NTA political leader, Gary Griffith has slammed a joint media conference by his country’s Ministers of National Security and Foreign Affairs.
In a statement hours after their briefing, Griffith said both ministers held a joint media conference not to speak on strategic issues pertaining to both areas, not to share a joint statement on the implementation of a robust, revised policy on National Security Management, not to address the skyrocketing murder rate, but instead, to highlight, again, a matter that transpired over three years ago, involving two men jointly accused of over 60 offences for sexual crimes against women.
Griffith said: “This constant repetition of the same old refrain, no doubt continues to highlight the Ministers in question folly as it pertains to their areas of focus. It also begs the question of this almost irrational approach in the light of what continues to be a dismal failure, particularly in the area of National Security. It appears the almost 100 instances of Police related killings over the past three years, never occurred.”
He added: “If indeed I am somehow responsible for what took place with the two men and we are shutting down units associated, then do we make the Prisons Commissioner responsible for the recent death of a prisoner? How about McDonald Jacob or Erla Christopher-Harewood, for the 100 police killings which took place after I was CoP? And do we shut down the Prison Service, the Coast Guard, the Defence Force or the IATF, GEB, Northern Division and other aspects of the TTPS because of deaths involving them?”
“Not saying that these should be shut down but if we are to be truthful, it is clear that certain persons wanted to shut down SORT for the one incident, because they were pegging back criminals, some of whom may have even been closely associated with government officials who paid them through big state contracts.”
“To correct the misinformation of Amery Brown, the SORT never received funding from the US Government and I challenge him and Hinds to prove otherwise.”
Additionally, Griffith claims, “The same US Embassy referenced by Brown, also approached me when I was CoP, to express their utter disgust that this PNM government has a cozy and close relationship with persons from another country who are not allies of theirs and who are considered a dictatorial led country.”
Griffith said: “What is also amazing is that Hinds, widely seen as the biggest failure of any Minister, mentions the words unsuitable and incompetent with regards to me, but he has not brought one policy or plan that had the effect of reducing crime and making citizens safer and more secure. In fact, while my tenures as Security Minister and CoP saw record reductions in crime, Hinds as Minister of National Security holds the record for the two most murderous years in our country’s history.”
“Regarding the audit report, I was never given the opportunity to respond to whatever was in the report, which violates the rules of natural justice, which makes it null and void, hence the lawsuit and eventual injunction which debarred them from laying it in Parliament. This is perhaps why they preferred to try to share it in Parliament where there are no legal consequences for lying.”
“Thankfully, the population will not be distracted by yet another attempt to repeat an almost three-year-old tale. The population is more interested in the recently announced lawsuit by Brent Thomas against Barbados, for his “Abduction” will reveal who were the Ministers involved in authorizing TTPS officers to leave our shores to conduct their illegal mission.”
Griffith said: “the other tired refrain of legal firearms has become almost comedy, as this country continues to pay the price of an influx in the illegal firearms trade, where, it appears this National Security Minister has no interest, as all they continue to lay focus upon are legal firearms and legal firearm holders.”
“I will continue to refer to those who rape, kidnap and kill innocent persons as cockroaches. When held, they should be behind bars and away from the public, not enjoying millions of dollars in taxpayers dollars, because your government deems them community leaders. So I will continue to fight for the rights of law abiding citizens while your Keith Rowley-led government continues to fight for the rights of criminals.