00:00A call for the revamping of social protection documents in Trinidad and Tobago to strengthen
00:05the national social safety net to effectively address the needs of vulnerable people in this
00:10country. It comes from Dr. Hanif Benjamin, clinical and forensic traumatologist.
00:15And so we must be able to see how our social tapestry works in this country or not work.
00:21And we need to fix that. Marlon, we need people who understand social work and understand the
00:27social movement in order to bring about real change. We need people who understand child and
00:33adolescent development and to understand why children behave the way they behave.
00:38He further stated that youth development in TNT is also important for the nation's future
00:43as it plays a key role in economic growth, social progress and national development.
00:49Dr. Benjamin pointed out that by investing in young people, the country can create a
00:54skill the workforce, foster civic engagement and promote positive social change.
00:59When I worked out of the United States, you could not graduate high school without,
01:05how do they call this thing, volunteerism. You had to have 200 volunteer hours.
01:11We need that where our young people will understand how to just care for vulnerable people
01:16because we have children who have no concept of vulnerability. And so we need to include in
01:22our systems where we bring in young people. So we have to actually be deliberate and not
01:27leave it up to our principle if a class go on or on a field trip. It must be brought in and it must be
01:34written in. Marlon, we need to develop our young people in ways that is beyond math and English.
01:40And on the issue of mental health, Benjamin had this to see.
01:44I am willing to lead a team with lawyers who can revamp our legal system in relation to
01:51legislation about mental health. We need to come up. We are now using the international code 10 and 11,
01:59but our laws are still tied to 1980 codes. We cannot work without our labor laws. We need to infuse
02:08mental health. Sharla Kistu, TV6 News.
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