good afternoon I am Andrew Chisholm with
the midday news a special welcome if
you're watching on 1spotmedia.com we
begin this afternoon with news that the
Police High Command has dispatched a
high-level team to investigate the
circumstances surrounding a flare-up of
gun violence in Westmoreland within the
last hours 24 hours eight people have
been murdered and two others are nursing
gunshot wounds a source from the Police
High Command told our News Center that
the major Investigations Division is in
the area TVJ News understands that three
bodies were found in the parish this
morning five men were fatally shot and
two women hospitalized yesterday it
supported that about two 11:15 in the
evening three men were shot and killed
in with horn Williamsfield one woman was
also shot and injured in that incident
hours earlier a man was gunned down in
Morgan Bridge about 1:15 in the
afternoon and 8-year old man was an
eight-year-old was gunned down on Cooke
Street in Savannah Lamarr
however TVJ News understands that the
incidents are not connected and an 18
year old man was gunned down on Koch
Street in Savannah Lamarr Westmoreland
that incident occurred also at about 115
and we'll have more on that developing
story in subsequent newscasts the
parliamentary opposition is criticizing
the ministry of education for attempting
to restrict school boards from voicing
concerns about its policies chairman of
the pn peace education commission elaine
foster allen says she is aware of a
document that the Ministry issued to
board members instructing them not to
speak publicly about its policies she
views that as an attempt to intimidate
school boards
paper that has been put together I
believe by history of Education Minister
educational staff suggests that if you
are a board member you are not allowed
at Arita school board members are not
allowed to criticize the Minister of
Education for Ministry of Education
personnel in any public forum in social
media
she is questioning the motive behind the
document
they aren't they volunteer their time
and their service and are you telling me
that if I see something going off and
wrong as a citizen to me I should not
the People's National Party says it's
giving its full support to the letter
last week's protest at the University of
Technology over the small government
subvention given to that institution
when compared to others across the
island opposition spokesman on education
Ronald waves called the decision unfair
and insist the government can do better
TV J's Jamila pullin reports last week
staff and students at the University of
Technology staged a protest at the
university's main campus in st. Andrew
against the government's decision not to
increase the subvention for the
institution in the new national budget a
week later opposition spokesman on
Education run off with says he supports
the move to protest the University of
the West Indies has been given an allow
and allocation of 8.7 3 million billion
dollars this year having received I
think it was three-quarters of a billion
in the supplementary estimates just
passed and I contrast that to the
University of Technology which is being
given 1.8 billion dollars now we do not
well we are not so simplistic as to
equate the two institutions but what we
are saying is that a five to one
differential yes is unfair at a People's
National Party press conference on
Monday mr. Thwaite said not only is it
unfair but it also demeans the quality
of work done at you Tech which by its
recent institutional accreditation is on
a par with the University of the West
Indies I had raised this matter in
Parliament yes and I thought I had the
assurance
of the government that they would
redress that in this budget clearly it
has not been and we support the activism
of the staff and students at the
University of Technology fully mr.
