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“Foodstuffs have a shortage daily, business places burning in the city/ Before they watch these things seriously, the whole meeting is a comedy/
“Ridicule —- fatigue giving, and all of the members laughing/While they having a good time, we catching we royal behind.”
Explainer, Kicksin in Parliament (1979).
Photo: Office of the Parliament 2024
It was fair to assume that crime would have been the leading topic in our national Budget. With extortion and home invasions being perpetrated almost daily, the parliamentarians were expected to focus on the issue.
In the debate, there were the usual platitudes and promises. There were a few concrete suggestions about the allocations and strategies to tackle the root causes of our problem.
National Security Minister Fitzgerald Hinds lazily blamed parents for the present situation without a hint that he understood the parenting challenges within his constituency or the impact of the recent pandemic on learning outcomes.
This debate was taking place less than a month after the health minister, Mr Terrence Deyalsingh, was robbed in a public setting. There was no word then, nor in the debate, about the significance of this incident.
The commentary, at the time, missed the horror stalking our land. There was no appreciation of the relevance of the arrest of the two men in the car suspected to be the getaway vehicle nor the location.
Mrs Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who previously quoted from a Trinibad artiste, did not recognise the area as the one that spawned the song.
Assistant Superintendent of Prisons Winfield Walker reported that several young men in the Youth Transformation and Rehabilitation Centre (YTRC) come from gangs operating in the St John’s Road, St Augustine, and Farley Street, Tunapuna areas.
He said the gang leaders would recruit teenagers after their release for re-indoctrination. “The forces of the gangs are very powerful.”
Pastor Clive Dottin concurred: “We are allowing the local mafia with their Latin American connections to train and empower teenagers and young adults to become serial killers in T&T.”
He continued: “We have a pandemic when it comes to teenagers having access to guns. This is a serious thing in this country. We are in a major crisis here. And it’s an intentional plan by senior gang leaders. If there is a united front with all the gang leaders, all hell would break loose in the country.”
Behavioural change consultant Franklyn Dolly added: “About ten per cent of our children could disrupt this country. Once they mobilise, they could be so dangerous … that is what is happening.
“So we have to dismantle those things. The only way you can break up the gangs is to have something attractive to offer them.”
He was lamenting the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic on learning outcomes.
On 8 May 2023, Brian Lara, moved by murders in Cantaro—the village where he grew up—issued a statement. He reflected on the multidimensional nature of the problem.
“The issue of youth crime in Trinidad and Tobago has been a concern for many years and is driven by a range of complex social, economic, and cultural factors. One contributing factor is financial worries, which affect many young people in Trinidad and Tobago.
“Young people from low-income families may feel pressure to engage in criminal activities to earn money or support their families. The availability of illegal firearms is also a major contributor to youth crime in Trinidad and Tobago.
Photo: IANS
“Guns are often used in gang-related activities, and the possession of firearms has become a symbol of power and status among some young people. There is also a lack of access to education and employment opportunities for many young people in Trinidad and Tobago, which can leave them feeling marginalised and frustrated.
“Without the skills and resources necessary to succeed, some young people will turn to crime as a means of survival.”
By July 2024, journalist Mark Bassant reported: “Dishonest police officers have facilitated the bloody reign of the Resistance Gang along the East-West Corridor, where crimes such as murders, kidnappings, extortion and robberies have been unleashed with impunity.”
Was Pastor Dottin’s fear about “a united front” being materialised? Hear Bassant: “There is a hostile takeover of all the drug blocks from St Augustine to Five Rivers as the gang expanded its crime tentacles into the extortion of business people stretching from Curepe to St Helena, Piarco.”
If the Resistance gang is so fierce, Was there a connection between the Beetham Gardens shooting and St Paul Street and the Sea Lots shooting and the foray in St Joseph?
What the Sea Lots residents know is: “The authorities have to take crime-fighting seriously; otherwise, there would be more chaos and murders. All 41 of them are in Parliament, but it seems nobody is serious about what is happening in the country.”
(via Newsday)
My mother used to say: “The devil finds work for idle hands to do.” This is true in Parliament.
After all the noise about the money to be budgeted for the Prime Minister’s office, “the Opposition members, including Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar, failed to probe further the $50 million allocation for entertainment and functions.”
Minister Imbert floated an “unfleshed” estimate for a sports initiative with Brian Lara to influence young people against crime. The Opposition’s response was puerile.
Photo: Office of Parliament 2024
But did Minister Imbert forget the Hoops for Life programme, for which we reportedly paid Shaquille O’Neal $1.5 million for a one-day appearance?
The then-Minister Jack Warner was sure that crime would be tamed with a US$3 million budget!
Ms Sherma Wilson, a Beetham Gardens activist, scolded: “Sport is such a wonderful thing, a wonderful experience. We shouldn’t be using it conveniently for our political interests.”
Have we forgotten that we spend $11 million annually on our nine swimming pools? What has been the benefit?
At the opening of the Laventille pool, Sports Minister Shamfa Cudjoe boasted that it would facilitate the Cabinet’s goal of sport for all and improve individual lives and community cohesion.
“I’d like to see the next George Bovell come out of Laventille,” she said.
Photo: Ministry of Sport and Community Developmer
A laudable goal, but does it help to avert or minimise crime? Having birthed Akeal Hosein, has Laventille become safer? Will the health of the general community improve?
In his time, Jack Warner claimed that “the whole object[ive] is getting young people involved because we believe quite sincerely that there is this positive relationship between sport and crime.”
While this position has theoretical logic, it ignores the broader socio-political context in which sports organisations operate.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
We have an ongoing case study with the national football association. From its treatment of Russel Latapy to the current team, the dynamics torpedo the intent.
We also are seeking to solve a broad societal problem via limited-focus interventions. The Budget treats the subventions to the literacy and food security problems as distinct from the proposed Lara-led intervention.
How will this uncoordinated effort work? What can we expect to gain from this new scheme? Given his earlier statement, what did Lara tell the government ministers about the potential efficacy of his plan?
Photo: Sean Morrison/ Wired868
As Mr Walker said: “No matter how many programmes you may expose a resident to, they have to return to their at-risk communities and households.”
Because the parliamentarians do not mind our business, they can get into undignified, baseless and salacious chatter. Shame on all of them!
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