Dark day for Trinidad and Tobago

ON JANUARY 28, Erla Harewood-Christopher was presiding over a promotion ceremony at the Police Administration Building, Port of Spain, urging four new inspectors and 77 new sergeants to recognise “the importance of integrity.”

Two days later, the top cop was arrested and is treated as a suspect in relation to a criminal investigation led by senior officers whom she would have posed with for pictures at the promotion ceremony, just days prior.

This fast-paced sequence of events has thrown the TTPS, the national security apparatus and, indeed, the entire country into a state of unease and trepidation.

It is an extraordinary turn for someone who made history on February 3, 2023, when MPs unanimously approved of her appointment as Commissioner of Police.

But as much as these developments are astonishing, it is the most ordinary of principles that must now take precedence – due process must prevail.

Ms Harewood-Christopher has the same rights as any other citizen, even if a state of emergency, ironically declared at her request, has limited some of those rights. Among those rights is the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Suzette Martin, who reportedly supervised the probe that led to this development, on January 31 at a media briefing assured that the police service continues to “function without disruption.”

If only we could take comfort in this.

Ms Martin had to correct herself when asked if there was a precedent for a top cop being arrested, initially not citing the famous case of Randolph Burroughs. She also did not provide clarity on whether Ms Harewood-Christopher was “detained” under SoE powers versus ordinary arrest. Nor did a legal officer present.

Notwithstanding the brave faces put on by all the officials who faced the country in that briefing – with some even attempting to deflect attention by speaking of “successes” in the SoE – confidence in the police, which was already strained, has been severely damaged.

Some of the top brass present in the briefing room appeared visibly shaken and shell-shocked.

Howsoever this matter unfolds – no wrongdoing has been proven; reports have emerged suggesting Ms Harewood-Christopher fell ill – the taking in of the top cop in relation to a probe as serious as this one is a dark day for the country.

It paints a picture of a tainted police force, a force already damaged by 2024’s record murders, reports of corruption and complicity, and the paralysis of bodies like the Police Service Commission and the Police Complaints Authority when it comes to being watchdogs.

At the same time, it is a startling demonstration of the fact that no one in this country is above the law.

In this regard, the officers who arrested the top cop, quite literally their boss, have loudly proven a point.