bounce as assistance. It was upto the hosts to try and work around that
and scrape out as much as possible on a venue not known for producing high
scores.
There was some encouraging bounce and movement off the seam for Zimbabwe when
Elton Chigumbura took the new ball, but another seamer at the other end would
have come in handy for Zimbabwe. Gayle’s footwork against him was very tentative
- he was practically nailed to the crease.
Gayle chose to go after the spinners but he nearly walked back on 4 when a top
edge off Ray Price dropped in the region behind short third man. He picked up
his first boundary by pulling a half-tracker from Price past midwicket in the
sixth over, before launching the same bowler over the roof at deep midwicket in
the tenth.
It was a quiet start by Gayle’s standards, with West Indies moving to 36 for no
loss after the first Powerplay. Gayle had only then started to open up, whipping
Chigumbura across the line to the deep midwicket boundary. But he was foxed by
his opposing number, Prosper Utseya, when on 33, beaten by the loop and turn and
stumped – for the first time in his ODI career – by Tatenda Taibu before he
could drag his foot back.
Zimbabwe could have claimed Barath as well, on 8, had Brendan Taylor not dropped
a sitter at square leg. It would have been a reward for some good bowling by the
spin trio of Price, Utseya and Greg Lamb. Barath made several attempts to chip
down the track, get to the pitch of the ball and force it through, only to check
his shot in the end. He employed the sweep on a few occasions and brought up his
second boundary by bisecting the big gap at deep square leg. Chanderpaul and
Barath then went about doing it in singles, and that trend is likely to
continue, with boundaries hard to come by.

Kanishkaa Balachandran is a
sub-editor at Cricinfo

Watson Duke

Civil Service strike on Monday

Here we go again!

The Public Services Association (PSA) has called another one- day strike for next Monday in its current struggle with the Government regarding the proposed Trinidad and Tobago Revenue Authority.

When the first day of “rest” occurred on March 1 mostly Inland Revenue and Customs Officers did not turn out for work and the union is hoping for a greater response.

Watson Duke, the bug-eyed PSA President has warned that around Easter the protest will escalate.

From Jamie Alter, Cricinfo

West Indies downward one-day curve got a much needed ;ift on Saturday. Read more from

Cricinfo….

West Indies’ downward one-day curve got a much needed lift on Saturday, when the
hosts beat Zimbabwe by four wickets to level the series. It was their first
victory in an international fixture since August last year, and the relief on
their faces was palpable. It was also indicative of how hard the last few months
have been for them, but as they approach the third ODI in Kingstown the momentum
is still not entirely with them. It means the series is now locked at 1-1 and
Wednesday’s match will put one team within a win of taking the series.
West Indies have struggled so far in the matches against Zimbabwe, labouring to
victory in the second game after losing the Twenty20 and the first ODI. What
will give them confidence though is the return of the key allrounder Dwayne
Bravo, whose presence – despite having not played for nearly three months – will
almost certainly lift the team. West Indies’ most valuable one-day player, Bravo
adds depth to a shaky batting order and his bowling, most notably subtle
variations of pace, can do real damage.
The comments of head coach Ottis Gibson on Bravo’s return underline the
influence of the star allrounder. “He has only just come back and already you
can feel the energy he brings. He is a very important player and already the
players have perked up with him around,” was Gibson’s assessment, and it shows
just how Bravo can strengthen West Indies as a team.
On the other side, going into a crucial game, Zimbabwe have been hurt by the
departure of fast bowler Kyle Jarvis with a stress fracture. Though Jarvis had
not featured in any of the three international games on the tour so far, his
departure leaves Zimbabwe’s pace bowling reserves looking a little thin. Chris
Mpofu leaked 30 runs in four wayward overs during West Indies’ win in the second
ODI, and although Shingi Masakadza held his nerve in a tense final over in the
first game in Guyana, he too was expensive. Zimbabwe’s batting fell away in the
second ODI, and that was one of the reasons behind their loss. They will hope
the surface at Kingstown will be more suitable for batting and look to their top
order to come good.
Form guide
(last five completed matches, most recent first)

