Even as it expressed support for the resumption of joint police/army patrols in crime-plagued communities of east Port-of-Spain, the T&T Chamber of Industry and Commerce yesterday reiterated its call for the appointment of a permanent police commissioner.
The country’s largest business group did so in a statement in which it expressed outrage at the upsurge in heinous crimes since the start of the year.
“Things came to a sobering head last Thursday January 21 when two teenaged boys—Mark Richards and Deneilson Smith—had their young lives snuffed out at the hands of gunmen in the Laventille area,” the Chamber said as it expressed sympathies to the families and loved ones of the teens.
The statement continued: “While it is comforting to note that within approximately 72 hours, four individuals were detained in connection with the murder of the teenagers, it is equally daunting that criminal activity continues relentlessly throughout the country.”
The T&T Chamber, which is calling for the joint patrols to be extended to “any other location within our borders, once deemed necessary,” urged the Government to take the lead in ensuring concrete initiatives are implemented to restore safety and security.
The group said the appointment of a permanent police commissioner “remains among the first steps to engendering confidence and a sense of stability in local law enforcement.
“This, along with an effective and integrated approach to intelligence gathering; a solid, airtight and trustworthy witness protection programme to support those who wish to come forward with valuable information; an enforced policy of zero tolerance for even the most minor of infractions and a reformed criminal justice system that is as resolute in its condemnation of white collar crime as it is of blue.
“The suggestions outlined here may well be viewed still in some quarters as merely scratching the surface of the crime behemoth that has overtaken our small nation. Be that as it may, the one thing of which we are certain is that neither the Government nor any one body should be held solely responsible for stemming the ugly tide of unlawful activity.
“To this end, T&T Chamber and by extension, the business community, reiterates its commitment to collaborating productively with the Government and all relevant stakeholders, to secure a better future for all of us—particularly our children—who live and work in Trinidad and Tobago.”