News

Tougher Penalties for crimes in TCI, how effective has this been as a solution?

Published

9 months ago

November 23, 2022

#TurksandCaicos, November 23, 2022 – With these acts of wanton violence in the Turks and Caicos Islands, citizens, law enforcement and politicians are all baffled and fed up with what appears to be almost weekly reports of serious crimes.

We can blame it all on gangs but at what point do we draw a line in the sand and say enough is enough. What and who is masterminding this madness is yet to be determined but in either case there appears to be no signs or intentions of the criminals surrendering.

It’s pretty evident from recent police raids that illicit drugs and turf rights are fueling some of the violence. With that being said, we need to look beyond the obvious such as the narrow focus in disenfranchised communities. With such a relatively small population in TCI, more work must be done by law enforcement to identify the supply and demand from other sources.

This escalating crime should be a moment of national reckoning for TCI. All violence is a serious problem, but in terms of the gravity of the recent murder of a beloved family which left a child maimed, is gut wrenching and should be an inflection point.

Such a despicable and extreme act of violence shocked the conscience of this tiny island nation of TCI, and shows that the violence has reached a new dimension.

With so many lives been shattered by violence this is a pattern that we haven’t seen since the inception of our country and its eroding the TCI way of life and should demand extreme action in response.

As neighboring countries like Haiti becomes more and more unstable, citizens will continue to seek refuge and so will the criminals. With the presence of the British Navy ship that was recently dispatched to our waters, many citizens felt a sign of relief.

Frankly speaking, it needs to go beyond just a show of force. On the back drop of what is happening in our country, we should consider the alternative, this ship should remain in position until the country can stabilize this mayhem and provide adequate border security. More than ever before, our country is at a much higher risk of becoming unstable and in reality, our future depends on it.

A lot of what is happening is a flashpoint for much larger questions over what TCI policing should look like. Law-abiding citizens need stronger protection or we will become sitting targets.

We the people, will have to decide do we just sit on the sidelines or get more involved with demanding viable solutions. We condemn this violence without equivocation, but what’s more important is that law enforcement wins this battle with unwavering support and efforts to maintain law and order especially in those high risk communities. Perhaps we should start with accountability at all levels, foresight and results driven leadership.

Stiffer fines and penalties is the rhetoric being proposed as one of the solutions on gun control. Is this the only way out? In retrospect what have we learned from the previous increase in penalties? Will it resonate this time with would-be criminals or become just another catchy phrase?

Our young people who have hope of a better life are not attracted to senseless acts of violence. Henceforth, more focus needs to be on our youth and find ways to engage them before it gets to that stage or our prisons will only become a revolving door.

Kudos to the law makers on unanimously passing the Anti-gang bill. However, I have reservations concerning the recent firearms amendment bill which mandates a minimum 12 year prison sentence for the mere possession of an unlicensed firearm.

Based on the trajectory of arrest and charges, it will only lead to mass incarceration. Not only does our prison lack the capacity, but it will lead to more socioeconomic problems for displaced families and also only open the doors to human rights abuse.

Who was this law designed to protect? It’s certainly not law abiding citizens. Although it has good intentions and makes great sound bites, in some cases, it boils down to having a bark without a bite. While in other cases, it could negatively impact the sector of society we are actually trying to help.

We must find other alternatives and long-term solutions. It was very encouraging to see the recent prison initiative that was proposed by Honorable Taylor and Honorable Morris.

Giving prisoners the opportunity to develop skill-based training by partnering with the local community college is brilliant. This will help to prepare them to reintegrate into society upon release, and another chance to become productive citizens. These are the kinds of programs that need steam.

In most cases, hardened criminals are undeterred by stiffer penalties and often times unaware of changes in the laws because it’s not publicized enough or they frankly don’t care or will find work-arounds like preying on our youth. Therefore, more public awareness campaign could be beneficial and maybe we can save a life before other lives are lost.

What this article is intended to do, is to stimulate a much needed conversation about the role of our criminal justice system in creating public policies that are both efficient and effective. Policies that not only have short term gains, but long term positive impact on an ever-changing society.

Ed Forbes

Concerned citizen of Grand Turk

News

Bankers’ Association President Samuels Finds Residents Hungry for Housing Financing at policy launch

Published

6 hours ago

August 11, 2023

Deandrea Hamilton

Dana Malcolm

Staff writer

#TurksandCaicos, August 11, 2023 – Despite the Government’s attempt to create more affordable housing for residents with the creation of the new Housing Policy, many say they left the launch feeling less hopeful than they went in.

After the event, one resident expressed it was time to speed up a government-operated mortgage scheme, and those inside the launch event had a similar lack of faith in their ability to secure bank-backed mortgages.

Marcus Samuels, Head of the Banking Association, was hit with questions about how the Association would seek to help residents secure mortgages to purchase these new government homes, considering how difficult residents on both sides of the employment spectrum (private and public) found it to get approval for loans.

The pre-prepared question was met with applause from the ample audience who had gathered to hear about the programs.

“Homeownership isn’t rocket science, ” Samuels said, stressing that once residents came prepared with knowledge about their own paychecks and the size of the loan they could be offered they had a good chance of success.

Necessary information included:

Level of income
Level of previous debt

He also said the cost of housing could be lowered for buyers if the Government decided to decrease or forgo their taxes.

“There are some fees that we genuinely cannot move, like the Government stamp duties, which is usually one percent on the transaction. Thankfully, the Premier is here— the ball is in his court.”

Zhavargo Jolly, Event Moderator, fielded concerns shared by residents, including that the proposed cost of homes in the example (just over $ 200,000) was lower than the usual market value in the country.