West Indies – WLLLL
Zimbabwe – LWLLL
Watch out for…
Darren Bravo: If he gets a chance to add to the four ODI caps he picked up
during the homes series against India after the World Twenty20 last year, this
highly-rated young batsman is one to keep an eye on. After his debut innings, a
cameo 19, Darren drew comparisons to Brian Lara, for the similarity in technique
as well as looks. The style is there, no doubt, but the substance needs to be
forthcoming.
Tatenda Taibu: Zimbabwe urgently need him firing in his all-round capacity if
they are to combat West Indies’ growing confidence. Taibu has shown promising
form in the two ODIs so far but needs to get himself in for a big innings should
Zimbabwe happen to bat first. The middle order has been shaky and the tourists
cannot afford to leave it all to the gung-ho Elton Chigumbura at No. 7.
Team news
The out-of-form Andre Fletcher, who has six ducks in his previous eight innings
for West Indies, and allrounder Dwayne Smith have been dropped. Fletcher’s axing
means that Denesh Ramdin, the regular wicketkeeper over the past few years, who
was benched after a string of poor batting performances, is likely to return to
the first XI. Dwayne Bravo will certainly feature, but the management will need
to take a call on whether Darren gets a game. Both Adrian Barath and David
Bernard jnr have failed to fire so Darren could slot in as opener or No. 3 if
one of them makes way.
West Indies: (probable) 1 Chris Gayle (capt), 2 Adrian Barath/Darren Bravo, 3
Dwayne Bravo, 4 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 5 Narsingh Deonarine, 6 Kieron Pollard,
7 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 8 Darren Sammy, 9 Sulieman Benn, 10 Nikita Miller, 11
Kemar Roach.
The Zimbabweans have not let on about any changes to their XI.
Zimbabwe: 1 Hamilton Masakadza, 2 Vusi Sibanda, 3 Brendan Taylor, 4 Tatenda
Taibu (wk), 5 Stuart Matsikenyeri, 6 Greg Lamb, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Graeme
Cremer, 9 Prosper Utseya (capt), 10 Ray Price, 11 Chris Mpofu.
Pitch and conditions
The pitch at the Arnos Vale Multiplex is notoriously slow and low, which means
Zimbabwe’s band of merry slow bowlers will again favour themselves against a
susceptible West Indian line-up. The weather is forecast to be just fine.
The Arnos Vale Multiplex has been kind to West Indies in the 17 matches they
have played here. The home team has won 14 of the matches, but two of their
three losses have come in the last two ODIs at the ground, where Pakistan won by
59 runs five years ago, and Australia triumphed by 84 runs two years ago.
Stats and trivia
West Indies have won 14 of 17 matches played at this venue, but two of their
three losses have come in the last two ODIs at the ground. Pakistan beat them
by 59 runs five years ago, and Australia won by 84 runs in 2008.
West Indies’ run-rate at Arnos Vale is a lofty 4.66. Zimbabwe have yet to play
here.
Quotes
“I have not seen much of Darren, but I know a lot has been said about him. I
threw a few balls to him in the nets and he looks a very good player.”
Ottis Gibson is also aware of what the other Bravo has to offer.

Jamie Alter is
a senior sub-editor at Cricinfo

Calder Hart

Kamla to pilot  motion in the House Friday calling for removal of entire UDECOTT board. Will she get support from that spoiler, Basdeo Panday or will he continue to play the monkey?

One down, four more to go at UDECOTT.

The pressure on other members of the board of the controversial state company to resign mounts and on Friday Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar will pilot a motion in the House of Representatives on Friday calling for the resignation of the remaining members of the UDECOTT board of directors.

She will present the motion on the adjournment of the House and the TNTInsider understands that she has already received the Speaker’s permission so to do. She had indicated that she had planned to call for Chairman Calder Hart’s resignation but was pre-empted by his sudden resignation over the weekend,

The remaining board members at UDECOTT are vice-chairman Dr Krishna Bahdoorsingh, property developer, former university lecturer and one-time deputy political leader of the defunct Democratic Labour Party, Wendell Dottin, Independent Senator Michael Annisette, who is  President General of the Seamen and Workers Trade Union amd lawyer Anthony Cherrie.

All the morning papers have called on the remaining members of the board to resign with the Express today repeating such a call in its editorial. The newspapers reflect widespread sentiment in the country.

All board members despite the uncontested evidence of impropriety have strangely said that nothing is wrong at UDECOTT and that they have done nothing wrong.

