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00:30Beyond the tape, we'll be back after these messages.
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02:36Welcome to Beyond the Tape.
03:00I'm your host, Mark Bassan.
03:01Welcome to our viewers across Trinidad and Tobago and also across the globe.
03:07It's Day 16 of the State of Emergency.
03:11Of course, joining us today is DCP Mr. Junior Benjamin of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service.
03:18Welcome, sir.
03:19Welcome.
03:20I'm so glad to be here.
03:21It is indeed a privilege to be here with you, Mark, and even those that are listening.
03:26We're looking forward for a wonderful day today.
03:28Right.
03:30We know that this is Day 16 of the State of Emergency.
03:33Of course, we just wanted to bring the viewers up to speed in terms of any information, statistics, data that you can share with us about the ongoing operations by the police.
03:46Oh, yes.
03:47Let me just say in terms of where we are at this present time, we are thankful and always grateful for the input of the public in terms of all that we have accomplished thus far.
04:02Let me just probably just read just a little bit.
04:05Not that the statistics is saying that we are satisfied, but just to note that at this point in time, since the beginning of the SOE to now, we had at least 815 operations.
04:19We have targeted at least 750 priority offenders.
04:24We have done at least 4,634 searches, and that would be searches in either property or even at times vehicles as well.
04:34Right.
04:35All right.
04:36We had at least traffic operations, at least 645.
04:41We have at least 630 persons were arrested, and we had at least 1,832 traffic offenses being detected.
04:52In all, we had at least 37 firearms being recovered and 1,053 rounds of ammunition was also recovered.
05:04And finally, we had at least close to 115 kilograms of marijuana and over 607 grams of cocaine was also seized during that period.
05:17So, again, we continue to fight.
05:20It means that we are out there.
05:22We understand that there's a level of heightened awareness in terms of what needs to be done in order to bring perpetrators to justice and also to see if we can dismantle the operations.
05:34And we are grateful for the commitment of our officers out there, both in terms of the 1st and 2nd Division.
05:42We just want to encourage our officers to continue to fight as we seek to really get to the root cause of the problems.
05:50And so far, what we're seeing is that at least the SOE is making some headway in terms of the crime situation.
05:57Now, yesterday, the parliament would have extended the state of emergency for three months, so that gets us starting to April 14 of this year.
06:11And I know in that period of time, of course, we have a huge number of people already detained.
06:16And if you could give us an idea of where these detainees are being kept and what is the plan going forward for the next three months in terms of the SOE and the detention of persons?
06:28Okay, so what I can say thus far is that the majority of persons presently are still within the cartilage of the police stations.
06:38Again, most of them would be probably within that 48 hours to seven days period, after which you have to go to a judge.
06:50And then you'll need to get the three months there in terms of their detention.
06:57When that detention is signed, the detention order, there are places SOE assigned, and it could be different places.
07:07And they are putting things in place in terms of the prison's authorities, so that there are those places that they are going to go to.
07:17And we would just abide by the decisions in terms of wherever they put those individuals.
07:23It's going to be a secure location, and we're going to ensure security for all, even in there.
07:28Right, so of that percentage of persons you mentioned that were arrested so far, could you give us in terms of a percentage of the number of people that would have exceeded that seven days,
07:39and where you would have to go to the courts or wherever to get a further detention for some of these people if you can?
07:47Well, we presently know we're getting into that phase, and I think probably we're still pretty early in that phase.
07:55So we probably have two prisons thus far, or one or two prisons that have crossed over.
08:01But very soon we're hoping that, again, as the time goes on, more and more prisons will at least cross that threshold to be part and parcel of those that would be in for the longer period.
08:13So again, it's all part of the process, but we continue to push.
08:18And again, the officers, we have to do our interviews and all the necessary things to ensure that we meet the threshold in terms of what is needed.
08:26And the police is doing what they have to do to ensure that level of competence in terms of what we do.
08:33We must ensure that whatever we do, it must reach that threshold that is required.
08:37And that's what we're doing right now, getting the information.
08:41The conditionalities, of course, would differ because there are certain prisons that they would, like the minister would have ordered today or yesterday rather, on the 12th,
08:50through the Gazette, a legal notice, the detention of one Mr. Shumba James.
08:55And that automatically, then, he's taken and carried to a correctional center, the Eastern Correctional, or any other location that people have been detained,
09:04which is a little bit different from people, for instance, who are picked up and kept for a period of seven days before they are extended.
