Griffith: PNM, Express, Law Assoc share blame for rise in crime

THE spate of murders and other serious crimes can be blamed on both the PNM and the Trinidad Express Newspaper, political leader of the National Transformation Alliance (NTA) Gary Griffith has said.

In a media release on Tuesday, Griffith congratulated the newspaper after it “firmly points the finger at the PNM government” for its role in runaway crime. He went further to accuse the paper of having “agents” who discredited his initiatives responsible for reducing the murder toll for 2020 and the first eight months of last year.

“From September 2020 to August 2021, the country saw (fewer) than 350 murders. The lowest in 15 years. In contrast, September 2021 to August 2022, saw 586 murders, the highest in any 12-month period, which seems set only to be surpassed by the whole of 2022, as we’re on track for over 600 murders, for the first time in our nation’s history. The Express will attempt to ignore these numbers or explain them as ‘covid-related.’”

He added that in November 2021, during a state of emergency, a curfew, and with public health regulations in place to combat the pandemic, the country had its most murderous month, with 69 murders recorded. That was clear evidence that covid was not responsible for the record numbers he said.

Griffith said as police commissioner, he and the country had to “endure” over 80 consecutive negative stories in the Express as well as government leaking stories against him.

“They took pages out of the PNM’s playbook...so that they will get their people to believe it. When challenged in court to provide even one witness, one suspect, one report, one shred of evidence, they had to stay silent, because there was nothing.”

Griffith also took aim at the Law Association (LATT) for its silence on the handling of the merit list for CoP candidates, which saw the collapse of the Police Service Commission (PSC) at that time.

“The President Paula-Mae Weekes, and the Prime Minister, Dr Keith Rowley, faced questions of not adhering to the Constitution and of possible interference into the operations of an independent body. The business community also failed to register their concerns, with the exception of a few, perhaps because of fear of victimisation.”

Not sparing anyone, Griffith said civic society, with organisations such as Fixin TNT, also remained quiet on the merit-list issue even while it was vocal against him as police commissioner.

“In the end, however, we agree with the Express when they wrote, 'Based on his (Rowley’s) insistence on retaining the clueless Fitzgerald Hinds in the National Security portfolio, we have to assume the Prime Minister likes it so.' But it must be added, based on the actions of the Express Newspapers, through its agents, we the people of TT, must also conclude that the Express likes it so.”