Former Chairman Calder Hart fled the country on Saturday and his whereabouts are unknown. His chief protector Prime Minister is currently in London.

Will Kamla receive former Opposition Leader Basdeo Panday’s support or will he continue playing the monkey?

from Cricinfo….

by  Ayaz Memom, Cricinfo

I went to a reunion and felicitation of Ajit Wadekar’s

1971 team last Thursday
at Mumbai’s Nehru Centre with mixed feelings. The

presence of Sir Garfield
Sobers as chief guest was a huge attraction, but only

a day earlier a press
conference at which he spoke seemed to have been

afflicted by India’s current
rage: finding out who the greatest batsman in the game

has been.
Sobers, provoked into the debate, had rated Gavaskar

ahead of Tendulkar,
primarily because he had played against Gavaskar and

seen him excel in an era of
uncovered wickets and little protective gear against

some of the most fearsome
bowlers. Sobers also said Tendulkar had met every

expectation one could have of
a batsman, but that had been lost in the din. Was this

event going to be an
extension of a debate that was rapidly becoming

farcical?
Thankfully it wasn’t. The evening had the right mix of

nostalgia, pathos and
cricket, even if it was a tad long-drawn. Most of the

players were there
(barring Sunil Gavaskar, G Viswanath and Govindraj,

who were not for varying
reasons), and to get the wives of Dilip Sardesai,

Ashok Mankad, Eknath Solkar,
ML Jaisimha and P Krishnamurthy – all deceased – to

fill in for their husbands
was a terrific thought; and to get Sobers to be chief

guest was a brainwave. The
presence of Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Zaheer Khan

lent the evening not just
contemporary star value but also relevance.
This was brought out eloquently by Tendulkar, who

while accepting a bat signed
by the 1971 team, was to point out how he was beholden

to the heroes of the past
because each era serves as a fountainhead for the

succeeding one. With so much
star value and perspective on offer, it seemed

somewhat amiss that the
celebration of 40 years of arguably India’s best phase

in cricket was organised
by private initiative, rather than by the BCCI.
But we’ll let that pass. The evening was evocative and

made more memorable by
Sobers’ presence. Few had expected him to come to

India for this – and he
clearly didn’t expect so many people to come for an

event for this nature. “I’ve
never spoken in front of so many people,” he told the

large, appreciative
audience. Later he was to repeat what he has said so

often in the past: “I’d
never played in front of such large crowds as in

India. That was a unique
experience.”
For those who had seen him here in his playing days,

Sobers was a unique
experience too, and Thursday’s event sent me hurtling

back almost half a
century. One of the earliest Test matches I can recall

is between India and West
Indies at the Brabourne Stadium in 1966, and though

Rohan Kanhai was my hero
then, it was Sobers who left a lasting impression. Two

half-centuries, the
second a blistering one to finish the match in time

for an afternoon at the
racecourse (as he was to confess later), five wickets

and three catches were
terrific to watch. But what made a greater impact on

an 11-year-old’s mind was
an act of sportsmanship of the sort seen rarely then.

Like Mandela in his sunset years, Sobers also

remains forthright and sharp
of memory. Yet he also appears benignly tolerant

of mortals and is filled
with compassion and humour, often

self-deprecatory

Budhi Kunderan, India’s wicketkeeper, was declared

caught in the leg trap – when
still in single figures, if I remember correctly – and

had started his walk back
to the dressing room when Sobers signalled to the

umpire that he had not taken
the catch cleanly. There was a collective gasp,

followed by applause, from the
packed stadium. Kunderan went on to make a belligerent

79, but the hero of the
day was the West Indies captain.
Between 1966 and Thursday last, I met Sir Garry twice,

both times in South
Africa. In 1991 he was invited to Johannesburg (along

with Gavaskar, Richie
Benaud and a handful of journalists) by Dr Ali Bacher,

who wanted to impress on
the world that racial integration in cricket was

underway. Nelson Mandela had
recently been released from jail and was shortly to

begin the ANC’s campaign for
political power in the country. Getting a cricketing

legend like Sobers was a
coup, and he was pretty much the toast of the touring

party. I remember him from
then as a man of ready wit, not reluctant to use his

tongue like a whiplash if
necessary to drive home a point, in matters of cricket

or otherwise.
In 2003, during the World Cup, Sobers was again in

South Africa. I bumped into
him on a few occasions, and he hardly looked his

ebullient self. The attention
then was pretty much on the current stars, but that