There was also a concern that the mortgages seemed geared toward double-income homes, which was not the case for all residents, alienating single mothers, fathers, and other single-income earners.

While Samuels came prepared with calculations for a hypothetical $230,000 home that he said proved residents could be able to own a home with a down payment as low as $12,500 the audience was unconvinced. When he questioned them about whether residents believed they could afford a home after laying down the calculations the answer was still a resounding ‘no’.

Following the event, Bishop Coleta Williams, Chaplain to the House of Assembly, also spoke on the programs expressing concern that residents would be paying back the loans for years to come.

Residents, in the comments of the live video which was carried on Facebook, expressed being disappointed that more representatives from the Banking Association weren’t present at the meeting when arguably one of the biggest roadblocks to housing is financing.

Government

New data reveals Housing pitfalls, government reveals detailed plan to fix it

Published

6 hours ago

August 11, 2023

Deandrea Hamilton

Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, August 11, 2023 – Many Turks and Caicos Islanders are spending unsustainable amounts of money on housing, according to data gathered by the Housing Department via the National Housing Needs Survey, emphasizing the need for affordable homes.

Dominique Durham, Deputy Permanent Secretary of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development

“Respondents of that Survey provided that the majority of households spend more than 50 percent of their income on housing expenses. Now, as a rule of thumb, especially in America, if you spend more than 30 percent of your income on housing, it is deemed not affordable,” Dominique Durham, Deputy Permanent Secretary of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development, revealed.

He shared other significant data collected that showed the dire state of the housing market locally, including that nearly a quarter of residents live in damaged homes.

“It also revealed that 21 percent [of respondents] are living in homes in need of repair and 69 percent are looking to purchase a new home within the next five years,” Durham said.

Despite the intent to buy a home, the survey also revealed that many Turks and Caicos residents thought the housing market needed more affordable options for them to be able to bring that dream to fruition.

The majority of residents (32 percent) voted for the Government to create more options for affordable housing when asked what would best improve their housing needs.

Other popular suggestions included:

Creating Government housing loan programs (25 percent)
Housing subsidies (15 percent)
Home improvement/refurbishment programs (11 percent)

All of those suggestions voted on by residents have made their way into the Housing Policy as either short-term or long-term programs.

Jamell Robinson, Minister of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development

“Long-term projects include inclusionary zoning, large-scale housing through public-private partnerships, and eventually, we will be establishing a National Housing Authority and Trust whereby we hope to lend at affordable interest rates. We also are looking to roll out help-to-buy schemes in the near future as we appreciate that an issue is also access to financing,” he said.

The Government is aiming to use these suggestions, voted on by residents, to fix the gaping hole in the market, but even with these new programs, there’s one thing residents say they need to purchase homes– better pay.

Jamell Robinson, Minister of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development, was hit with the question of whether the Government would start to pay residents more so they could have more cash to afford housing.

The minister said step one was increasing public cash flow (with a pay and grade review for the public service now being conducted), and step two was upskilling all individuals to make them more marketable in the private sector.

“Our Job– is to ensure that our citizens as Turks and Caicos islanders can add value to themselves so they can participate more in the open market, and one of those ways is by making the community college free so you can access higher education– in a free open market which we have here, it’s hard to dictate to the private sector what they can pay a specific individual so we want to grow our individuals to make sure that they can level up,” he explained.

The Housing Policy launched on July 27th in Providenciales.

Caribbean News

Trinidad & Tobago Emancipation Day Marked with Major Events Attended by Prime Minister and other Dignitaries

Published

6 hours ago

August 11, 2023

Deandrea Hamilton

#TrinidadandTobago, August 11, 2023 – Prime Minister Dr the Hon Keith Rowley and Mrs Sharon Rowley attended the Distinguished Open Lecture by His Royal Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, The Asantehene at The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus last evening (Thursday 3rd August, 2023).

The Asantehene is the Guest of Honour in commemoration of this country’s 2023 Emancipation celebrations.

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and Member of Parliament for Tunapuna, the Hon. Esmond Forde, Minister of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs, Senator the Hon. Dr. Amery Browne, Minister of Housing and Urban Development, the Hon. Camille Robinson-Regis, Minister of Education, Dr. the Hon. Nyan Gadsby-Dolly, Minister in the Ministry of Education, the Hon. Lisa Morris-Julian, Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal of The University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, Dean of the Faculty of Food and Agriculture, Professor Mark Wuddivira and Lecturer Department of History, Dr. Debbie Mc Collin were also in attendance at yesterday’s lecture.

Prime Minister Dr the Hon Keith Rowley and Mrs Sharon Rowley also visited the Desperadoes Pan Theatre at George Street, Port of Spain last evening (Wednesday 2nd August, 2023).

Dr Rowley welcomed His Royal Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, The Asantehene and his delegation to the pan theatre where His Majesty was treated to various aspects of Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival which culminated in a performance by the Desperadoes Steel Orchestra and a demonstration on the playing of the national instrument for the Asantehene.

“They now see Africa, not through European eyes, as a dark continent, but as the cradle of human civilisation, citing the discoveries of its great empires. They talk of it glowingly, as the world’s fastest developing economic region in the 21st century, having just overtaken Asia, and of its six of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world and of its minerals, critical and indispensable to the technologies of the 21st century green economies.

Today, recognising the pain of the Middle Passage, and the centuries of colonial brutality, I salute the African community, a people, who through grit and determination, is on the march, striving for further discovery and self-realisation, searching, and transforming themselves for the challenges of the 21st century.

Let us all reflect and educate ourselves as we celebrate African Emancipation Day 2023.”

Dr the Honourable Keith Rowley

Prime Minister of The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

on the occasion of Emancipation Day 2023