Members of the Defence Force have been encouraged to relax their stance when interacting with members of the public.
Defence Force Chaplain Ashton Gomez made the call as he addressed a service at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Port-of-Spain, commemorating the 54th anniversary of the T&T Regiment yesterday.
Stating the public’s assistance was vital in the fight against crime, Gomez appealed to soldiers to be more friendly when performing joint patrols with the police.
“Is it illegal for soldiers to say good morning and good afternoon? Certainly not!” Gomez said.
“People should not fear you, they should respect you. Fear and respect are two different things,” he added as he suggested that polite interactions would encourage people to provide vital intelligence to the protective services.
Gomez also called on the Government to include more local history in schools as he said that there were many unnamed heros who served during the 1990 Attempted Coup, who many citizens would never know about.
“We know about European and American History but we have now learnt that some things we thought about our history were not true,” Gomez said.
Commander of the Regiment Colonel Dexter Francis also spoke during the service and encouraged his officers to continue to work together to improve the organisation.
“There must be reflection and introspection. We have to examine the past and know where we come from in order to be better for citizens,” Francis said.
He also said in addition to assisting with national security, the organisation would continue to nature at risk youths and assist with their growth and development.