was not why he appeared a
little grumpy. He was, I learnt, in some pain from

wobbly knees. A more enduring
memory of 2003 is of Bacher talking of Mandela and

Sobers, his two heroes, in
the same breath several times.
Perhaps this is subliminal, but somehow I saw a touch

of Mandela in Sobers on
Thursday. Tall and lissome as the venerated South

African leader, Sobers has a
similar similar feline grace in his gait, despite the

unmistakable hobbling that
decades-long arthritis can cause. There is a natural

athleticism in both, which
age cannot wither. Sobers’ curly hair, like Mandela’s,

is still intact, though
now almost white. Both have a charismatic presence.
But it is in demeanour that the resemblance becomes

more pertinent. Like Mandela
in his sunset years, Sobers also remains forthright

and sharp of memory. Yet he
also appears benignly tolerant of mortals and is

filled with compassion and
humour, often self-deprecatory, of the sort that can

come from somebody who has
not only traversed the rigour of living long but also

understood the game of
life with all its vicissitudes.
Much of this was evident during the felicitation of

“Wadekar’s Warriors”. Sobers
not only seemed to remember almost every minute of the

1971 series in minute
detail, he also regaled the audience with sharply

defined anecdotes, all laced
with humour and generosity, about the Indian players.

It was evident that
Wadekar, Chandu Borde, Bapu Nadkarni, Bishan Bedi,

Srinivas Venkataraghavan,
Erapalli Prasanna, Farrokh Engineer, Salim Durani,

Abbas Ali Baig, Syed Kirmani,
Rusi Jeejeebhoy, all hero-worshipped him. But Sobers

calibrated the tenor of the
proceedings to shift the spotlight on to the Indians

wherever possible.

Attack without stepping out of the crease?

Been there, done that ©
The Cricketer International

It was in the insights that interspersed the banter

and bonhomie of the evening
that Sobers’ mighty understanding of cricket came

through clearly, and found an
eager audience, not just in the hundreds of fans, but

also Tendulkar, Dhoni and
Zaheer. Sobers spoke delectably, and with authority,

on the virtues of slow
bowling, of how variations in flight to deceive

batsmen are important, which was
what, he said, made both Prasanna and Bedi, for

example, great.
On batsmanship, he said a sound defence was crucial,

for the attacking strokes
become a natural extension of defence. On technique,

as conventionally
understood, he was sceptical; what works for a batsman

is the best technique for
him, he said. He was clear, however, that playing with

the bat rather than the
pad was crucial, not just for safeguarding your wicket

but also for entertaining
the spectators.
Sobers spoke of how his approach to batting – and, by

extension, cricket – had
been shaped by Sir Frank Worrell on the 1961 tour of

Australia. “If it’s a
half-volley, I want it hit for four, not pushed

defensively,” Worrell told them
on the eve of the series. Cammie Smith, Sobers

recounted, hit his first ball, a
half-volley, straight to the only fielder at cover and

came back smiling into
the dressing room – to no admonishment from his

skipper.
Sobers also explained why he rarely stepped out to

bowlers despite being an
attacking batsman. “I never had to,” he said. “I used

my height to reach the
length of the ball, or the width of the crease in

going right back if necessary
if the length was too short. As a kid, when I got

stumped I would be punished. I
decided then that the turf between the crease and the

stumps belongs to me, I
won’t give it away.”
That didn’t stop Sobers from becoming the first

batsman to hit six sixes in an
over – off the hapless Malcolm Nash in 1968 – at least

for one of which he
stepped out to smite the ball over the fence. “I never

played for records,” said
Sobers, “but after hitting five, I sure as hell wanted

to hit the sixth ball for
six.” That sensational over gave Sobers a place in

history. “But while the
record was mine, Nash made all the money,” he joked.

