State of emergency declared in TT
PROGRESSIVE Democratic Patriots (PDP) political leader Watson Duke says measures must be put in place during the state of emergency (SoE) to ensure that rogue elements in the protective services do not abuse law-abiding citizens.
The government announced the SoE on December 30 but noted that curfews and restrictions on public gatherings would not be part of the measure.
The police, though, will be given additional powers, including searching premises and people without warrants; and also the power to detain people without warrant or charge for 48 hours in the first instance, and up to seven days, if a magistrate approves the extended detention.
Speaking in a video on December 30, Duke said there must be a policy to regulate such actions under the SoE.
“There are still rogue elements and over-zealous elements in the protective services, in particular, the police and the army because they are the ones who are now entrusted with enforcing the law,” he said.
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“So there must be some type of policy and measures put in place to prevent these over-zealous cops who will just see some ‘hornerman’ or some enemy from long time, pound down the door, plant something on the man and set him up.
“We don’t want that because there are overzealous, wicked, conniving and corrupt law-enforcement officers, if you don’t pay, well you have to play and vice versa.”
Duke said the government must put punitive measures in place for law-enforcement officers who act outside the law.
“They, too, must be dealt with. It is not a licence to abuse good citizens or your enemies because you are a law-enforcement officer.”
The Belle Garden East/Roxborough/Delaford assemblyman said crime had always been a social issue.
He said for far too long, the country had been treating with the symptoms of crime and criminality and not addressing the root cause.
“It means, therefore, there must be a cocktail of specific social programmes that would treat with crime and criminality.”
Duke said not all men socialising on a street corner were gang members.
Members of the protective services, he said, must make every block in Trinidad and Tobago feel safe and comfortable.
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“It is not a licence to give everybody case or to shoot people via extra-judicial killings. It is an opportunity to comb the area, sift out those that are doing wrong and let’s bring Trinidad and Tobago to give account.”
Ideally, he said, the SoE posed no threat to the ordinary law-abiding citizen.
“You are able to go to work as normal, conduct your meetings as normal, your church services in the night, your normal protests, you are able to do all of that.
“The only difference is that the police can now execute a search and now hold and detain for questioning, persons longer than usual.”
Duke said while that was a positive move in relation to solving crime, “this state of emergency should not be geared toward the gun-toting criminal or the violent crime criminals. It should be catered for all criminals, white-collar criminals and those who are the gun-toting criminals.”
He added, “They must all be afraid because now the police can enact the law in a certain way without warning. Let every man, every woman, big and small, rich and poor, fear the law because the police should be out to enforce the law – white-collar crime and 'black-collar' crime, so to speak.”
