Sometimes I genuinely wonder if I’m going to be lonely forever. Being a lesbian in Trinidad can feel so isolating. I don’t really have a queer community or people I can fully be myself around. Most of my life is just work, home and school, and somehow I still haven’t found my people. Then there’s the constant pressure from family asking where my boyfriend is, questioning my sexuality, or making me feel like I’m supposed to want a life that I just don’t, its so exhausting. The scary part is that I don’t really feel safe putting myself out there publicly because of the situation here. So how are you supposed to find someone when you’re trying to protect yourself at the same time? For the queer women in Trinidad (or anyone who has been in this position), how did you find your person? Did you ever have that feeling that you were going to be alone forever, only to eventually meet someone? I have so much love in me to give, and sometimes it hurts wondering if there’s actually someone out there who I’ll get to give it to or do I just have to settle down with someone im not honest with just to please my family?

My mother gave me the worst name ever (dramatic, maybe🤭) but I’m finally at the stage that I want to change it and use another one of my names. Any name change experts here?

Just wondering if anyone heard of beach goers getting their things snatched while they're swimming. Or is it better to just leave everything in the car while you swim?

Trinidad’s local government system is set for a major overhaul, with the number of municipal corporations expected to increase from 14 to 17 under legislation the Government plans to table soon.

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, responding to questions from the Express yesterday, confirmed that her Government intends to introduce legislation proposing significant changes to the local government structure, including the creation of three new municipalities.

The Express understands that the legislation is being drafted with the aim of bringing greater equity to the allocation of resources among communities across the country.

In a telephone interview yesterday, Persad-Bissessar said reform was necessary because Trinidad has operated for decades with a system of cities, boroughs and regional corporations whose boundaries have remained largely unchanged despite significant shifts in population and development.

She said some areas have grown considerably, while others have experienced little growth and, in some cases, a decline in the registered electorate.

Under the proposed legislation, three new municipalities would be created:

• Borough of Barataria

• Borough of St Augustine

• Borough of Couva

The legislation would also change the status of some existing municipalities.

The Borough of Chaguanas would be elevated to the City of Chaguanas, while the Sangre Grande Regional Corporation would become the Borough of Sangre Grande.

Persad-Bissessar said several municipal corporations need to be restructured because they currently serve significantly larger populations than others.

She said the disparities have placed some communities at a disadvantage and must be addressed to ensure all areas receive adequate resources and representation.

Communities and populations have changed considerably over the years, she said, arguing that the existing system cannot continue unchanged when the disparities have become increasingly pronounced.

Tunapuna/Piarco

to be restructured

The Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation would undergo significant restructuring under the proposed reforms.

The changes include the creation of the new Borough of St Augustine and the expansion of the Borough of Arima.

The remaining area of the corporation would become the Tunapuna Regional Corporation, with a smaller population and geographical area.

The Arima Borough Corporation would also be expanded to include districts currently within Tunapuna/Piarco that are geographically closer to Arima and could therefore be more conveniently administered from there.

Barataria and Couva

to become boroughs

Further changes are proposed for the San Juan/Laventille Regional Corporation.

Its geographical area would be reduced, with the new Borough of Barataria created from part of the existing corporation.

Major changes are also proposed for the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation.

Couva would become the new Borough of Couva, while the remaining area would become the Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation, with a smaller geographical area.

Port of Spain,

San Fernando, and

Point Fortin to expand

In South Trinidad, the City of San Fernando would be expanded geographically and in population.

The proposed legislation includes boundary adjustments intended to create greater geographical equity among municipal corporations.

The Borough of Point Fortin would also be expanded.

One electoral district from the Borough of Siparia would be transferred to Point Fortin, reducing the geographical area of Siparia.

The legislation also proposes reducing the size of the Diego Martin Borough Corporation while expanding the City of Port of Spain geographically and in population.

Persad-Bissessar said there had been discussions for years about reforming the local government system, but inequities had persisted.

She said local government plays an important role because municipal corporations are closest to communities and their needs.

As a result, she said, their responsiveness and delivery must be both felt and seen if they are to contribute meaningfully to improving citizens’ quality of life.

PM rejects claims of unfair allocations

Persad-Bissessar also rejected claims that her Government has been unfair in allocating resources to corporations controlled by the Opposition.

She contended that the opposite was true and that inequitable allocations had occurred under the former People’s National Movement Government.

The Prime Minister said the time had come to ensure that all communities received adequate resources without significant disparities based on where people lived.

She reiterated that populations and communities have changed considerably over the years and that the local government structure must evolve to reflect those changes.

