Kamla: Dillon's tenure fighting crime 'disastrous'

Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar said National Security Minister Edmund Dillon was a good person but his performance fighting crime was "disastrous" and more children have been murdered and gone missing under him.

She was contributing to debate on an Opposition motion of no confidence in Dillon in the House of Representatives on Friday.

She said the headlines about Dillon included "Dancing Dillon," "Dillon dodging," and "More deaths under Dillon." She stressed the first duty of any government was to protect its citizens but "this Government under this Minister of National Security has failed."

Persad-Bissessar questioned how many times Government members would blame the police and the previous administration had the same police, Prison Service and Defence Force but was able to bring serious crime down to the lowest in three decades.

"What changed is the PNM in government."

She said the criminal element had found refuge and prospered as it always had under the PNM. She said while Port of Spain North/St Ann's West Stuart Young spoke about terror threats he spoke nothing about the increase of home invasions and kidnappings.

"He does not care because he could afford to pay ransom."

She said while they were debating in Parliament a woman in a law office in Chaguanas had her throat sliced from ear to ear. She advised the Government that instead of mud slinging about bottles and who smoking weed they should say what they were doing to deal with crime.

She said under Dillon: morale in law enforcement was at an all time low; more members of law enforcement had been killed; homes had become prisons, businesses hunting grounds and communities killing fields; more than 1,300 citizens murdered; lost more than 50 women to crimes; more women under attack; criminal gangs at all time high; unprecedented level of lawlessness and viciousness in Tobago; and more children have been murdered under this Government than any other administration in the history of the country."

She said six months ago the country was mourning the death of murdered 15-year-old Joshua Andrews, recently 16 year-old Joshua James and soon the first anniversary of the slaying of 13-year-old school boy Videsh Subar. She asked if Government understood the heartache of the families but had nothing to show for their fight against crime.

"PNM to them means 'People Never Matter'."