“Nash told me that without
him, the record would have been impossible.”
Several clips played that evening – including his

century in the Tied Test, his
254 against a rampaging Dennis Lillee in 1972, his six

sixes, his bowling in
three different speeds and styles, and his sharp

catching – showcased his
outstanding all-round talent.
While the debate about who has been the greatest

batsman of all time gathers
steam, discussion on who has been the most skilled

cricketer of all time is
misplaced. Has there been anyone like Sir Garfield

Sobers? rds, Graeme
Pollock, Gavaskar are pre-helmet (can’t think of

a better term) era
greats, Sachin/Lara/Ponting are post helmet era

greats. Each era had its
advantages & disadvantages -

Bradman/Sobers/Richards/Gavaskar era’s LBW
rules were easier than current as was batting

harder gainst pace bowlers
without adequate PPE (personal protective

equipment) than the current.
Bats were not so light and having lesser tonking

power but body wear and
tear was lesser as was the competition and

efforts to make a living.

HDC Building on South Quay ....monthly rentail $514,000. Photo Dilip Singh

Almost two years after the Government announced its policy to reduce rental of Government

offices, the plan is no closer to getting off the ground. Read more in the Sunday Guardian….

by
Anika Gumbs-Sandiford, Sunday Guardian reporter

Almost two years after Government announced its policy to reduce rental of
government offices, the plan is no closer to getting off the ground. It was in
2007 that Prime Minister Patrick Manning announced that Government’s skyline
building projects in the capital city, which included the multi-million-dollar
Government Campus Plaza, was geared at reducing rental of state agencies. A
Sunday Guardian investigation revealed, however, that to date Government had not
made any significant headway in decreasing the cost of the hefty monthly
rentals. In fact, investigations disclosed that Government forked out a whopping
$221,371,536.48 annually, to cover the rental of ministries, the judiciary and
offices of independent bodies. Among the buildings is the hefty $3-million price
tag for the rental of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of T&T to the United
Nations, located on East Street, New York.
RIGHT: One Alexandra on Tragarete Road, Port-of-Spain, will be the new home of
the Local Government Ministry in the next few months. Photo: Shirley Bahadur
The official Web site, however, fails to show a photograph of the upscale
building. The office, which costs $3,286,067.58, falls under the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, and its main role is to address global issues posing a threat
to the well-being of T&T. Her Excellency Marina Valere is the Permanent
Representative to the United Nations. She replaced Ambassador Philip Sealy, who
retired recently. The ministry has two additional sub-offices at Queen’s Park
West and Henry Street, in Port-of-Spain, rented at a total monthly cost of
$146,251.05. Contacted on Friday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Paula Gopee-Scoon
was unable to confirm the hefty rental attached to the building, only saying
briefly: “Trinidad and Tobago is represented, particularly in the United
Nations, by our representative It is a multilateral institution that deals with
multilateral issues. “At this point, I cannot say at what cost the building is
being rented at. I am unable to say.”
Swaratsingh: Expect decrease in rental with building drive
However, Minister of Public Administration Kennedy Swaratsingh revealed that
Government intends to purchase a building in New York to avoid paying large
rental fees. “I cannot give the exact time, but I am aware that a decision was
taken to purchase a property in New York to house the Permanent Mission. “The
normal procedure is when a decision is taken, it is up to the relevant ministry
to act appropriately.” Also hiking up a large rental is the Ministry of National
Security, which has 43 sub-division offices throughout the country, rented at a
cost of $1.4 million. The Ministry of Finance pays a similar rental of $1.2
million for its 23 divisional offices.
The six divisional offices of the Attorney General in the city also add a
$1-million rental fee to government expenditure.
The Government Campus on Richmond Street and Wrightson Road was expected to be
completed in 2008, but construction is ongoing. As to why millions of dollars
continue to be spent on rental Swaratsingh said: “Government rental is currently
more than the Government Campus Plaza can accommodate. Even though we are still
renting as we move to build more buildings, we expect to see some decrease in
the rental cost as we continue the building drive.” Local Government Ministry
moves to $800,000-a month building. Meanwhile, as the rental of government
offices continues to mount, at least one of the ministries will move to an
upgraded and posh facility, at a cost of $800,000 per month. Within the next few
months, the Ministry of Local Government will relocate from Kent House on Long
Circular Road, Maraval, to a spanking new facility at One Alexandra on Tragarete
Road.
Confirming the move yesterday, Swaratsingh said the present building was deemed
