00:00Mr. Speaker, in essence, the Ministry of Education failed to link the introduction of the school-oriented policing initiative to
00:10an increase in other programs which actually address the root cause of school violence.
00:16Opposition MP and former Education Minister Dr. Nayan Gatsby-Dolli as she began the debate of her motion in the
00:23House of Representatives.
00:24On March 4th and 5th, 2026, the nation awoke the media headlines which screamed classroom chaos and trouble in schools,
00:37despite the assignment of police officers to schools by the UNC government to reduce school violence.
00:45This sent a clear signal to the nation that something is going very wrong in the education sector.
00:54And therefore, debate today on this motion brought by the opposition is timely and critical.
01:01Education Minister Dr. Michael Dowlath told the lower house that between 2022 and 2025, 22,000 suspensions were recorded in
01:10the school system, of which 3,700 were for fights and 448 were for assaults involving weapons.
01:19The motion refers to armed police officers.
01:25We have developed the program for school-oriented police officers that are deployed in our high-risk schools.
01:35They are not there to militarize the schools, but they are there to support safety.
01:44Schools are selected for this intervention based on suspension data, on violent incident patterns.
01:54Minister Dowlath said that the factors include the vulnerability of the community in which the schools exist.
01:59The Ministry of Education came together with the Trinidad-Tobago Police Service and agreed on those risk factors for the
02:08choice of these 51 schools.
02:12And in addition, the TTPS has assigned 20 schools for roving patrols.
02:27The education minister said the role of the armed police officers is outlined in the National School Code of Conduct.
02:34The roles of the officers, the role of the officers, clearly defined.
02:39They operate within a child-centered framework guided by safety, dignity, respect for rights, and non-confrontational engagements.
02:50And these responsibilities include ensuring safety, responding to emergencies, mediating conflicts, supporting positive behavior, assisting vulnerable students.
03:03Opposition MP Christian Birchwood urged the government not to treat a social problem as a security problem.
03:11We must stop pretending that a police officer at any point in time can replace a social worker, a vocational
03:21coach, or a supported teacher.
03:24And I mean that with no disrespect because our police service, our police officers have the utmost respect for each
03:32and every one of them that get up and go to work and lay their lives on the line for
03:38everyone in the country.
03:39Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander provided recent data from the police service.
03:45This is a breakdown of the offences which students have been arrested and charged in connection with reports of incidents
03:53of school violence during the period of September to December 2025 academic year.
04:01Assault with a weapon, possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon, an assault with a weapon, possession of marijuana,
04:14possession of marijuana for trafficking.
04:17Both the Homeland Security Minister and the Education Minister thanked the Prime Minister Kamla Pissar-Bissessa for the school-oriented
04:24policing initiative.
04:25Debate on the opposition's motion is to continue at a future sitting of the House of Representatives.
04:32Jewel Brown, TV6 News.
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