Thwaites further admitted that when his
People's National Party was in power it
was aware of the situation faced by the
University however mr. Thwaites noted
that his administration at that time was
not in a position to allocate the
additional resources needed based on
economic constraints but he insists that
situation has now changed we have
achieved that which we sacrificed for to
a significant measure in addition during
that period the University of Technology
was with government assistance the
recipient of very high capital grants
through financing with the Caribbean
Development Bank and it was it was - to
add physical infrastructure and other
programs that proof that that was what
was posited as being what we could do at
that time the government and new tech
representatives are in discussions to
reach a solution to the issue
chabela Poulin TVJ news there was no
class at Central High in Clarendon on
Monday as disgruntled educators staged a
demonstration at the institution's gate
the teachers want to see the back of the
current Board Chairman however he is
defending his stewardship we have more
in this report from TV J's Dwayne
Anderson instead of Monday's stories
educators at Central High set out to
teach the schools chairman Henry Marant
a lesson in human relations they say he
is disrespectful and high-handed and
they want to see his buck few of the
teachers wanted to speak on camera but
they got their message across with
science and songs
the target of the array chairman Henry
Marant was not backing down
I have no apology as long as I'm for the
video you have to kind of themselves
period and it could demonstrate the
lended I am NOT going to no pressure
according to the Chairman some of the
teachers do not want to follow protocol
he cited a breakdown in spending
practices as well as other breaches
these people expect to carelessly take
vehicle without any consultation with
allies not properly ensure to take
people kids to various places across
this country those are some other
pointer to them no it is illegal we must
get records of this das weekly gonna use
see that the document is in place
properly insured and licensed and I must
know where they are going to expose it
people skills to go on a vehicle earning
this is one of the problem now everybody
wanted to be the one bus color denim
table or go overseas go overseas what I
live in United States I go to school
dear and I know most of whom in our
classroom could never get a job in the
classroom in the United States they
would not be accepted some flower dear
percepted one is a different ballgame
decorum and art and discipline is an aim
and accountability a unit from the map
and fire station was called to remove
the locks and chains from the schools
gates but they would find their path
blocked by a wall of teachers do you
think that denying the children
but the teachers would not relent in the
end the protest action resulted in a
disruption in classes for the day the
matter has been brought to the attention
of the education ministers region five
Directorate doing understand TVJ news
this afternoon the story of businesses
in Port Maria st. Mary which are
literally on edge and operators worried
the area will lose lots of investments
and employment unless the authorities
urgently address the menacing river
nearby TV J's Christa Campbell reports a
booming business hub in the Trinity area
of Port Maria st. Mary at the mercy of
the nearby ocean river the operators of
a basic school restaurants and several
auto businesses say in the past four
years the river has taken a lot from
them and each shower of rain threatens
to take more we are concerned that if
there is another don't pour no matter
how small it is the banking is going to
come right in on the premises the
banking is six feet are we're from the
building right so the fencing gone so
the building is next right and we don't
know if if we can survive any other
disaster at cabbies Auto Parts and total
vehicle care limited several square feet
of land have been swept away by raging
waters during the last hurricane to
impact the island both the people say it
doesn't even have to rain for the land
to sleep
the organ is torn our stuff to hold the
banking together so when it rains it
softens up when the Sun come it breaks
apart and it drops in the river
the man who leased the lands to the
business operators explains what he
thinks caused the erosion in the first
place but in 1987 they put a truck to
any asylum the mom they're going to tree
in the river and instantaneously after
nearly election it seems they took back
the tractor
the riverbanks are vulnerable the
business people say they've been
promised help but they cannot sit around
watching their businesses literally
falling through the cracks it went out
got some bumbles because these fibrous
roots they hold the land where well so
they planted along then the rear are we
going to be took the initiative to plant
along the whole stretch of it because
once that side had deteriorated our side
of when even faster the land is also
moving inwards there's a big crack
between more than ten posts on the lift
so what we had to do now we had to
improvise and do it ourselves the
retention wall that they had planned to
do we decided to secure our business
interests we had to do so the operator
of the car alignment establishment is
urging the authorities to act fast to
stop what he says would be a big blow to
businesses and investments in the
centenary capital this is the only
facility of its kind in st. Mary and if
it's not up and running then people
would have to go to Kingston or all
