Good Sunday morning! Auntie Cheryl just came back from early mass and she has a LOT on her heart.
McDONALD BAILEY. LORD HAVE MERCY.
More than twenty years in prison for something he did not do. Acquitted. Given back his freedom. And then shot dead on a Saturday morning before he even had time to really live as a free man. Auntie Cheryl sat down when she read that. She is still sitting. There are no good words for this. None. You pray for his family. You pray for this country. And you wonder, very quietly, what the prison system owes a man like that, and what it can never actually pay.
KAMLA AND CARICOM: AUNTIE CHERYL IS CONFLICTED
Auntie Cheryl loves Kamla. She voted Kamla. But this CARICOM business has gotten very loud. The prime minister is calling for the Secretary-General to leave, the AP is writing about us, and the region is watching. Auntie Cheryl believes in standing firm on principle. She also believes in knowing when to lower the temperature. These two beliefs are currently fighting each other every time she reads the news. She does not know who is winning.
THE JET SKI MAN IS STILL IN CUSTODY
The man held in connection with little Angelica Jogie’s death in Tobago is still in custody. Good. Auntie Cheryl has been praying for that family every day. Seven years old. A child. Nothing about that story is acceptable and Auntie Cheryl will not pretend otherwise.
TWO MORE POLICE IN PREVENTIVE DETENTION
Two more police officers in the PDO list. Auntie Cheryl was a schoolteacher. She spent thirty-two years telling children that authority figures are trustworthy and that the system works. She is now watching those claims be tested on a weekly basis. She still believes in the institution. She is less certain about some of the individuals inside it.
RED FORCE CRICKET STARTS TODAY
Auntie Cheryl has her pot of sada roti on. The Red Force face the Leeward Islands Hurricanes in Antigua — first of three matches. Twenty years without a regional four-day title. This is the squad that can change that, if the batters concentrate and the fast bowlers stay healthy. Da Silva as captain. Auntie Cheryl has faith. She also has a backup prayer prepared.
THE RIO CLARO BUSINESSMAN
Over half a million dollars awarded to a man who was wrongfully arrested and assaulted while on remand. The money is some justice. The experience is still a scar that does not go away. Auntie Cheryl taught civics. She knows what the textbook says the justice system is supposed to do. The gap between the textbook and the reality is where she spends a lot of her retirement.
Auntie Cheryl is a satirical commentary column covering Trinidad and Tobago with great heart. She is not a real auntie — though she feels like one.