unfit and unsafe by safety officials. However, he could not say at what cost the
building was being rented. “Over the next three months, the ministry will be
relocating to Tragarete Road. The building is structurally unfit, and as a
result the ministry is moving out to a leased facility. “This is one of the
reasons we need to build buildings. If a building is deemed structurally unfit,
it will be irresponsible to leave employees in it. “This is one of the reasons
we need to build buildings,” he reiterated. “The building is large enough to
accommodate the Local Government Ministry.” The multi-million-dollar 23-storey
Customs and Excise building remains vacant one year after construction. The
lustrous glass building forms part of the $368-million Government Campus Plaza,
which is another project by the Urban Development Corporation Company of
Trinidad and Tobago.
It is expected to accommodate four government ministries on completion,
consisting of the Board of Inland Revenue Tower, Customs and Excise Headquarters
Building, Ministry of Social Development, Ministry of Legal Affairs Tower, and
the Government Campus Plaza Parkade. Then Planning and Development Minister
Keith Rowley had said the aim of the campus was to ensure the public could
conveniently access the services of some of the government ministries. However,
last week Rowley questioned what was responsible for the delay in relocating the
Customs and Excise building after it was handed over several months ago. “The
Prime Minister has insisted that the project is within budget and within time,
but the Customs and Excise building has been completed and handed over to
Udecott more than one year now, and remains empty,” Rowley said.
“Steps are being taken to outfit the Ministry of Legal Affairs tower, but no
steps are being taken to outfit the Customs and Excise building, because of some
procedural irregularity with Udecott. “It is now the centre of some legal
wrangling, because of the company’s faulty procedures,” he claimed. While unable
to say what caused the delay, Swaratsingh said Udecott was moving to outfit the
campus for operations.
Annual rental costs
Rental cost of government offices, as at 31 December, 2009:
• Elections and Boundaries Commission (ten offices), $376,426.76
• Public Service Commission (three offices), $52,103.25
• Statutory Authorities Service Commission, $55,979.62
•Teaching and Police Service Commission, $218,503.45
• Environmental Commission, $40,247.98
• Integrity Commission, $295,554.O6
• Judiciary (12 offices)-$932,023.48
• Ministry of Agriculture, Lands and Marine Resources ( seven offices)
$272,475.01
• Ministry of Community Development, Culture and Gender Affairs (five offices)
$138,785.95
• Ministry of Education (12 offices), $563,321.18
• Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries (two offices), $392,908.94
• Ministry of Finance (23 offices), $1,213,162.65
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs (three offices), $3,432,319.08
• Ministry of Health (nine offices), $561,038.54
• Ministry of Housing (three offices), $527,992.19
• Ministry of Information (three offices),$512,624.81
• Ministry of Labour and Small and Micro Enterprise Development (seven offices),
$630,816.36
• Ministry of Legal Affairs (ten offices), $882,986.59
• Ministry of Local Government (11 offices), $387,543.09
• Ministry of National Security (43 offices), $1,432,914.73
• Ministry of Planning and Development (five offices), $330,030.52
• Ministry of Public Administration (11 offices), $679,883.03
• Ministry of Public Utilities (five offices),$104.646.69
• Ministry of Science, Technology and Tertiary Education (ten offices),
$954,888.55
• Ministry of Social Development (21 offices), $982,755.48
• Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs (six offices), $342,362.42
• Ministry of Attorney General (six offices), $1,044,091.18
• Ministry of Tourism (two offices),$161,014.95
• Ministry of Trade and Industry,$81,120.00
• Ministry of Works and Transport (seven offices), $389,519.13
• Office of the Ombudsman, $34,040.00
• Office of the Prime Minister (six offices), $162,767.45
• Parliament (four offices), $129,982.67
• Personnel Department (three offices), $291,812.57

failure of Basdeo Panday and Kelvin Ramnath to support the Leader of the Opposition Kamla

Persad-Bissessar in Parliament.Read more….

By Richardson Dhalai,Sunday Newsday reporter

Residents from both Couva North and South constituencies yesterday
expressed outrage over the failure of Basdeo Panday and Kelvin Ramnath to
support the leader of the Opposition Kamla Persad-Bissessar in Parliament
on Friday in her motion to have urgent matters pertaining to Udecott
debated.
Constituents said they were saddened and disappointed that their members
of parliament (MP), Panday for Couva North and Ramnath, for Couva South,
not only betrayed the trust their constituents had placed in them but also
the ethics of the Office of the Leader of the Opposition. As a result,
residents in both constituencies are demanding that both men should resign
immediately making way for a by-election so that faithful MPs who will
follow the policies of the party and its people, could be elected.