09:11Because my understanding is that his detention is supposedly for 90 days.
09:17And I know that there is another person, a priority offender, that under the emergency regulations,
09:25that the commissioner ordered that they be placed under house arrest.
09:29And of course, his attendance is as challenging as that.
09:31Right. So, as I said, it's pretty early.
09:34And the number of persons for the detention for three months and over, again, we're now starting that phase.
09:43So, it's not much persons.
09:44So, again, other than the person that you've just called, there probably might just be one more person, again, probably right around that area that should probably cross over there.
09:56But those persons, again, because it is pretty early for us to talk about in terms of numbers of persons, they are the ones that are there presently.
10:06And what we are hoping is that, again, we are hoping that persons, as they recognize that, you know, these persons are at least in a place where they're not able to give any problems,
10:18that we can now ask persons, you know, it could take away some of the fear.
10:22So, persons could come forward with information so that we can deal with the root cause of the problem.
10:29And that's really what we want.
10:30This is not just about the police.
10:32This is about Trinidad and Tobago.
10:34And we are saying to all persons, let's get on board and let's work together so that we can walk hand in hand as we walk, you know, and have that synergy where we get the information.
10:47And the information is what's going to help us to ensure that, you know, at least we have the evidence to ensure that these persons doesn't just come out after that period.
10:56Unfortunately, we had 14 homicides for the year up to last night.
11:02And I know the Prime Minister spoke about it yesterday, saying that it's not going to stop during and after the state of emergency.
11:10But what is the long-term plan by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service to ensure that not just homicide but violent crimes and those types of crimes are dealt with in a very swift and effective manner to give the citizenry that assurance?
11:25Well, first of all, would you recognize even now that even compared to last year, the homicide is probably about 50% of what transpired last year around this time.
11:39And to me, that's a significant improvement.
11:43And not to disagree, and I'm coming back, that when you look, and I'm just talking here from some stats that came out from the 1st of January to the 13th.
11:55Would you recognize that even woundings and shootings was four compared to 24 last year?
12:01We had sexual offenses, seven to 33.
12:04We had robberies, 17 to 80.
12:07Would you recognize is that the SOE did have an important part to play in these things?
12:15Now, again, this is not for us to stop and say that we are satisfied.
12:18What we're saying that at least, because persons have the ability to walk all over, the freedoms are not taken away.
12:25All that is given is the police having that ability, that additional powers that is given to the commission, and by extension, the police service, so that we can deal with crime very effectively and quickly.
12:38And I'm saying once this is given, even after the SOE, I am saying we are going to ensure that we continue to look at our strategies to deal with crime quickly and swiftly.
12:50We are going to look again in terms of, again, where we have name calls, where we have persons that can be easily identified.
13:00We are going to have those things in place to ensure that we go after those individuals.
13:04At the same time, we are saying that we are going after the guns, and I'm saying the more guns we can take off the streets now, it's going to help us in the long run.
13:12And these are some of the things that we are trying to do now, so that at the end of the day, if we can really seek to dismantle some operations, it's going to at least benefit us in the long run at the end of the year.
13:24All right, well, we're certainly going to continue that discussion a little bit later, but now we're going to go to our headlines.
13:34So those were some of the headlines within the last 24 hours, and certainly we were just talking about the number of homicides,
14:04thus far it's averaging one per day right now, before it was less than one per day.
14:11And the latest victim was killed just a mere two buildings away from the Four Roads Police Station last night.
14:20And if you look at the video here, this is from the Domino's Pizza area there.
14:26A Toyota Wagon.
14:34Heavy gunfire, heavy, heavy firepower, DCP Benjamin.
14:38The hooded suspects then making their escape quickly.
14:44At the time, Sam says around minutes to nine, and I think about three to four minutes later, the police jeep arrives and found the body of 18-year-old Hill Jr. Besson,
15:01originally from the Belmont area, that incidentally we later learned was part of the YouTuber's Christmas list interviews last year,
15:14when they were talking about neighborhoods where there were gangs operating, and apparently he spoke.
15:22And it was really sad to see a young life being lost in the way that it was.
15:28Well, actually, it is really sad because when you have these young people with such great potential and you see their life being, again, taken away, it's really sad.
