It is like a recurring decimal but Trinidad and Tobago cannot avoid the conversation over when we will finally be able to halt the escalating crime rate and murders, in particular, currently overwhelming the society.
In this regard, yesterday’s vote of no-confidence in National Security Minister Edmund Dillon’s performance must be seen by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley as a snippet of the overall sentiment of the country, they having also been expressed by labour unions earlier this week as well.
While the Opposition United National Congress was detailing what it saw as Dillon’s failure on crime inside Parliament, a group of relatives of crime victims were also outside expressing their disgust at the situation, having experienced some sort of distress indirectly at the hands of criminals over the years.
And while some may want to dismiss this protesting group as being politically motivated, there were more murder victims cut down over the past 24 hours - a potent enough sign that law enforcement continues to face an increasingly uphill battle.
Numerous politicians have attempted to convince society that the criminal element remains in the minority. If that is so, this minority group appears to wield major influence, since it is they who now have law-abiding citizens cowering in fear - truly a sad state of affairs.
Either way, the buck must stop with the Prime Minister. As head of the National Security Council, he has to make a determination on whether the crime mechanisms in place are working or not. More importantly, it is also time for him to assess whether Mr Dillon has been able to steer those under his purview competently enough to solve the problem. If not, then the PM must take corrective measures and that may mean allocating another person to do the job.
Another judicial fiasco
If we are to believe the information shared by Opposition Senator Gerald Ramdeen, operations at the Hall of Justice in Port-of-Spain, the seat of this country’s judiciary, have been severely hampered over the first half of this year due to a malfunctioning AC unit. The situation has forced the acting Chief Justice to stagger staff working and judges to adjourn matter earlier, since serving jurors, lawyers and those before the court are also facing the same distress.
The judiciary is already under fire for the slow manner in which it is perceived to be administering of justice to citizens. So why then has the current situation with what should be a minor maintenance issue been allowed to degenerate?
Let’s support our athletes
Some of this country’s top senior athletes will be on display during this weekend’s NGC/Sagicor NAAA National Open Track and Field Championships at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo, which kicked off last evening and continues today. While there are no major international games immediately around the corner, the athletes are certainly deserving of full support from the fans.
