Al-Rawi to new municipal cops: TT will test your integrity

The first all-male batch of municipal police graduated on Wednesday, and Rural Development and Local Government Minister Faris Al-Rawi urged them to respect women and be honest.

The graduation ceremony occurred at the Southern Academy for the Performing Arts at Todd Street in San Fernando.

The graduating class (batch two of 2022) comprised 47 men. Al-Rawi, also the San Fernando West MP, said there had been a gender imbalance in the service, with most of the intakes being women.

Al-Rawi, the featured speaker, emphasised the importance of a properly balanced service to ensure power, protection, and comfort.

As the men start their careers as constables, he warned that their integrity would be tested.

“Keep your head up. TT will try to test you with bribery, with temptation, and you need to be very scrupulous, as cameras are always on you. You are in a digital world, and you will be immortalised digitally."

Al-Rawi said there were memes of him “in every different form possible.” That, he added, teaches humour.

Representatives from the 14 municipalities also attended.

Al-Rawi said the country was at a crossroads.

“We are blessed to be Trinidadians and Tobagonians. Therefore, we have a generous amount of picong. But if you look at the message in society, one of the main issues that everybody reflects upon is security, safety,” he said.

“We talk about a society that is crying out for honesty, hard work, and discipline. We reflect upon our society and those who are not doing so well, or those who are struggling.”

He said he saw many invisible people when he walks into his constituency and other parts of the country.

“Invisibility is when you are invisible to the bank because you are squatting. You do not own the land on which you sit that you cannot mortgage to get a loan whether for education or health or to build your house,” Al-Rawi said.

“Invisibility is when you are uneducated or undereducated, and therefore you cannot enter into that place where you hold your head up. Invisibility is when we live as the working poor, in poverty, or under difficult circumstances.”

Circumstances could include a family issue or depression.

Al-Rawi said: “In our society, there are pockets that look just like this. While we are crying out for more, a safer society with better distribution of resources, very few people stepped forward to become be counted.”

The graduating class laughed as he added: “Gentleman, today you start your journey regrowing your hair. Today start your journey as police constables. Today you start your journey as members of the police service.”

Like the permanent secretary Desdra Bascome who earlier gave remarks, Al-Rawi praised the men for being part of the ministry’s response team during flooding while they were still in training.

He saw them with shovels, sweat on their brows, “taking cuss” and distributing water to people.

Al-Rawi said the ministry would launch an app shortly so that people could connect and report issues in real-time.

Acting W/Insp Savitri Deoraj gave an overview of the training, which started in November, while ACP Surrendra Sugramsingh offered words of encouragement.

Graduand PC Avidesh Gayasingh gave the valedictory speech, sharing fond memories from meeting each other as strangers and being one family over the past few months.

Another graduand, PC Jesse Khan, entertained the audience with the song Tere Bin (without you).

WPCs Rachel Noel-Lewis and Regine Clement, retired TTR Cpl Tessa Richardson, and FSO Altethea Hickson-Asson, also entertained in songs.