Former Minister in the Ministry of National Security, Keith Scotland, is today responding to claims about the state of affairs in the Ministry made earlier this week by Minister of Homeland Security, Roger Alexander. Here's more from Dominic Ramroop.
00:00Earlier this week, Minister of Homeland Security Roger Alexander claimed that he met institutions filled with emptiness, a lack of vision and thought, and a lack of resources as it pertains to the Ministry of National Security.
00:13But former minister in the Ministry of National Security, Keith Scotland, is today refuting those claims.
00:19It's an unvarnished untruth, and there seems to have been a lot of words, but there were no specifics.
00:29So let me drill down to specifics.
00:31If the minister, Honorable Minister of Homeland Security, were to be honest, he would tell you that the 1592 vehicles that he was seeing on the media commissioning the new vehicles for the police force, those were vehicles that were commissioned and they were ordered under the PASS regime.
00:56Scotland also referenced the annual budgetary allocation for the Ministry of National Security as evidence of the previous government's support.
01:04You would see, and you can go back to look at the resources that was put into national security, for the past nine years, apart from maybe health or education, it would be the third, sometimes the second largest allocation, and that is the resources, the usage of the resources, that's a different story.
01:30NICK SCHIFRIN- Scotland is calling on the current minister to be honest with the public, stop making excuses, and refrain from politicizing one of the country's major issues.
01:39We understand the position that he has been there, what, since the 28th of April, so that's coming on to two months.
01:49So, and I am not one who would want to lay a blame game when it comes to crime, for the simple reason that crime affects us all.
01:59But the first step I would demand is honesty, and to say that, and to use it as an excuse, is unacceptable.
02:07As it relates to crime, it is not an issue, in my view, that ought to be politicized.
02:16The former minister in the Ministry of National Security says there's no honeymoon period as relates to crime, and wonders aloud if there is a lack of capacity in the new regime, since he has not seen any evidence of campaign plans and promises coming to fruition.
02:31There have been promises, much touted crime plans, bold promises to address violence and criminal activity in this country.
02:41I ask you to point after seven weeks to one, just one, if you give me one plan coming out of the Ministry of Homeland Security that addresses that issue, at least on a short-term basis, I will say I am incorrect.
02:58But there's none, and that is a cause for concern.
03:02Scotland is also of the opinion that the government's mishandling of the CPEP review situation could have a part to play in any increases in the crime rate.
03:11Do you think that the firing of 10,500 people, forget the contractors, let's give it to the workers, do you think that that will help the crime situation in Trinidad and Tobago?
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