15:43But, you know, one of the things that we must look at is the fact that many times the choices that persons make, you know, can really affect them.
15:53I heard one person say, we win or lose by the way we choose.
15:57And therefore, again, with this young man, it seems very much that he followed friends.
16:03And we have to really start to, again, parents need to even encourage their children to really watch the company, you know what I'm saying?
16:12Because the company that they keep can determine their destiny.
16:16And I think this is one situation where, again, the very company that this young man kept really brought his demise at such a young age.
16:24And this is really sad. It's unfortunate.
16:27But again, I hope that the lessons are learned so that we don't see much of this happening in the future.
16:33Yeah, and a relative, well, we spoke to a senior officer in the Western Division, and he had a conversation with the relative.
16:40Of course, the relative did speak with the media later.
16:43And one of the things that the relative was saying is that, as you said, quite rightly pointed out, and I would have paid the voice note for you.
16:48He spoke about the fact that he chose the wrong persons to align themselves with.
16:53And, of course, he did not in any way evade the question of his relative being involved in gang activity.
17:02And it's like you live by the sword, die by it is more or less what he would have indicated.
17:07And what I was also told by senior officers in the Western Division is that it seemed that Mr. Besson was, in that era, possibly hiding out from rival gang members.
17:18And when his relatives came to speak with the police, they did indicate that he was known to police officers in the Belmont Street area.
17:26And, of course, they felt that he probably was trying to lay low.
17:29And, of course, you know how the intelligence, you know, underworld works.
17:34And they got wind that he was in that area.
17:36He was now returning from purchasing some eggs and bread near the quick shop there when the assailants pulled up on him.
17:44And I think that's one of the challenges that we recognize.
17:48Once you start to deal with the underworld, you always have to be living life looking over your shoulder.
17:55And I think that it is something that we want to encourage young people to really be very careful.
18:01Before you start to, you know, even be associated with gang members and even with persons who are affiliated with gangs, I am saying you need to understand that once you're inside, it's difficult to come out.
18:15And, therefore, sometimes the only way you come out is in a box.
18:19And that is so, so unfortunate.
18:22And, therefore, we want to encourage young people, do not choose a life, you know, of crime.
18:27Do not choose to be associated with gangs.
18:30There are persons and there are people on the outside that, again, can help shape your destiny by giving you and helping you to understand purpose.
18:40So, therefore, again, this is really an unfortunate situation.
18:44And what we are hoping is that from this, the lessons will be learned by other young people that we really should seek to look at our friends and be careful to follow the right things in life and not the wrong things because it can lead to your demise.
18:59Well said.
19:00Alright, we're going to take a short break and we'll be back after this.
19:03Stay with us.
19:14Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
19:44oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
20:14oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
20:44maybe you could afford to pay up to $22,500 in fines and lose your license permanently
21:14no then don't drink and drive a message from the trinidad and tobago police service
21:32welcome back to beyond the tape i'm your host mark besant joined today by dcb junior benjamin
21:37of the trinidad and tobago police service as we continue our discussion about the state of
21:42emergency and of course other pressing matters and just before we go to the other matter i just
21:47wanted to ask if uh all the officers have responded to the call to return to duty because there seems
21:53to be some claims that some officers have refused to comply well um i can't say that all all has
22:01um responded i i want to say that we are grateful for those who have responded thus far um those
22:07that came out um i can say for sure that they are very much in tools in terms of what we're doing
22:14and um we were able to um have uh some operational teams coming out of those persons and the energy
22:22and the spirit of the officers are very much um high in terms of uh they're glad that they're out
22:28and they're able to help in the the fight against uh the crime so again um i i haven't seen the
22:34positive coming out of that and um we will still continue to even encourage if there are those that
22:40are outside there um and you have not heeded the call to please come out and um this is about
22:46everybody we need all hands on deck we are going to again um continue to look at all all this and
22:52there are some people again due to certain circumstances even though they are in that
22:57situation they might be on vacation or even on uh they're sick they're unable to come and that
23:03also accounts for some of the reasons why persons are for those who just refuse they can be faced
23:09this of course if it's proceedings yeah if it's yes that you you don't want to come out and um we
23:14find out that that is the case certainly um we will deal with that according to um the full brunt
23:20of the the law as it relates to the regulations uh discipline we we we are one that we we have
23:26a zero tolerance on as relates to police officers and in discipline so we are going to deal with
23:32that accordingly but we generally we recognize that the majority of persons thus far um do not
