PM: Post-protest committee about ‘actual responses’

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley

THE PRIME Minister said the recently announced community recovery programme committee will develop and implement an action plan.

He was responding to a prime minister’s question in the House Friday on the timetable proposed for the report of the Cabinet-appointed committee. Rowley said the committee was just mentioned a few hours ago and had not met, and therefore the question was premature.

On Thursday, at a post Cabinet media briefing, Dr Rowley said the committee, formed after two days of protests in East Port of Spain and other areas, will examine and establish the causes of disquiet and dissatisfaction among disenfranchised communities throughout the country. The committee will be headed by Anthony Watkins, whom the Prime Minister described as having spent his life working in social pathology, mental health, correctional services and psychiatric forensic assessment.

Joining him will be radio personality Hans Des Vignes; community activist and former national football coach Jamaal Shabazz; life coach Curtis Toussaint; Culture Minister Dr Nyan Gadsby-Dolly; social entrepreneur Akosua Edwards; and community activist Nicola Harvey of Laventille.

In the House Friday Oropouche East MP Dr Roodal Moonilal asked the Prime Minister if he was aware of a 2013 extensive 437-page report “No Time to Quite: Engaging Youth At Risk” led by Professor Selwyn Ryan which addressed the exact same set of issues to be addressed by the Watkins committee.

Rowley replied: “If those issues were addressed, like my good friend would like us to believe, I would like him to assist by telling us how it was addressed. Because the way it was ‘undressed’ by (the) Life Sport (programme under the previous administration) is quite different to what is being done now. This committee is to create an action plan for determining and taking actual responses to the situation. We are not Life Sport believers.”

Moonilal then asked if the Prime Minister believed this was a proper use of both time and resources to establish a committee to do the exact work that was done before by another committee appointed by another cabinet.

Rowley replied: “The misunderstanding of the situation that is being demonstrated by my colleague from Oropouche East in no way hinders what is going to be done by this committee and this Government.”

Moonilal asked whether Government was embarking upon the work of a committee mere weeks before a general election so an incoming government would have to pay for the work, but House Speaker Bridgid Annisette-George ruled him out of order.

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