' she smelling nice'

Interacting with people is something I thoroughly enjoy and today was no disappointment. I am doing my afternoon constitutional and as I reach my turning point I see a pickup parked under the Samann tree and there is a guy standing next to it. 'I just want to thank you for what you did for my son' was the remark as I passed. I turn around and approach the guy, a total stranger, who informs me that his son was the beneficiary of a grant my company had given to UWI for a student in Electrical Engineering some years ago. His son has since graduated and is now a Sub-sea Engineer with one of the oil majors. In life you never know who you are going to meet and how it will affect your life.
Happenings like this always put me in a feel good mood about the people on the Rock.

And speaking of feel good our PMOTT is in sunny London attending the CHOGM. News coming out of the visit has me a bit perplexed.
First the members of the PMOTT's team, we have the Junior Minister in the Ministry of the PM's office and the Minister of Energy. No problem, where is the Minister of Trade?  We have not benefitted from a single FDI investment in the past 2.5 years and this would be the place to do it. I guess with the PMOTT's boast of him being the 'best salesman' ever there was no need to bring along the Minister.
Then there is the news that the PMOTT did not attend the Caribbean Heads of Government meeting with the British PM. There would have to be a very good reason for this, maybe it was a slight diplomatic miscomunication.
To top it off the PMOTT takes the countries that have issued travel advisories for the Rock to task. He says those negative advisories are wreaking havoc with our local economy and that he is trying very hard to build our tourism industry and even though the murders and other crimes are real those countries have no right in telling their citizens the truth about the Rock.
You tell them PMOTT!

It was not the best week for the rest of the Government that stayed on the Rock.

The T&T Spirit was relaunched, re-blessed, rededicated and sent on its merry way. This after ten (10) months on a dry docking cycle that would normally take one month. She attained her regular cruising speed and all her passengers had only good things to say about the voyage including 'she smelling nice'. As luck would have it Murphy's Law was very present and on her second outing she blew a hydraulic line which rendered her incapable of docking. The Minister of Ferries said, nothing to worry about, 'small ting' and boasted that they actually had a replacement line on board. What he should be concerned about is that after ten (10) months and tens of millions of dollars no one thought it necessary to inspect the hydraulic lines.

The AG boasted of not losing a case he brought before the Courts even though it was thrown out by the Judge. He said it was a simple case of re-filing the matter. Apparently he has committed to actually having evidence the next time the case is called. I guess evidence may actually be a good thing to have when prosecuting a fraud case. The AG boasted that the State obtained a 'Norwich Pharmacal order to retrieve certain information'. As soon as you figure out what the hell that is let me know. You cannot help but like the AG, 'Norwich Pharmacal'! Remember the not so old saying about how to baffle them?

Three fishermen were taken from our waters supposedly by the Venezuelan authorities. The fishermen have been processed and a notice received by us that they are ready to be sent back home. Considering all that is presently going on in Venezuela not many locals would want to venture into their national waters. The fishermen have no money and their boat was seized. The Minister of National Security confirmed that the CG would have headed down the main this week to pick up the fishermen but then back tracked.
There are hundreds of our neighbours from down the main coming here to buy everyday supplies, essential medical drugs, people running from a cruel dictatorship. What is our policy on refugees from Venezuela? or do we actually have a policy? The situation will not get better until there is a regime change in Venezuela. In one of our local Courts this week a local woman police officer broke down in tears listening to the testimony of an accused Venezuelan overstaying his welcome.
Would strongly suggest that the current Minister of Foreign Affairs not be the person leading the policy team.

Tomorrow is Friday, what could possible happen over the weekend for someone in authority to further embarrass the people of the Rock?

Heard my first 'cigalle' tonight, the weather has started to make the change from dry to rain and with that the oncomming hurricane season, drat!

Stay up people of the Rock, good night and good luck!