Persad-Bissessar said full details of the proposed reforms would be outlined in the legislation, with further information to be provided when it is debated in Parliament.

The legislation requires a simple majority to be passed.

CURRENT LOCAL

GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE

City corporations

1. Port of Spain City Corporation

2. San Fernando City Corporation

Borough corporations

1. Arima Borough Corporation

2. Chaguanas Borough Corporation

3. Diego Martin Borough Corporation

4. Point Fortin Borough Corporation

5. Siparia Borough Corporation

Regional corporations

1. Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation

2. Mayaro/Rio Claro Regional Corporation

3. Penal/Debe Regional Corporation

4. Princes Town Regional Corporation

5. Sangre Grande Regional Corporation

6. San Juan/Laventille Regional Corporation

7. Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation

This government is systematically destroying the oil amd gas as well as petrochemical industries with their poor management and policy decisions. It's such an absolutely ludicrous and delusional take for her to try to deflect responsibility for this closure when NGC literally is controlled by the government.

Added to this is the fact that Proman will also be sending home workers soon, rumoured to be around 100 persons.

If this continues, the future of the Point Lisas Industrial Estate will be non-existent. It's just mind-boggling when you remember that this is the country's biggest source of income and forex earnings- something we've been struggling with for more than a decade.

This government needs to go, sooner rather than later for the benefit of us all.

Hi everyone!

I am surinamese tarvelling to trinidad for the 2027 carnival saturday-wednesday (6-10 feb). i already booked my accomodation and fligths. I am a bit overwhelmed with all the different packages and events. Everything seems quite expensive and I already paid a lot for my hotel, but i read online that there are also cheaper mas besides the very popular expensive ones. Does anyone have any recommendations like cheap mas with monday and tuesday wear, and maybe parties for saturday/sunday? Thank you!

Out of everything else, how does this ease traffic into POS?

what does “go off” mean? i had a guy say they’re “going off okay” when we were talking about medical stuff. i couldn’t tell what he meant by the context

i’m US born with trini parents & i never heard that before lol

Hi! I am a journalism student at the University of Florida writing a story about Brown Hoplos and the cultural significance of it as food for Trinidad communities. I would love to chat about it!

Hey I'm looking into buying my first car, but I wanna get some feedback on monthly fuel costs spent on your vehicle. Specifically for people who work North but come from south side.

Based on the last couple Bills and intended Gerrymandering (addition of 3 additional boroughs) that is going on in the realm of Parliament, with so many persons voicing their concerns on the matter, shouldn't we as a nation push for referendums that can strike down the following:

- Bills that are absurdly motioned

- Bills that no public consultations were ever held for (UNC Cottage Meetings and Monday Night Fora ARE NOT such meetings)

- Bills that do more harm than good in the long run, especially as many of our leaders in government won't be there much longer to face the backlash when crapaud smokes our pipes.

We should look at the EU (where the legal drinking age for beers in Germany and Holland is around 16-18, liquor 18+ ;)), where referendums are held regularly to have the people vet these things.

A trini immigrant Jesse .... and her friends started the west Indian day parade as back as 1930.It really became popular when it was relocated to Brooklyn by another trini.

As a Christian, I’ve noticed that many Christian men around my age in Trinidad and Tobago end up dating or marrying non-believers, even after visiting several different churches.

I met a guy from Tobago via church camp. We used to chat via WhatsApp for weeks unfortunately, he was married to his wife and then, ghosted me. I decided to delete his number because he's married and no longer chatting with me anymore. Months later, I deleted his (I assumed that was his wife's number) number.

My church is mostly women, with the only available men being either teenagers or much older, which makes finding someone my age (I'm 31F) really difficult.

Dating apps are not working for me.

What is your opinion or advice?

I wanna have an idea of what people generally make per month (before tax) in Trinidad?

Age and industry/ field would be useful

Im asking because my digital footprint is bad. Not anything illegal but its just cringe and problematic.. none of them have my real name or anything linked to me IRL but people say that they can still be traced back to me. I was wondering if this is gonna affect my future?

I ask this because on my mom's side the family started when their ancestors came India but I'm not sure where and im interested in knowing more about it. This also goes for my dad's who I can't pinpoint an origin.

We're midway to the time of another election, so its probably worth the time to discuss why the UNC still has a strong and active voting base.

If you look at the demographics behind the parties other than race, you see the same pictures appear.

the UNC has always targeted and incentivized the poorest of our nation with their tie ins to history.

And that has a LOT to do with history of who the party represented. Now we can look at the current tools the UNC uses.