serious for the type of service when
contacted communications manager at the
National Works Agency Stephen Shaw
explained that the NWA has been doing
work in different sections of the Autumn
River in Port Maria but he says there
aren't enough funds to do as much River
training as needed he says he's not able
to say how much work if any will be done
in the next fiscal year to slow or stop
the erosion in Trinity Christa Campbell
TVJ news Shanta local government
minister dr. Angela Brown Burke has come
out in defense of vendors at the
constant spring market who have been
given notice to leave the facility the
vendors were given notice from last year
because the market will be demolished to
facilitate the widening of the constant
spring Road as part of the major
infrastructure development programme but
the vendors insist the government needs
to find a suitable accommodation for
them and they argued that the
compensation package is not enough
speaking on TV jaysus Marja make a
programme on Tuesday dr. Brown Berg
called out that the local authority for
how it's managing the situation
no doubt that the process has not
probably been there to it and nobody to
D it has even said listen we started
wrong and we're trying not to fix it we
understand that and let's move forward
and then the second thing is that they
know that for the expansion of the road
you don't need at least two thirds of
the land that's there the first thing is
it's a portion of the market that's
needed so fine you're gonna knock down
all of the market to remove that but the
land behind the market is owned by the
case they see over the weekend the
Supreme Court granted a temporary
injunction to prevent the Kingston and
st. Angie miscible cooperation from
forcibly removing the vendors taxi
operators in Junction st. Elizabeth are
threatening to continue their protest
over designating party parking in the
town until they get a resolution they
withdrew their services on Monday
leaving passengers stranded head of the
southern taxi Association Charles Powell
says the taxi operators are upset about
the decision of the local authorities to
have them operate from a transport
center which is too small well if they
have that documents we have no other
alternative to use the park but this
parking at whole Carol 50 cameras 200 in
the meantime Deputy Superintendent of
Police
Jonathan Boyd insists that the taxi
operators are largely responsible for
the congestion in the town he adds that
by parking their vehicles in the middle
of the square they are providing cover
for criminals they are not seeing and
their and their customers who do you see
with congestion and uncertainty with
this haphazard
noisy and sometimes free environment
created with the illegal taxes in that
space we also have reason to strongly
suspect that some of the migrant
criminals are in this area posing to be
vendors and they populate that area
in news overseas the Catholic Church has
been struck with another major scandal
one of its most powerful figures has
been found guilty of a sexually abusing
children we have more in this report
it's a fall of biblical proportions it
is still extraordinary to see the
downfall of such a man one of the most
powerful men in Rome Australian Cardinal
George Pell the Vatican treasurer
convicted of multiple child sex offenses
he's the most senior Catholic official
found guilty of abusing children the
prosecution's case was based on a single
surviving accuser like many survivors I
have experienced shame loneliness
depression and struggling like many
survivors it has taken me years to
understand the impact on my life
Pell was found guilty late last year a
court order banning the announcement was
lifted Tuesday and in sports national
100 meter champion Taekwondo Tracy says
differences in how much say he should
have in his financial situation led to
his departure from the MVP Track Club
last October we have more in this report
he basically told me straight up listen
if you want to have a say in your
financial future we cannot work together
this is what coach Stephen Francis had
said about the split earlier this month
MVP is a difficult organization to be a
part of especially when you believe you
are doing well and you believe that you
need to have certain privileges and so
on which you know we find that we don't
know it but you know I always tell
people there are you have to want to
believe that you have to be an MVP
it is going to be beneficial to you and
if you decide the other thing that are
more more important to you than the rule
that we have then you are free to go
anywhere and that Taekwondo Tracy says
was the beginning of the end of his time
at MVP Track Club after six seasons when
they presented me first with what I
would say the contract for moving
forward into the professional league I
was not one of the the typical person
who was gonna just say okay give me this
and I'd sign that I started asking
questions he didn't like that it reached
to a point where it probably started
getting angry so he said hear what this
young man is not going to do what I want
him to do so I'm going to tell him to
leave and just before we close we're
going to recap our top story we told you
that the police High Command has
dispatched a high-level team to
investigate the circumstances
surrounding a flare-up of gun violence
in Westmoreland now eight people have
been murdered and two others are nursing
gunshot wounds and of course we'll have
more details on that
developing story during primetime news
at 7 and that's the midday news I'm
Andrea Chisholm on behalf of the News
sports and production teams good
afternoon
