00:00TV6 News contacted the Minister in the Cabinet with Responsibility for Policing Issues, Senior
00:06Counsel Keith Scotland, for comment on the decision by Police Commissioner Eula Hayward-Christopher
00:11for all officers to return their police tactical kits by next Wednesday, with the exception
00:18of those in four police operational units.
00:22The Top Cops Instructions follows reports of clothing resembling police tactical wear
00:27having been used by criminals to commit robberies, kidnappings and even murders.
00:58There have been seizures by the Police of clothing that resembles that of tactical uniforms
01:04worn by law enforcement, including on October 8th when the Police announced the seizure
01:09of an AK-47 rifle and clothing with police insignia seized in the North Eastern Division.
01:27The instruction by the Police Commissioner will see many more police officers wearing
01:39the traditional grey and blue uniforms.
01:42Former Police Commissioner Guy Griffith, who leads the National Transformation Alliance
01:46Party, said in a statement on Facebook on Friday, quote, while there is an obvious and
01:52pressing need to remove the current cheap tactical blue uniforms, which are readily
01:56available in stores and similar to those worn by many private security companies, allowing
02:01individuals to easily impersonate police officers, the solution should not be a return to the
02:07past, end quote.
02:09Mr. Griffith further said what he called this backward decision stands in stark contrast
02:14to the uniform that had previously been approved during his tenure as Top Cop, which had a
02:19modern functional design similar to those worn in major cities across North America.
02:25In a brief statement, the Police Social and Welfare Association said that this is an opportunity
02:29to introduce what it calls an ergonomic contemporary uniform for police officers to engage in daily
02:36routines.
02:37In announcing the Police Commissioner's decision on Thursday, Deputy Police Commissioner Junior
02:42Benjamin said the only units exempted from the order to return the police tactical uniforms
02:47are the Guard and Emergency Branch, the Multi-Operational Police Section, the Inter-Agency Task Force
02:53and the National Operational Task Force.
02:56The Police Service Social and Welfare Association said that while they acknowledge concerns
03:01about the use and misuse of the police uniform in recent times, the Association is also strongly
03:06advocating that the 10 Divisional Task Forces be issued similar camouflage to the Inter-Agency
03:13Task Force with identifiable patches for the daily operations.
03:18TV6 News asked Minister Scotland if he had any discussion with the Police Commissioner
03:24on the matter of tactical police uniforms.
03:27I have frequent communications with the Commissioner of Police, but I am not at liberty to tell
03:35you what has been discussed, but I can tell you that there's a pointed discussion on arresting
03:43what is happening in Trinidad, a pointed discussion.
03:47In response to a follow-up question from TV6 News, Minister Scotland confirmed that
03:52discussion included the national concern of gun violence.
03:55However, Minister Scotland said he did not want to divulge anything further.
04:01Jule Brown, TV6 News.
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