23:39have we have even persons coming out and explaining the situation why they are still on leave or and
23:44that kind of thing and there's a level of understanding that is given in certain cases
23:49all right so you could see here is well lit right this area here is well lit uh we are lights above
23:55us so let's talk about lights out at some police stations what you could tell us in that regard
24:01because it's been in the media and the newspapers today uh you know talking about lights out at
24:07various police stations uh anything you can uh expand on or give us some ideas about what that
24:14might have been about well um i i would say in terms of um the situation with the police officers
24:21that we remain totally committed to Trinidad and Tobago and in terms of uh the work right now we
24:28are on high alert and the fact that we are on high alert it means that all stations are going
24:34to be open 24 7 the commissioner of police has made a statement in relation to um what is out
24:43there and again um i think that the commissioner statement will really summarize all that the police
24:51service um needs to say about the issue but i saying that um you know even in certain stations
24:58i we call one of our stations um because i met with even uh the divisional commanders and one
25:04of the stations it was saying that um the reality is the station is in such a way that the sun comes
25:11in so it is tinted the glass is tinted so in the day you know it stops the sun but in the night
25:17when you put on the light you can't see outside so again you might find that the the light in front
25:23might be off but when you come the door is open and it's just there but the rest of the lights
25:28when you come in the station it is lit but you from outside it might look like if it is not
25:33so there are a lot of different things that um might not really it might look on the outside
25:38that way but we are saying right now the every station we are on high alert and 24 7 we are there
25:46to give that human service to Trinidad and Tobago and to ensure that persons who come must be given
25:52the highest quality service that is needed at this time and this season very diplomatic answer
25:59and i know that the i didn't see the commissioner's release i don't know if it was sent us yet i know
26:03three is expected uh so we will definitely take guidance from that particular release
26:09from the commissioner i think we have a call on the line caller good evening
26:13hello good evening mr benjamin
26:17um i have a question um we have special reserves in the police service right you have very well
26:25experienced special reserves i'm not speaking about the ones yes the ones who are under the
26:31age of 35 and even the ones who are older instead of your like every six months however often you
26:37all are taking in person to train in the barracks for six months why not what why is it taken so
26:44long to have these these special reserve officers um get um regular i forgot the name what you call
26:54it when they um have them come into the regular you know what i mean absorption name of it
27:01right what they would say um please help me so what's the name of it absorption
27:06absorption one two my second question is um do you think that enough is being done
27:17to fight this crime situation in the country in in terms of the legislators and the lawmakers
27:23and assisting the police and because it's so much it's only so much the police can do
27:29right and do you think that enough has been done in terms of legislation
27:34and laws to assist the police in the fight against crime mind you i want the powers who
27:42who are listening know that police officers are working in police business that is old some of
27:49them has no there's no life in them but they have to put it to one right they still have to put
27:56where to go out there um it's so disturbing that each and every day you're seeing a police
28:01letting blame for this police letting blame for that for everything do you think enough is being
28:06done to assist the police in that regard and also why is it taking so long or why are they not
28:13having an absorption to assist the police officers
28:17regular police officers of the country as it relates to the crime situation thank you
28:22all right thank thank you so very much and and thank you for the question let me just say in
28:30first of all in terms of absorption absorption should always be taken within the context of
28:36it's not the police that does the absorption um this is something that would be um more or less
28:42a proposal that is given and the commissioner has already uh thrown that out and it is based
28:49on the government to decide whether or not they are going to hold that route of absorption but
28:55i want to also see to all our special reserve officers that this present executive of the ttps
29:03has gone the extra mile to ensure that we can try to fix the situation where special reserve
29:10officers are concerned we have uh the commissioner would have put in place already a proposal uh to
29:18the cabinet where we are going to look to structure the special reserve because the challenge right
29:23now is that the special reserve officers there is no strength so we need to have a strength that
29:28would state how much you know uh special reserve officers we have in part-time full-time or even
29:35returning so we have proposed uh a strength and again in with the ranks for all so that even right
29:42now we have persons who are full-time and because they are full-time they cannot even have the the
29:47luxury of being promoted we have put that before the cabinet to ensure that you know very soon
29:54that we can approve that and we can even have that level of promotion within the special reserve and
30:01i'm saying that because we care about the special reserve and we appreciate the hard work of our
