00:00Speaking on the Morning Edition, former National Security Minister Gary Griffith questions the effectiveness of the current crime-fighting strategy,
00:09insisting that the focus must shift from increasing police numbers to strengthening leadership and improving the quality of policing.
00:18He argues the problem is political behavior as well.
00:22What has caused the problem, I think the biggest issue that has caused the catalyst, I should say, for gang
00:28-related activity that has caused the escalation and building has been government after government giving state contracts to gangs.
00:36They feed the gangs, they hope that it will assist them in getting votes, and then when you play with
00:41filthy animals, you will get fleas.
00:43Turning to the recent detention and questioning of prominent business figures, Griffith applauds the TTPS's handling of the investigation.
00:52Saying, the release of information must remain on a strict need-to-know basis to protect the integrity of the
00:59process.
01:00If the police only made a mistake to even publish what it is the persons are being held for, and
01:06then there is nothing,
01:07it is going to escalate the taxpayers' bill of how much they have to pay these individuals.
01:12So that is why what the police are doing, it is spot on, it is a matter that is ongoing,
01:17and you do not want to make any comment that can affect the investigation, or even to target other persons
01:23to tip them off.
01:24Griffith also sought to clarify the role of the U.S. Navy SEALs, stressing that they are not in Trinidad
01:30and Tobago to conduct crime-fighting operations,
01:33but to train and strengthen local tactical units.
01:37This unit will provide situations such as counter-terrorist activities, counter-revolutionary warfare,
01:45dealing with the extraction of someone who is a hostage,
01:48clinical operations for incision to deal with a situation to neutralise that problem and to get out.
01:55All of those things require an elite unit, which is what we needed and that was recommended since the attempted
02:02coup.
02:02Nicole M. Romany, TV6 News.
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