00:00There was recently a triple murder, like a quadruple murder in Tobago which itself was
00:05something that a few years ago would have been unthinkable, quite apart being unheard
00:12of but certainly unthinkable. So the situation in both Trinidad and Tobago is past the stage
00:18of alarming.
00:19David Abdullah, the political leader of the Movement for Social Justice, the MSJ, speaking
00:25during his party's virtual Tuesday Night Talk. The MSJ has raised specific concerns
00:31about the deaths of more than 18 people in the past four days due to gun violence in
00:37the Twin Island Republic, including Carissa Ramerton from Rio Claro.
00:42A young woman goes to get her car serviced on a Saturday morning in a busy area in San
00:50Fernando and Toyota, crosses the road to a very busy shopping mall and on her way back
00:57gets gunned down and her handbag is stolen but really gets gunned down. This situation
01:05is past worrisome and many people are scared for their lives.
01:12Mr Abdullah raised another concern about what is referred to in economics as capital flight.
01:18Those people of course are very concerned about their livelihoods, their businesses
01:23and many are considering if they have not already migrated. Certainly this has caused
01:28significant capital flight which has always been with us but that capital flight no doubt
01:34has been accelerated as people move the money out of Trinidad and Tobago, placing it in
01:40other countries and then of course they will follow the money subsequently.
01:44Mr Abdullah was joined in his virtual Tuesday talk by someone he introduced as being a longstanding
01:50political and community activist from East Port of Spain, Malcolm Kernahan.
01:56Apple Gonzalez, clean apple Gonzalez, can't go to war Gonzalez and the clean Gonzalez
02:01cannot go past through the half. You understand? And that is as bad as it is, you know?
02:13And I'm saying that the Prime Minister and the Minister of National Security are supposed to
02:21calm down the communities and grow with the people. They have to. They have to.
02:28Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley is the MP for the Gomartin West. The National Security Minister
02:33Fitzgerald Hines is the MP for Lavant Hill West. The MSJ's Tuesday talk follows a meeting of the
02:40National Security Council which was chaired by Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley on Monday.
02:46The Office of the Prime Minister said Dr Rowley articulated the serious concerns with the incidents
02:51of violent crime and the continued use of illegal high-powered assault weapons and discussed with
02:57the leadership assembled the need for a more proactive intelligence-driven targeted and robust
03:03approach which is focused on those who are known and suspected to be involved in serious criminality.
03:11Jule Brown, TV6 News.
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