However, in a telephone interview yesterday, Couva South MP, Kelvin
Ramnath laid the blame for the situation squarely at the feet of
Opposition Chief Whip Jack Warner, saying Opposition Leader Kamla
Persad-Bissessar, had once again been embarrassed by the “incompetence and
vindictiveness” of the inexperienced Chaguanas West MP.

During last Friday’s Parliamentary sitting, both Panday and Ramnath failed
to tow the party’s line when they voted against their UNC parliamentary
colleagues on a motion which called Prime Minister Patrick Manning or the
Cabinet to fire Calder Hart as the chairman of the Urban Development
Corporation, (Udecott).

Both men remained in their seats even as the rest of their parliamentary
colleagues had stood up after House Speaker Barry Sinanan said the motion
needed the support of 11 parliamentarians for it to be debated.

When Sunday Newsday visited the bustling Couva shopping centre yesterday,
there were feelings of outrage mixed with hurt, anger and embarrassment as
residents spoke about the issue which one resident described as the
actions of “two little spoilt children.”

“I am a deadly UNC. I argue with everybody about Basdeo Panday because he
do more for the sugar workers and the people of central Trinidad than
anybody else but after what he did yesterday, (Friday), I think it is time
he really goes,” resident Mohammed Khan said.

A slight man who could barely control his emotions as he struggled to find
words to express his displeasure, sometimes gripping the steering wheel of
his panel van as he spoke, Khan said Panday must now resign from the
party, which he, (Panday), had founded, and seek a fresh mandate from the
people.

“What Panday did was worse than what Ramesh did because Panday had fired
Ramesh, but you can’t say you will work with Kamla and then when she wants
your support, you throw her in the bamboo,” he said.

“If I was in the party I would tell him to resign and come back and fight
the seat again but they have to find a way to get him out because it means
now that he will support the PNM, so is Kamla against Manning and Bas,” he
added.

Another Couva resident, Ronald Sookdeo agreed saying the party had to find
a way to discipline both men saying Panday was also going against his
calls for unification within the party following the January 24 internal
elections.

“All of the time, you preaching unity, but when is time to show true unity
and support the same party you like to say that you founded, you vote
against it…they have to find a way to throw him out,” Sookdeo said.

Meanwhile, Raajesh Suklal, said he was also “disappointed” in not only
Panday but also Ramnath, a man whom he described as an absentee
representative.

“Ramnath is not doing enough for his constituency and now he just wants to
aggravate people by voting against the same people that the UNC supporters
vote for…that is madness,” he said. “I don’t know how they could
discipline them but they have to do something because Panday is a stubborn
man and when he’s like that, it will just get worse for Kamla if she don’t
do something to control him,” he said.

Jimmy Jules, another Couva resident said Panday was not interested in
fighting national causes but his own personal causes in the Parliament.

“If he was really concerned about the party he would have supported the
party because this Calder Hart issue is a big issue. It’s a national issue
and because he did not support it shows that he is only concerned about
his own personal issues and that is bad,” he said.

Meanwhile, former Couva North constituency executive chairman, Orlando
Nagessar said Panday’s actions had justified the decision by both himself
and the other eight members of the 12-member executive to tender their
resignations from the constituency executive.

“We are now justified because we were telling Mr Panday that he should
accept Mrs Persad-Bissessar as the new leader and he should work with her
to build the party so it was very disappointing what he did on Friday and
we as an executive could not and will never support that kind of
behaviour,” he said.

Describing Panday’s action as “selfish behaviour” Nagessar said his
actions would only drive people away from him and solidify the support of
the membership behind Persad-Bissessar.

“You, (Panday), used to criticise Mr Calder Hart and called for an inquiry
into Udecott and now when you have enough evidence to force a debate, you
vote against it…that was a disaster,” said Nagessar.

In full agreement was another former Couva North executive member, Ramjit
Ramnarine, who described Panday’s action as “incomprehensible” saying the
party would have been able to force the PNM government to answer tough
questions regarding the Udecott chairman.