00:00I think it's unfortunate because when the UNC was in opposition they had the
00:05answers for everything and they used to always shout about the importance of
00:12consultation and feedback from the public but this is the tenth month of
00:17leadership under the UNC and for seven of those ten months we have been under
00:22SOE so it tells me that the UNC doesn't have a plan for crime reduction.
00:29Kajo Lewis is asking where are the policies law enforcement and intelligence?
00:35It tells me that the UNC is not doing its work as it relates to policing, as it
00:41relates to intelligence in law enforcement, as it relates to the prevention of
00:48crime, training officers improving our science and our equipment and so on
00:54towards detecting crime and making sure that those who do the crime pay the
01:00time. The situation, she says, places Tobago's tourism thrust at risk. It's
01:05disappointing as a citizen, it's disappointing as a Tobagonian. We depend so
01:11heavily on tourism and to constantly be under a state of emergency. I remember
01:17when we will in government the Chamber of Commerce and so many Tobagonians, the
01:23tourism association would complain and I'm sure that they are feeling the pain now
01:29too. So what we'd like to see from the central government is a more focused crime
01:38plan, crime reduction plan and to take us out of this constant state of emergency.
01:45She said powers and the regulations in totality must be looked at keenly.
01:51Where we are giving police powers to soldiers who are not trained to do that
01:56type of work. Just last week we had an incident in Tobago West where a young man
02:02got into an accident with soldiers and they beat him up to a fuzzle and I'm
02:09saying these are the people who you're putting these, giving these powers to
02:14operate as police to break and to go into people's homes and to treat with
02:19people under state of emergency rules that they are not trained for. In addition to
02:29that I recognize there are some additional restrictions as it relates to freedom of
02:35expression in this state of emergency and it's interesting because when we were in
02:41government people were quick to say Dr. Rowley was a dictator and now this heavy level or
02:49this high level of censorship certainly feels like dictatorship. There is no real consultation.
02:55Elizabeth Williams, TV6 News.
02:58.
02:58.
02:59.
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