State of emergency declared in TT
THE House of Representatives on January 13 agreed to a government motion to extend the current state of emergency (SoE) for three months after its proclamation last month. The motion was moved by the Prime Minister, who also made a brief wind-up speech in which he appealed to the Opposition as reasonable individuals to support it. When Speaker Bridgid Annisette-George put the vote, no voices were raised in opposition to the motion, which in fact needed just a simple majority in the elected House alone to be approved.
Originally, the SoE was proclaimed by President Christine Kangaloo on December 30, with the general public being notified by a statement on social media and via a later news conference by then-acting attorney general Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Stuart Young and Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds.
Reporters were told that after a man was shot dead outside Besson Street Police Station, Port of Spain, and five people were shot dead at Prizgar Lands, Laventille, the police had information that reprisal killings were expected and rival gangs had access to high-powered assault firearms. The SoE, giving the police more powers, was meant to avert retaliation.
The motion before MPs said the President can proclaim an SoE under the Trinidad and Tobago Constitution (section 8 (1)), that in the first instance the SoE will run for 15 days (section 9(2)), and that the House may extend it for a period of up to three months with extensions in sum not exceeding six months (section 10 (1)).
In the House, those who spoke on the SoE motion were Rowley, Barataria/San Juan MP Saddam Hosein, Young, Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal, Hinds, Tabaquite MP Anita Haynes, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Minister of Local Government Faris Al-Rawi, Couva South MP Rudranath Indarsingh and Naparima MP Rodney Charles.
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