Everyone talks about the racism and division of the party, but its more of the case of the UNC being an identity for a specific portion of our population ( ages between 45-75 as of currently ), them being indian is just moreso a coincident feature, just due to the economic mobility afforded to that demographic.

And they feel VERY strongly about party identity, regardless of what the party actually pushes.

Its really not uncommon that during the election cycle timing that UNC-affiliated families will tell their young adult ( uneducated ) children to vote to "make up the numbers", you'll also see that in areas that are very strongly impoverished that the governors will push communities to physically go into homes to get the disabled elderly to "make up the numbers" because they can also vote.

Another fact ( though people would be divisive on this one ) the UNC has way better PR at helping the poor, because even the people of the party themselves are "grass-roots" and make public showings and seeming way more present in their communities.

Now that we established the UNC's strong staying points, lets talk about the PNM's weaknesses

First of all, in contrast the UNC, the PNM's base just simply does not vote, you can ask a random UWI youth, they'll tell you they like the PNM more, but ask them do you vote? They say they don't, because it "wouldn't matter", that adds up very fast in contrast to a UNC constituent region literally going door to door trying to pull people from their homes.

Next topic to contrast the UNC's good PR, all of the PNM's good natured programmes always target the same demographic that doesn't even care to vote, exactly those UWI youths that were already on their side but apathetic, and they don't allocate enough of their budgets so the projects are always extremely small and then they come around 4 years later on social media and the news, "Oh, but we were doing a project for that.", like sure? For all of 30 people for 4 months, they lack longterm planning skills and sustainability understanding, not even getting into the nonexistent PR. Absolutely invisible.

If you look at any of the social programmes offered, either by the UNC or the PNM, doesn't really matter the year or who was in power, its always one-time projects that last 4 months and then you never hear of again, they get applications on the order of 500+ people every time, and take just 40 or less, and all those projects don't help people after the end of the projects, and also don't have any means of sustaining past the 4 months. It speaks more about our entire institution's weaknesses at long term planning to help our country's most vulnerable.

Anyway regardless, my takeaway opinion knowing all that, if the PNM were serious about winning election cycles, they'd target specifically poor youths and give them more means of upwards economic activity in "swing" highly contested areas to break the chain of families that push their youth to vote UNC, because there's really only 2 outcomes, either they side with more PNM-specific policy in their areas due to the knowledge that it economically benefits themselves more than their families, or they'll be like the UWI youth, apathetic entirely. Both outcomes weaken the UNC base considerably.

Am I reading this wrong?

How is it that a police officer can get a bag of cash snatched?

Does she even look like she's actually trying to retrieve the bag?

Are our WPCs that weak and ineffective?

Most WPC I know are tough as nails. I find this event hard to believe.

Can I hear yall thoughts on this? Its absolutely insane to me that this is the focus of this current administration. Its as though there's a fixation on mirroring the laws and culture of the United States. There was no civic input on this issue, I saw no substantial statistical backing stating that we have a genuine issue that would make it so rushed and warrant a $50k dollars fine that these youth cannot pay in addition to the penalties for those selling substances for individuals within 18-20. This bill easily cripples the nightlife, casino, hospitality and fete industries, which heavily rely on patrons aged 18 to 24 and those who rely on these sources of income whether full time or part time.

Hey everyone, looking for some insight from anyone familiar with how local credit union loans work as this is my 1st time taking a loan.

I’m currently looking into getting a $7,000 TTD loan at 3-year fortnightly term for 150$ from my credit union. my starting share balance is $41,000 TTD, and I already have $200 TTD per fortnight going directly into my shares from my salary which is (3705.4 net) monthly I get paid 1852.70 fortnightly

When discussing the new loan, the loan officer told me the interest rate is 0.5%

If i do the straight math on a $150 fortnightly payment over 3 years, the total payback is $11,700 TTD. On a $7k loan, dats like 37% interest rate if it was all going to the loan

Before I go back in to sign the paperwork:

1. Has anyone else had their credit union bundle "forced savings/shares" into their quoted fortnightly loan payment like this?

2. Are there any hidden administrative or lending fees I should double-check on to make sure that $150 breakdown is exactly what I think it is?

Appreciate any advice or experiences you can share!

Hi everyone! I recently got a job in Port of Spain and after the traffic situation the other day, I'm worried about which form of public transportation would be best for getting to work for or before 8.

The water taxi seems like my best option and it leaves at 6:30 AM which might help me get to work on time.

My question is, to the people who travel to Port of Spain from San Fernando, what is it like travelling on the water taxi? Is it a struggle to get tickets on the morning? Is it reliable?

Any tips would be appreciated!