Tobago fisherfolk: Collaborate with public in crime fight

PRESIDENT of the All Tobago Fisherfolk Association (ATFA) Curtis Douglas is calling for stronger action against crime together with more collaboration between law-enforcement authorities and the public on the issue.

Douglas addresssed the issue as he spoke during a news conference on July 17 at the Milford Road Esplanade in Scarborough.

He said: “We are saying no to the crime industry in Tobago. We are calling on the government, make no mistake. If the government should collaborate with the public, if they collaborate in public partnership, I am telling you within Tobago, within a year to six months, this gun issue and high-powered (gun) issue will be no more.

“But when you exclude the people who knows and is scared, what do you expect? Not for it to continue?”

Douglas said there were some shortcomings in the fight against crime which needed to be urgently addressed.

“The first thing you have to do is to kickstart the Coast Guard. A man could leave Venezuela, and walk from Venezuela with a crocus bag of guns and walk straight into Tobago.”

The political involvement in handling the crime situation, he said, has also being a hindrance.

“Take out the politics and put the people who actually know what is going on and treat with it, and they should use Tobago as a pilot project to extend to Trinidad.”

Head of the Tobago Diving Association Alvin Douglas also spoke on the issue at the media conference.

He said, “The police is part of our community, they come from us. They need to go back into the communities, because you cannot solve crime if you separate yourself from the community.

“In fact, I would say all the security forces have separated themselves from the community, and that is one of the main reasons why you have the proliferation of crime that is escalating day by day.”