Not long after members of the Prison Officers Association and Fire Services Association criticised Government for leaving them out of the $1 million compensation package for members of the protective services slain in duty, National Security Minister Edmund Dillon was forced to correct the statement made about the initiative made by Cabinet colleagues Jennifer Baptiste-Primus and Maxie Cuffie.
After noting all members of the protective services would qualify for the payment, Dillon added:
“In September 2014, the previous government accepted the proposal from the Police Service to pay $1 million to relatives of any member of the protective services killed in the line of duty.
“However, there has been no disbursement of the promised payment to date, notwithstanding the death of Police Constable Sherman Maynard, who was on duty outside the Port-of-Spain Prison on July 24, 2015.
“The National Security Ministry is committed to putting in place the mechanism to get the Cabinet approval to effect the payment to family members of officers killed in duty.”
After Dillon’s correction, Fire Services Association head Ramkissoon said: “I’m relieved and hope the process will be speedily implemented.”
Efforts to contact POA president Richards last night were unsuccessful.
Police Social and Welfare Association head Anand Ramesar said the benefit had been announced in 2014 for all protective services but he said police officers were usually the most likely to lose their lives on the job.
Also contacted yesterday, former PP national security minister Gary Griffith said when the Cabinet note on the issue arose it had only included sectors under National Security: Police, Fire and Defence Force.
He said he had pointed out prisons was also part of the protective services and the PP decided all protective services, including Prisons, would be eligible for the benefit.
Former national security minister Carl Alfonso, meanwhile, said up to last August, the ministry had been working on arrangements for payments for PC Maynard, who was killed during the July 2015 jailbreak at the Frederick Street prison.
Alfonso said he had been in touch with the then finance minister and deputy police commissioner to do the necessary checks on Maynard’s beneficiaries for the payments. He said that process had been in train.
Labour Minister Jennifer Baptiste-Primus also yesterday commented on concerns about whether the protective services’ threats of “chaos”, erupting from their dissatisfaction over the Government’s arrangements to pay arrears, could result in another day of “Total Policing”.
Yesterday, Baptiste-Primus noted that Finance Minister Colm Imbert had said he would be meeting with the groups soon and she expected the issue would be settled. She said the debt was recognised and it would be met.