00:00I remember someone saying over and over that the voice of the people is the voice of God.
00:06So when you become afraid of the voice of the people, by extension, you don't want to hear God anymore,
00:12and that is cause for serious concern.
00:15Temporary PNM Senator Larry Lalla is urging the people of Trinidad and Tobago not to silence themselves amid the continued
00:24extension of the government's emergency powers.
00:27And I'm surprised, you know, I'm surprised that we continue not to say more about it.
00:34You know, we cannot take our democratic rights for granted because, I don't mean this government, any government will want
00:43to push and see how far they could go and what they could get away with.
00:49And it is up to us, the people, to let them know that, you know, this is wrong.
00:53Lalla notes just last week the Law Association had coerced to issue a statement challenging the government on the SOE
01:01restrictions.
01:03He says, as it stands, even members of the profession are afraid to speak up, and he's warning of the
01:09impact on the national psyche.
01:12You hear often persons saying, well, look, they're afraid to say anything.
01:17And when we have that sort of attitude, taking a foothold in Trinidad and Tobago and becoming a norm.
01:26Look, yesterday I saw in one of the newspapers, they were looking for persons to comment on the preventative detention
01:33orders that are in effect.
01:34And the newspaper was saying that even lawyers were afraid to speak.
01:39Malon, when we are at a stage where lawyers are afraid to come out and have their views heard publicly,
01:45we are definitely in trouble.
01:47His comments come as a number of people are currently detained under the emergency powers without charge, including a prominent
01:56businessman and his wife.
01:58But it is wrong to use the PDO as a substitute for police investigation and charge.
02:05Detain people, keep them for weeks or months, and then release them without being charged.
02:11That cannot be accepted as normal practice, governmental practice, police practice in Trinidad and Tobago.
02:21We are all in danger, every one of us, if we allow that to be accepted.
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