30:06special reserve officers as it relates to uh absorption we have suggested it and again we
30:12await uh with great anticipation the decision from the cabinet uh whether or not they would
30:18accept it but it is something that we have been lobbying for and we hope that uh again um we would
30:25be guided based on the decision of the of the cabinet at this time and in terms of the fight
30:33and legislation we there's always uh our appreciation for legislation that is able to
30:40support the police as we continue the fight um more and more those legislations uh that come to
30:46give us greater teeth is going to cause us to be more effective so therefore we would appreciate
30:51more and more legislations that cause us to fight but with any legislation we will continue to uh
30:58work with and even around to ensure at the end of the day that we do not forget our focus and
31:05our purpose and our vision which is to make every place safe in Trinidad and Tobago so we will
31:10continue the fight and continue to do our jobs to the best of our ability despite or in spite of the
31:16situation with the legislations all right thanks a lot for that dcp benjamin we're
31:20going to take a short break and we'll be back stay with us
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32:34it starts here with the trinidad express newspapers to enhance your reading experience
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33:02it starts here with the trinidad express newspapers
33:33it's not a thrill when your speed can't kill
33:54welcome back to beyond the tape i'm your host mark bassant with dcp jr benjamin of the trinidad
34:00and tobago police service i do believe you have a call on the line caller good evening
34:05hi good evening sir and good evening to the um hard-working dcp there thank you um i just want
34:12to know something is roger alexander back on work or is he still on vacation given the current
34:20circumstances we are in well well uh senior superintendent alexander has answered the call
34:29and uh he is out with us and he is part and parcel of the the team that presently
34:37seeking to continue the fight even in this soe so he's he's out at this time all right well
34:45that's good news and you know he's a man always on the ground you always have information and
34:49you always trying to get to the bottom of things so um we have a video um that uh i got earlier
34:58today involving police officers going to uh supposedly the compound of another officer
35:08in terms of uh i guess doing true diligence of course and i just wanted you to take a look or
35:15listening we wouldn't want to identify anybody and give us some guidance on it
35:22um
35:44no you come now you come here my property you come now because i
35:47i want to know what's going on here
35:51no no because i don't understand i work here all the time but i'm daily energy i get in
35:57this is crazy you know just now just now i just what what what's that
36:05what's what's in him what's in him yes i have been helping what's in him right with all kind
36:12of people no he's not upshot every asking questions we're in our place no i i this is
36:19from a pest a little person in the community they saw me by who y'all came to if you don't
36:23mind me asking he's only treating me better
36:33you listen
36:41right because all the already i deal with that situation and that is a sweet thing right
36:46and they will let you tell me right there's no let you tell me right
36:51this is why where's where's who and this is why dcp benjamin tell me as a police officer
37:00i titled the different treatment under the suif information comes to police officers on duty
37:07well um let me just say um things like these could really hurt your heart because at the end
37:14of the day i'm saying you know um to whom much is given much is required and i'm saying that because
37:21the reality is that we understand even as police officers that nobody nobody is above the law
37:32nobody and that includes myself yes if i have done something or if a person if for some reason
37:39the police believe that hello uh something is in my house that should not be there there
37:46the police has a right to do that it doesn't matter my position it doesn't matter whether
37:51i'm a police officer and at the end of the day i believe that there should be a level of
37:56transparency integrity and accountability so when we we start to see ourselves and believe that
38:04as police officers that we should be treated differently i i totally disagree with that
38:10that statement uh nevertheless it's unfortunate i would want to really um probably get a further
38:16report on this matter and and really get to the bottom of it uh but nevertheless i i could
38:21understand uh the gentleman probably was hurt and sometimes when we heard we probably might
38:25see things that we ought not to see but i think um the principle of the police service is that
38:30nobody's above the law and once uh the police has information it doesn't matter who it doesn't
38:36matter what we would deal with each person with that level of transparency that everybody goes
38:43across the board fear if we're going to be fair it must be fair across the board officer of his
38:50caliber should know that too complying with uh instructions and so on and doing the right thing
38:55you know certainly certainly uh we have a call on the line caller good evening a question to the dcp
39:03i heard the prime minister saying that um
39:17well again um i i tried to answer that question before and i i said that the commissioner will
39:23give a proper or official i think she has already given that statement in terms of what is the
39:30stance on it but i just want to say in relation to that that the police service we at this point
