Security heads have no new plans

COUNTRY SORREL: Colonel Roland Maundy (right) Head of the TT Regiment and a colleague with their bags of sorrel which they purchased from a shop in Salybia at the end of a three-day crime retreat yesterday.

By NALINEE SEELAL

Tuesday, January 8 2008

NATIONAL Security heads summoned to a retreat at the Salybia Beach Resort from Friday afternoon to yesterday, failed to supply any meaningful new anti-crime initiative to Minister of National Security Martin Joseph.

A dejected-looking Joseph left the beach resort shortly after 10 am, without any of the new measures he had hoped to get from the security top brass, to add to Government’s crime motion which was delivered in Parliament yesterday.

Almost all of the initiatives offered to Minister Joseph were already used and those proposed were reportedly shot down, sources said.

During the retreat, the high-ranking officers were addressed by security consultant Anthony Watkins of Watkins and Associates.

They were also addressed by Joseph who spoke on key issues relating to management structures. He advised officers of the importance of putting certain management structures in place for the security agencies to perform at its best.

The participants were also reminded of the need to work more closely and get to know each other rather than operating alone. Participants were also reminded of the need to set up better systems for disseminating work plans.

The officers were introduced to the officers of the newly formed National Information Co- ordinating Centre, which is based at Long Circular Road, Maraval and was established to deal with the upsurge in crime.

Senior officers told Newsday that setting up the Special Anti-Crime Unit (SAUTT) and other elite agencies to deal with crime, is not the answer to fighting crime.

They maintained yesterday that they see nothing wrong in a gun amnesty being introduced and again questioned the refusal by government to put this amnesty in place.

Yesterday, Opposition Leader Basdeo Panday told Newsday he too is baffled as to the reason why government has shot down the proposed amnesty, especially at a time when the country is facing an upsurge in murders in which the gun is the weapon of choice.

“Try it and see if it will work and if it does not, then the government can tell the citizens that they tried and the initiative failed,” Panday said.

At the end of the retreat at Salybia yesterday, officers were treated to buffet-styled lunch consisting of vegetable soup, pigeon peas rice, coo-coo, callaloo, flying fish, stewed lamb, green salad and a choice of very sweet grapefruit juice or fruit punch. Dessert consisted of Vanilla ice- cream.

Colonel Roland Maundy used the opportunity to venture out of the hotel to purchase freshly picked sorrel from a nearby shop.

In the first instance their purpose for goin up Salybia is to put money in the Boynes family pocket. Payback.

Second, these useless mudder cont was lookin for ah lime this weekend gone. Play ah lil All Fours, drink some booze and good food to wid that.

It seems as though some even went lookin for sorrel.

Wa fockin crrime talk. Same fockin result.