39:37in time we stand resolute on the fact that we are here to serve there is a heightened awareness and
39:45because of this heightened awareness in terms of what is going on with the crime situation 24 7
39:51all stations are going to be open i spoke to all of my divisional commanders by acps today
39:59and it is absolutely clear so far uh there's absolutely no uh no one could attest
40:07that the stations are closed but nevertheless we are saying that we are committed
40:13to the cause and we remain focused in terms of the work that we are called to do and if you
40:19are having any problem understand that you can be able to reach myself anybody and tell us because
40:28i would really like to know all the stations and the divisional commanders has
40:32pledged a commitment to ensure that decisions remain open 24 7 all right we're going to
40:37take more of your calls when we get back from this short break so stay with us
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42:10skills online here with this weirdo named larry i'm getting rid of him now
42:29let's take a selfie
42:32it looking good boy i'm putting it online
42:35hey i thought you said you went to the beach with your parents who's you it's me larry from online
43:06so
43:14welcome back to beyond the tape i'm your host mark besant with dcp junior benjamin of the
43:18trinidad and tobago police service he's here to take your calls of course and guess what
43:23we have a call on the line caller good evening yes good afternoon a pleasant evening to this
43:29officer benjamin and mr mark now now i'm hearing a lot of things about the officer
43:36they're doing um too much too much with many officers now i want to ask a question this
43:41afternoon they're calling those individuals who are committing the crime and so forth
43:50are they all not come from the bowels of the society come from a household
43:57they did not want to school and learn and so forth now where are the parents of these
44:03these individuals where are you then 15 year old 17 year old 18 year old children
44:12still belongs to educational system but they are already committing out from all kind of
44:18problems all over in the night where are these parents of these children things does not happen
44:24overnight it starts somewhere at the age group when they're supposed to be in school
44:31yes they're in school in trinity and the night what they're doing all over the place because
44:36parents are not taking the responsibility to discipline the children you just stated
44:43i can't handle you know now if you know that child doing something wrong they are the stations
44:49in invite our officer come and speak to him or something like that
44:53everything is the police is this one and that one where are the parents are we hearing parents
44:58name calling so well look they're supposed to have the responsibility take it up i definitely
45:05show mr benjamin as an officer you went to school we all went to school and discipline
45:12and discipline having where you stood in the same thing to you i am also where are the
45:20village to bring up a child is that going to the bamboo
45:26too much problems we all come from the bowels of society
45:30and we elders suppose parents selling down go tell my child nothing parents going to school
45:39to discipline children so children see what's going on and they don't care
45:45something's supposed to start from the home the house
45:49you have a house we don't have a home because there is no love peace of mind you all have a
45:53blessing yes you know again that that that's so that is such a on point statement and again
46:02sometimes we forget that really everything starts with the family yes and and really and truly you
46:08know before we could blame the police before we could even blame and the first institution is that
46:14of the family and therefore it's so important that we when we seek to look at the root cause
46:19of the problem that we do not forget that the family unit is so important yeah and then you
46:24know you also have the advent of some of the these single parents struggling because you know your son
46:30is in a particular way we would following the wrong company and i think the relative would have
46:35summed up in the interview with the young man who passed last night about the fact that he was
46:41following the wrong company and you could see from the video of him sitting on that street corner
46:46there with with a mask on or pulling half of it and leading mr christmas list to a area where
46:55he met a man holding a automatic weapon wearing a mask you know so obviously he was 17 at the
47:04time because he was 18 when he was killed last night so i i imagine probably would have been 17
47:08a couple months ago or so but even so very young man whole life ahead i was in a group with some
47:15police officers who were saying that they know the the the parents of this young boy and they're very
47:21upstanding citizens of the country so where did they go wrong or where did he go wrong because
47:28sometimes yes we want to always blame the parents but the parents will try as best as they can
47:33but then the children are not listening even if yes and that is you know really unfortunate
47:40and i think that you know we really need to work on somehow you know teaching our children the
47:46importance of having mentors we need to ensure that we seek to direct their minds to understanding
47:56you know the truths about life and i recognize even as a young person when i was growing up
48:03the importance of really seeking to have a spiritual awareness that also is something that
48:09we don't talk much about but it is also very important as we seek to really change the
48:15mindsets of our young people so that they can really be much more productive citizens in trinidad
48:20tobago and as he spoke about you know the old school way you know if if you're growing up in
48:26a village and you see some adult child doing something long time you just call them you can
48:31even give them a cocktail as he but now if somebody says something to your child in his
48:38school the parent is coming to square up against the other parent remember there was an incident
48:42a couple months about where we actually saw that happening in south trinidad where there
48:47were some problems between these two students they met with the teachers the parents and then they
48:52came out and fought outside so there must be a level of discipline you have to teach your children
48:58and the intern must perpetuate that when they go to school and they interact with their peers
49:03yeah and i think a lot of times the role models and we have to understand that is important that
49:08we we need to be as parents we need to be good role models for children and i think sometimes
49:15what you see children act out is what they see at home sometimes and therefore i think that it
49:20behooves you know parents to make sure that you become that role model that your child would want
49:26to follow and you know as again you know when that does not happen you can see a lot of things
49:32a dysfunctional family can bring forth a dysfunctional child well certainly we can we can
49:37stand there and talk about that for many hours we're going to take a short break and we'll be
49:42back after this stay with us
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52:02welcome back to beyond the tape i'm your host mark besant with dcp junior benjamin of the
52:11trinidad and tobago police service you just have a few minutes i just wanted to ask him a couple
52:15questions as it relates to the soe i know i i just wanted to know if there's any protocols
52:21in terms of you know putting out photos of persons of interest during this sre to assist the police
52:27in in perhaps or the public in getting information to them to find these people if they need be
52:33found well i can see um thus far this is something that is engaging the attention
52:39of the ttps um especially our legal team we want to make sure that again because you don't want
52:47to have put up put somebody face out there and then you know it might uh probably end up in some
52:54legal ramifications so again this is something that we would we we would trade very cautiously
53:01on and um once we recognize that because we have all legal advisors um once it is passed and we
53:09believe that that could be done uh these are different tools that can be used around the sre
53:15to help us to again uh seek to at least capture those persons that might for some reason threaten
53:23the public safety of tunica tobigo um if that's if once it could be done we will consider it but
53:29it's presently engaging the attention of our legal team all right we're going to take a quick call
53:34from a caller caller good evening gentlemen good evening and all the best of the new year
53:39same to you sir mr bassant last year i called to find out about the eagle eye program i don't know
53:47if the officer can tell me how much police station is this news of the eagle eye program
53:54i'll listen up the year i'll leave it there thank you thank you so the eagle eye uh
54:01project uh is one of those that has been rolled out it started out in the uh north central division
54:07in the turnipuna station and um since then uh we've seeked to roll it out uh it's part part and parcel
54:17been rolled out in uh northeastern division i remember going to a meeting in western division
54:23and we had them uh at least speaking to the various divisions so it is something that is
54:28again slowly being rolled out in the various divisions but right now um the north central
54:34division they are the one who started the project and they are the one that are really using it
54:39to its optimal and again we have others coming in slowly because it's one where you would really
54:45need the station council uh to really be the one to fuel it it is not where the police fuel it is
54:52where the station council that is part and parcel working with the police to get it done and you
54:58know having an understanding that you need the business community to play a part in order to for
55:04it to really be a success so it is something that is being rolled out and based on the feedback
55:10that will determine the success in the various division but i know at least three divisions
55:14so far the conversation has started and we believe it can't bear fruit in the future all right just
55:21one quick question if you can in 30 seconds uh is there simply tdps considering you know perhaps a
55:26voluntary rewards offering for information leading terrorists during the state of emergency well that
55:32is always uh something that um again any any way we can have information we are going to take it
55:38and um that has been something in the past it's something once we have the finances set aside for
55:44it is something that certainly um could be a consideration and we again will look at it even
55:51as a tool in the future once we have the finances to support it all right i guess i pose this promise
55:57will only work if the public is confident that their tips will indeed be properly investigated
56:02by the police yeah and it has to and it has to be there has to be a proper system in place because
56:07again again people confidentiality is something that is also very important so again we're going
56:13to go with a system that you know would have um had that kind of thing whether it's uh you know
56:19500 tips or so but it's something that we can work with all right we're gonna leave it there
56:24thanks so much dct benjamin from taking time off his busy schedule repeat tonight at 11 30 we run
56:31at 11 o'clock guess what the tv6 news is up next stay with us
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